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Live-In vs. 24-Hour Home Care – Which is Right for Me?

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If you’re considering full-time home care for yourself or a loved one, it helps to understand the benefits of live-in versus 24-hour home care. Both are great options in place of assisted living as they allow you or your loved ones to benefit from support and companionship from the comfort of their home.  

 

We will walk you through the pros and cons of each and what makes each more suitable for different needs and home situations. If you are looking to speak to somebody you can learn more about either live-in or 24-hour home care services by contacting Senior Care Companions through their website here.  

 

In this article, we will help you get started with a bit more information, so let’s dive in and examine some of the similarities and differences between the two to give you a better idea of what will be right for you.  

Live-In Care 

 

As the name would suggest, live-in care does mean that you or your loved one will have a person living in 24-hour shifts at the home. This does require accommodations – a room and a bed so that they may sleep during their 8-hour sleep breaks. The caregiver is also granted a 4-hour break in which they are allowed to leave the home. 

 

If coverage is required during those 4 hours, usually caregivers will arrange with a family member, but if this isn’t possible, you can arrange to have another caregiver cover the 4-hour break. 

 

This is true as well for the 8 hours during which the primary caregiver sleeps. This means that you or your loved one will only need to employ 2 – 3 caregivers total to cover the week, as they can work only a maximum of 4 12-hour shifts or 5 8-hour shifts per week. To recap:  

 

  • 1 caregiver per 24 hours  
  • 8-hour sleep break 
  • 4-hour break 
  • The flat rate per day includes a 4-hour break 

Pros 

 

Fewer caregivers allow for more consistent care and for you or your loved one to build a stronger relationship.  

Cons 

 

The cons arise from the need for sleep and a break. The caregiver is not able to directly supervise you or your loved one while they are sleeping. It is possible to get coverage for these times, however, that would incur another charge.  

 

24-Hour Home Care 

 

While live-in home care has significant benefits in the consistency of care, it faces a challenge in maintaining that standard where more constant care is required. Depending on the level of care that you or your loved one needs, you may wish to consider 24-hour home care.  

 

Rather than having a single person taking breaks over shifts that last for 3 – 4 days at a time, you will have a fresh set of ears, eyes, and hands to assist you every 8 – 12 hours. This makes 24-hour home care an ideal choice where care and support are needed throughout the day and night. 

 

While this does lead to more people coming through the home, it is also helpful in situations where space for a live-in caregiver is not available. If this is the case, the number of caregivers and cost can be reduced in situations where they can sleep.  

 

  • At least 2 caregivers working 8 – 12-hour shifts 
  • Optional sleep break billed hourly if awake and flat rate if able to sleep 
  • Hourly billing in during the day 

Pros  

 

The major benefit associated with 24-hour home care is the ability to have constant care. With either 2 caregivers working 12-hour shifts or, where more alertness may be required, 3 caregivers working 8-hour shifts, constant care is assured. 

 

Cons 

 

The drawback to having constant care is that more people are coming through the home and at a higher cost. 

 

What Makes Live In or 24-Hour Home Care Right for Me? 

 

Generally speaking, the first consideration for making this decision is the level of care that is required. If a more relaxed program of care is needed at this point, then a live-in caregiver may be able to provide everything necessary.  

 

With this, of course, space is a consideration and may be the deciding factor as well. If a higher level of care is needed – especially round-the-clock, you may find 24-hour care to be more suitable.  

 

The best thing to do is to speak with the highly experienced and compassionate specialists at Senior Care Companions to learn more about what is right for you. 

Care for seniors during the holidays and home help services for the elderly to create fun holiday activities for seniors.

Seniors need attention and love during the holidays, just like everyone else. Unfortunately, some people forget to visit their loved ones during the busiest times of the year. 

Finding ways to take care of seniors during the holidays is extremely important. Doing so involves helping them with their physical, mental, and emotional needs. Let’s look into the ways you can take care of seniors during the holiday season.

Hire a Service

Some seniors might not be able to help themselves with different tasks such as:

  • Mobility to go places
  • Remembering important details and schedules
  • Assistance with motor skills

Whatever you may need, we here at Senior Care Companions can help. We offer various services to help seniors each day. You can find assistants to help them 24/7, or just a few hours of the day.

 

While you should help seniors when you can, you may need professional help. After all, you can’t be at their sides 24/7, so see if you can find a reliable service to look after them.

Plan Fun Activities

Seniors can face boredom during the holidays, especially if they don’t have people to spend time with them. Coming up with fun activities you can do with one another is important to their mental and emotional wellbeing. Potential activities include:

  • Sit down and play board games together
  • Enjoy holiday activities like eating or watching movies
  • Go for a walk through the park

Focus your attention on letting them have fun. Doing so can help you take care of them emotionally and mentally. For example, they could feel happy after the activities or thankful you thought of them.

Seniors can potentially become lonely and depressed during the holidays, so take the time to plan fun activities for them. Doing so can help them overcome the mundane and boring moments in their lives.

Prepare Them Ahead of Time

Some seniors may like to stick with their schedules. If you know seniors like this, you should prepare them before any activities. Some seniors may have health problems, so make sure you accommodate them. 

You can do this in multiple ways such as:

  • Ensure they have a way to safely reach the areas if they have to use wheelchairs
  • Give them specific food if they have dietary restrictions
  • Show them pictures of who they’ll see at the event if they suffer from memory loss

You don’t want to worry them, so make sure you take some time to talk and prepare. This can help them understand the plan and feel comfortable during the activity.

Visit Them Regularly

Often people forget to help seniors with their mental and emotional health during the holidays. If you want to help them during the holidays, just visiting them is an easy way to make their day.

Visiting seniors can help them out in many ways:

  • Allows them to talk with someone
  • Shows them others care about their well-being
  • Help them with tasks or anything else they need

When you visit a senior, you can help them feel happy. You can also help them avoid feelings of loneliness or boredom if they have to live away from home. Even if you have seniors in your life who live on their own, you should visit them during the holidays.

Seniors recognize the time you take to visit them, so they’ll appreciate your efforts.

Ask Them What They Want

Sometimes, people try to make decisions for seniors, so you should communicate when possible. If you communicate with them, you can avoid some problems.

  • Ensure they do something they like and avoid boredom
  • Meet their personal needs and keep them safe
  • Learn more about them and their interests

These points can help you find an activity that will make the seniors happy. You don’t want to drag them to an activity they don’t like, so you need to communicate with them. That way, you can find something you’ll both enjoy. 

 

Some people forget to remember each senior as a person. Make sure you show these seniors you care by asking them what they want. As you do so, you can form stronger relationships with them. 

Final Comments

The holidays give you a great opportunity to show your love to the seniors in your life. Whether you want to help relatives in your family or the local seniors, you can make the holidays better for them.

If you want to help these seniors out, try out the ideas above. If you need assistance in taking care of the seniors in your life, reach out to Senior Care Companions.

Have any Questions? Just give us a call, we would love to help in any way.

“Quality Care You Can Trust – Since 2004”

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