When the time comes to move either yourself or someone you care for into the care of a professional, differentiating between the benefits and drawbacks between retirement homes and in-home care can be a daunting gauntlet. It's clearly of paramount importance that the needs of the person in question be put above all else, but often a negative stigma surrounding retirement homes can unfavourably influence the final decision that people make.
It is the aim of this article, then, to help those undecided make an informed decision by providing some insight into a true comparison between the options of a retirement home and in-home care.
- Retirement homes intrinsically provide around-the-clock care and access to help. Even low-level retirement villas will be populated by like-minded individuals who will be able to render assistance or call for aid when necessary. In-home care, on the other hand, may not offer dedicated care for every hour of the day, though the care provided can be viewed as more effective, as it is focused on only one person.
- Retirement villas can provide a more financially stable solution. Moving to close proximity to care providers minimises the direct costs of inciting care, but there is also the added benefit of not overlapping costs as would occur with in-home care. The alternative to this is that clients continue to pay for their household expenses while living at home, costs which can already be crippling, and will then have to pay extra on top of that to receive necessary in-home care. While this can often be a preferable option where it's affordable, it is largely unavailable or unfeasible for the majority.
- The social benefits of a retirement home, or even a community consisting of retirement villas, cannot be understated either. While the ability to remain in the familiarity of home whilst receiving care can be enough to lure people into going down that road, it can often lead to a solitary lifestyle outside of interaction with the carer. A retirement village provides the opportunity for socialisation with like-minded individuals and will often even provide planned events which are easily accessible for people in the community. Furthermore, retirement villas are generally designed to function as similarly to an otherwise regular community as possible, helping clients transition as smoothly as possible into the new environment.
All in all, the decision to move either yourself or someone you love into the care of another person is always an incredibly difficult one to make, and it's important to include all relevant parties in the decision-making process wherever possible. It may not be readily apparent which option is the best for each client, but if you can rest assured that you did your best to find the optimal scenario, then it's very likely you've made the right decision.
