Figuring out how to pay for a potential nursing home stay can be stressful. One the biggest reasons is that this long-term care can be extraordinarily expensive, costing you tens, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of dollars.
While there are certainly planning strategies that you can utilize to try to reduce your income and your assets so that you qualify for government assistance, there are other aspects of long-term care planning that you can’t overlook.
Common mistakes when choosing a nursing home
Although the biggest mistake is failing to prepare for your long-term care needs, a lot of errors are also made when the time comes to choose a nursing home. So, if you or a loved one are thinking about nursing home care, then you’ll want to be aware of these common mistakes and how to avoid them:
- Waiting too late to make a decision: Far too many people don’t choose a nursing home until they’re in an emergency situation where they need care immediately. This can force you to go with whatever home has availability rather than choosing the one that’s best for you or your loved one. So, you want to start the selection process as soon as you know that a nursing home stay is a possibility.
- Failing to consider assisted living: A lot of people are aware of nursing homes and the services they offer. Even though most people want to avoid being placed in a nursing home, they too often overlook assisted living options that may allow them to remain in their home while they receive care. Make sure that you and your loved one consider all care options before settling on a nursing home.
- Not talking to nursing home staff and residents: One of the best ways to figure out which nursing home is best is to talk to current residents and those who work there. By doing so, you can gauge what kind of care is provided and what the quality of life is like for residents. If there are safety concerns of any kind, then you’re probably going to hear about them from current residents who don’t want you and your loved one to face the situation that they’re confronting. Be diligent here in asking questions that are important to you.
- Not matching treatment to care needs: Not all nursing homes are created equal. Some may be better tailored to suit your or your loved one’s care needs, so you should seek out those nursing homes that are best positioned to provide the care that is needed. If you don’t do your homework, then you or your loved one might end up with a nursing home that falls short, which could leave you or your loved one in pain and without an appropriate quality of life.
An experienced elder care planning attorney may be able to assist
These are just some of the considerations that you need to take into account as you try to make a decision about nursing home care. As you can see, there are a lot of contributing factors, which can make the decision before you challenging and stressful.
An attorney who is well-versed in elder care planning may be able to help you from the beginning. That way you can ensure that you’re better positioned to have the resources that you need for long-term care and can make the care decisions that are best under the circumstances.