What are the Best Skilled Nursing Facilities?

When you’re searching for a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF), you and your loved ones will want to find the best community available. It’s a natural response, born of the realization that high-quality care is needed, and based on strong family ties that drive the want for nothing but the best, for those we love. When someone has cared for you your whole life, there is motivation to ensure this beloved person is cared for too. An additional layer of complexity comes with the balancing of care quality concerns, and the cost of care.

What to Look for When Searching for a Skilled Nursing Facility?

Generally, a Skilled Nursing Facility is one that can provide a higher level of care than is normally available in an Assisted Living Community. But the answer to the question of what to look for in a SNF isn’t a simple mathematical equation or product of checked boxes. It is a challenge to determine what’s “best” when it varies by individual needs. The Referah team provides seasoned, solid, case-specific recommendations to ensure the selection process meets those needs, irrespective of where a person is on the care scale.

Here’s what you can look for when determining the best SNF for you or your loved one.

Priorities and Necessities

The search for the right fit will always be driven by the facility’s ability to provide specific services. Those case-specific needs might include:

• On-site dialysis.
• 24-hour IV.
• Feeding tube monitoring.
• Assistance with safe transfers.

These are among, but certainly not limited to, the necessities that are needed for proper care.

The Skilled Nursing Facility will always have licensed RNs on staff who are managed by a Medical Director.

Assembling Your Personal Skilled Nursing Care List

When searching for the best Skilled Nursing Facility, you will want to create your own customized list of needs, and a to-do list. This may include questions to ask when evaluating Skilled Nursing Facilities, and reminders to schedule time to talk with the right people. Here are a few common items that may be included on your to-do list:

• Consult with the SNF’s medical team to determine how detailed and intensive the level of care will be and for how long that care will be needed.
• Use our Referah counselors to help narrow the search for appropriate, local communities.
• Ask for the ratios of patients to professionals at communities that interest you.
• Determine if Medicare is appropriate to assist in payment for the services rendered, as short-term stays may be covered.

If you would like to learn more about Skilled Nursing and what is included, view our article “What is a Skilled Nursing Facility?”

Can an Assisted Living Facility also be a Skilled Nursing Facility?

As a general rule, you’ll find that “blending” services narrows the available choices pretty dramatically. However, in separate sections of larger Assisted Living communities you might find Skilled Nursing floors or buildings.

Each would have its own living and dining capabilities, for example, but could still be under the same community umbrella. Short-term Skilled Nursing is available in some communities for those recuperating from (for example) a broken hip. There are even times when Medicare payment for services would be appropriate while the patient is in the “SNF” section, during rehab. As care needs become more complicated, the list of prospective properties becomes smaller.

How Can I Find the Best Skilled Nursing?

Cost vs Quality

The natural tendency when in the market for almost anything is to draw a direct line that correlates a higher cost to a higher level of care or product. However, someone seeking Skilled Nursing doesn’t want to be put in a position where they are paying for premium care for a community that isn’t their best fit. Referah counselors will help you make the right decision – one that is in the best interests of the resident, with the right number of resources and support.

Find a Skilled Nursing Facility in Your Area

With our team helping you determine the best Skilled Nursing Facility for you or your loved one, you will have what you need to find comfortable, affordable care. Lean on your Referah team. It’s why we’re here. Find a local Skilled Nursing Facility today.