If your loved one is living with dementia, there will come a time when they need the care and support of trained professionals. That may happen in their own home, or it may be better for all involved if they move into full-time care in a nursing home.
But it can be difficult to know when to make the move into a care home — and, ultimately, who should make that decision (especially if the person with dementia cannot make it themselves).
In this short post, we explain the benefits of a care home for dementia patients, how to know when the time is right to move, and Fulford’s approach to dementia care.
What are the benefits of a care home for dementia patients?
The first thing to know is that it’s perfectly normal to feel guilty when faced with the decision to move a loved one into residential care. However, taking that step is not a reflection of your abilities as a carer. In fact, it’s often the most responsible thing you can do — both for your loved one’s health and your own.
And the good news is there are several benefits to care homes for dementia patients, including:
- On-call, 24-7 support: Whether you live with your loved one or you try to visit several times a day, you simply cannot be available at all hours of the day. When they move into a nursing home, they’ll receive around-the-clock attention from highly trained professionals, including carers and nursing staff. They’ll also be seen regularly by a doctor.
- Social activities: Socialising can be particularly important for people with dementia. It can support brain health, improve focus, elevate mood, and allow them to make connections with those around them. You can read about Fulford’s social activities here — many of which have been selected to stimulate different parts of the brain.
- Quality family time: When you’re caring for a loved one with dementia, you’re around, but sometimes it feels like you’re not truly present. Your relationship can also become strained, changing the dynamic from partners or child-parent to that of a carer-patient. By making the move into a nursing home, you can resume your previous relationship, safe in the knowledge that your loved one is receiving the care they need from trained professionals. You can even enjoy quality family time during quiet visits or join in with one of several social activities.
How to know when the time is right to move a loved one with dementia into full-time care
The truth is, there’s no single perfect time to move a loved one with dementia into care.
Although difficult, speaking with your loved one while they still have the mental capacity to understand and make decisions for themself can be vital. If you know that they’re comfortable with living in a nursing home at some point, this can take a great deal of stress off your shoulders when the time comes to make the call.
However, it’s not always easy to plan ahead, and sometimes life can take an unexpected turn.
Your hand may be forced sooner than you’d like due to your loved one being admitted to hospital, worsening symptoms that cause challenging behaviour (such as aggression or agitation), or because you’ve become physically or mentally burnt out from being a primary carer.
Whether you know nursing home care is in your loved one’s future, or you’ve been thrown a curveball, and you need to act quickly, you’ll both be supported throughout the transition.
Read more: Dispelling Common Fears When Moving Into A Nursing Home.
Fulford’s approach to dementia care
Communication is central to supporting an effective transition from home to nursing home here at Fulford. We understand that no two people are the same, and every resident will have different abilities and different needs.
To make sure these are catered for, we use something called the VIPS framework, and our staff are all trained in this approach.
VIPS stands for:
- V = Values people – values and promotes the rights of the person.
- I = Individual’s needs – Provides individualised care according to needs.
- P = Perspective of the service user – Understands care from the perspective of the person with dementia.
- S = Social – Providing a social environment that supports psychological needs.
Within this approach, we use a checklist to make sure care is focused on the resident’s strengths, goals, and outcomes. This is called a strength-based approach, and it enables us to implement, deliver, and benchmark our well-being strategy.
You can read more about the VIPS framework and the checklist we use here.
We never lose sight of the fact that well-being should be regarded as highly as health and medical needs, and that people with dementia still have goals and aspirations.
If you’d like to learn more about our approach to dementia care here at Fulford, please contact us on 01904 654 269. We’re ready to listen and happy to help.