Retirement Home vs. Nursing Home: What's the Difference?
Many searching for a forever home for one or both of their parents wonder what’s the difference between a retirement home and a nursing home? Well, the goal of retirement homes is to provide aging adults with independence, recreational activities, safe areas for socialization, and close proximity to medical facilities. Nursing homes, on the other hand, provide medical and personal care in a clinical setting and are often for seniors that are either ill or dealing with mental issues or memory lapses like with dementia and Alzheimer’s. Both nursing homes and retirement homes should foster dignity and self respect in their residents.
What to Look for in a Nursing Home
A nursing home is a safe place for older adults who don't need to be in a hospital but can't be cared for at home. You’ll also want to find a nursing home that employs friendly staff, and offers your relative a warm and welcoming environment. Most nursing homes have nursing aides and skilled nurses on hand 24 hours a day. Some nursing homes are set up like a hospital. The staff provides medical care, as well as physical care and occupational therapy.
Nursing homes are also known as skilled nursing facilities or long-term care facilities that offer a wide range of health and personal care services. Their services focus on medical care more than retirement homes or assisted living facilities. These services typically include nursing care, 24-hour supervision, three meals a day, and assistance with everyday activities. Rehabilitation services, such as physical, occupational, and speech therapy, are also available.
Some older adults stay at nursing homes for a short time following a hospitalization. After they recover, they go home or to a retirement home. Many nursing home residents live there permanently because they either have ongoing physical or mental conditions that require constant care and supervision.
What to Look For in a Retirement Home
When searching for a retirement home for an aging relative, you’ll want to find a warm, welcoming facility that offers your loved one a similar style of living. Here are some amenities you’ll want to ask about:
- Recreation: A recreation schedule that has activities your loved one is fond of is essential for any resident to feel at home and enjoy the retirement community.
- Medical Care: When it comes to choosing a retirement community, you'll want to have a good understanding of the medical staff and care that is available to your older relative.
- Lifestyle: It’s essential that your relative feels like they have a similar lifestyle in the retirement home that either mirrors or is close to their lifestyle before seeking a retirement home.
- Maintenance: Understand whether the retirement community your relative is interested in handles maintenance issues or if you have to hire someone to do maintenance. While some retirement communities provide maintenance as part of their monthly fee, others charge for work that needs to be done in your apartment.
- Weather: Plenty of seniors from cold climates vow to retire in warmer climates that offer reasonably priced housing and facilities like Texas, Arizona and Florida. While the winters are milder, the summers can be hot. Make sure your relative understands the temperatures year-round and they are comfortable with their decision.
- Budget: A factor in choosing a retirement community is cost. When it comes to finding the right retirement community, your relative’s budget is often a deciding factor. Take a close look at your relative’s finances, including his or her life savings. Consider all the monthly bills to realize if your relative can afford it. While you may pay more for a retirement community, you may discover that your monthly bills are about the same. If the community requires additional fees along with the monthly fee then your relative needs to consider if he or she can afford it.
- Hassle-free lifestyle: Anyone considering moving into a retirement community wants to enjoy the best parts of retirement without any of the drawbacks. You’ll want to see your relative in a dynamic, fun-loving, maintenance-free lifestyle in a neighborhood setting that offers a great de3al of activities and amenities.
Village Green’s kind and dedicated team believes in growing relationships and enriching the lives of every resident. We are passionately committed to making a difference in our resident’s lives by providing supportive care, loving reassurance, and quality attention. We encourage independence and choice, while maintaining the balance of autonomy and well-being for each resident. At Village Green, we promote social-interaction along with physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. We aim to meet all of your loved one’s memory care needs.
Why Choose Village Green?
Village Green is an award-winning assisted living and memory care community that offers many housing options tailored to meet your relative's needs. Both independent and assisted living communities offer seniors the opportunity to form social relationships, pursue hobbies and interests, and remain active. View our campus floor plans including studio, one and two-bedroom apartments along with our cottages here.
You’ll quickly see we have impressive private suites, each featuring peaceful surroundings in a calm home setting designed to recreate what your relative has enjoyed his or her entire life. Interior spaces are decorated similar to tasteful private homes. Enclosed walking areas provide residents the opportunity to safely enjoy and explore their campus surroundings.
For the convenience of families living in and around Houston, Texas, Village Green offers assisted living and memory care communities in The Woodlands, Cypress, Champions, Conroe, Kingwood, Tomball, Rockwall, Mckinney, and Highland Village. All our locations are state-of-art, purpose-built with our residents’ needs in mind. We invite you to visit and tour our many assisted living and memory care campuses to see what each one looks and feels like so you can gauge our vibe, personality, and fit for your loved one. Touring our communities and getting your questions answered will go a long way to help you sleep easier once you have added reassurance and peace of mind that your aging loved one is in good hands.
Schedule a Visit with us Today!