Helpful guides for families comparing nursing homes, assisted living, memory care, rehab, retirement communities, and skilled nursing options.
Hospice can be provided in a nursing home, but the hospice team and nursing home have different responsibilities. Learn how Medicare hospice coverage, room and board, medications, equipment, and daily care fit together.
Ask how a nursing home arranges dental, podiatry, vision and hearing care, who schedules appointments, how urgent problems are handled, and how recommendations reach the care plan.
Labeling, inventory, laundry policies, replacement procedures, and realistic packing can reduce lost clothing in a nursing home. Learn what families should set up from day one.
A Friday or weekend nursing-home admission can work well when medications, orders, therapy, staffing, equipment, meals, and physician coverage are ready before arrival.
Families choosing skilled nursing rehabilitation can use Care Compare short-stay measures to ask better questions about rehospitalization, function, medication review, discharge, and staffing.
Use Medicare Care Compare beyond the overall star rating by reviewing inspections, staffing, turnover, short- and long-stay quality measures, penalties, and ownership.
A nursing-home ownership change can affect leadership, staffing, contracts, pharmacy, therapy, and quality priorities. Learn what families should re-check after a change of ownership.
CMS Special Focus Facility status signals a history of poor nursing-home survey performance and extra oversight. Learn the difference between an active SFF and an SFF candidate.
A nursing home’s emergency plan should address power loss, local hazards, medical equipment, evacuation, shelter-in-place, staffing, drills, and family communication.
Ask practical infection-prevention questions on a nursing-home tour about the infection preventionist, hand hygiene, outbreaks, staff illness, antibiotic stewardship, and recent citations.