Nursing Home Questions You Absolutely Need To Ask
Articles - Retirement
You need to make sure that before placing a loved one in a nursing home facility in your area, the safety, comfort, and quality of the home is up to par.
by SeanPatrick


You need to make sure that before placing a loved one in a nursing home facility in your area, the safety, comfort, and quality of the home is up to par.

It is important to ask the right nursing home questions to guarantee you have done your due diligence and feel good about knowing you went the extra mile for yourself or your loved one.

Be sure you are asking the right people - outside of staff members of the actual facilities you are visiting, you need to research a bit more thoroughly as they are usually biased towards the facility they work at.

Once you've asked the assisted living staff the appropriate questions, you may also want to ask these other sources:

-Local doctors: if you don't know of any, feel free to open up the phone book or Google doctors in your area. Doctors can provide great insight to senior living facilities as they occasionally do work their.

-Social networks: You'll be amazed at how many people are or were in your situation in the past. Don't be afraid to bring up your questions or concerns in conversation - chances are that if your immediate friends offer no advice then someone they know and trust will.

-Better Business Bureau: if any facilities in your area have had bad experiences in the past, chances are they have been reported to the BBB. Who knows, someone at the BBB could also point you in the right direction!

-Watchdogs: these organizations have been created over the years and are meant to educate and inform. Some examples would be the Texas Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (tahsa.org) and the Abuse Blog (nursinghomesabuseblog.com).

-Your local police department: your police department might provide some great insight to what facilities have had incidents in the past 5-10 years.

As you can see, the list could go on and on. These five sources are a great start - but you should do more due diligence to ensure you've done everything possible to get the right answers for your nursing home questions. Before you know it you'll have a much better grip on your concerns and hopefully be able to choose the place that is right for you or your family member!

DISCLAIMER: This article is provided as information only and is not to be taken as financial advice.