Skilled Nursing Facilities Lack

[officerripley]

Someone I know who lived in a town about 30 min. from here, has recently moved into a SNF (skilled nursing facility). Even though there are a lot of SNFs in her town, my town, and another nearby town, the only one they had room to put her in is in a town that's about an hour and a half from here and where she lived (and her family still does). I don't know if it's because she's on MedicAid, or the kind of dementia she has or what, but now her family's going to have an hour and a half drive each way to see her.

Looks like we sure need more SNFs. I guess because people are living longer and what with the baby boomers starting to need care. (Although she's not a boomer, she's in her 90s.) But I guess it's mainly people living so much longer; the next door neighbor's mother just died at the age of 97 but needed care for the last 30 years due to dementia. Sure wish something could be done about all this.

 

[MACKTEXAS]

You said "the only one they had room to put her in is in a town that's about an hour and a half from here," which left the impression that the SNF (or SNFs) which are more convenient for the family had no vacancies at this time, but then you added, "I don't know if it's because she's on MedicAid, or the kind of dementia she has or what . . . ", which indicates the facilities that are more convenient for the family may not be equipped to care for her. So, it's not clear to me exactly why she was placed further out.

If it's just a problem of the closer facility not having an opening right now, then maybe she can get on their waiting list. These are generally private businesses, so unfortunately, there are no federal or state laws requiring a specific number of nursing homes for an area - at least not in my state.

 

[Aunt Bea]

Some neighbors of mine are dealing with that situation for their adult daughter.

Originally, when she was released from an upstate New York hospital the only option was a facility in New York City at the last minute a facility about an hour away was found.

It’s a hardship for everyone involved but the important thing is that she is receiving quality care at no cost to her or her family.

I’m not sure that it’s fair for us to expect the government to provide us with better insurance coverage and care than we are willing or able to provide for ourselves and our family.

The current system established when Lyndon Johnson signed The Social Security Amendments Act of 1965 into law that created Medicare and Medicaid is still much better than anything that ever existed.

Prior to that it would probably have been up to families to provide home/comfort care or pay out of pocket for nursing home/hospice care.

 

[Twostep]

Someone I know who lived in a town about 30 min. from here, has recently moved into a SNF (skilled nursing facility). Even though there are a lot of SNFs in her town, my town, and another nearby town, the only one they had room to put her in is in a town that's about an hour and a half from here and where she lived (and her family still does). I don't know if it's because she's on MedicAid, or the kind of dementia she has or what, but now her family's going to have an hour and a half drive each way to see her.

Looks like we sure need more SNFs. I guess because people are living longer and what with the baby boomers starting to need care. (Although she's not a boomer, she's in her 90s.) But I guess it's mainly people living so much longer; the next door neighbor's mother just died at the age of 97 but needed care for the last 30 years due to dementia. Sure wish something could be done about all this.

Without knowing specifics of the circumstances of "someone I know" there is really no way to even guess why someone was moved into a specific facility.

 

[StarSong]

Well said, @MACKTEXAS and @Aunt Bea. I will add that many SNFs are designed for short stays (uner 30 days). They may have a few long-term residents but SNFs are typically hospital stepdown providers of PT, OT, surgical recovery, etc., with specific rehab objectives.

In most SNFs, long-term beds can be hard to find but short-term beds open nearly every day.

If @officerripley's friend has "moved into" a SNF because of dementia, it's a pretty safe bet she'll be a long-term resident. I'm sorry for her and her family.

 

[Muskrat]

People confuse SNF facilities with assisted living facilities all the time. Patients with dementia need a different kind of observation than …for instance…cardiac issues. The distance is bad…but the fact she is going to a “skilled” nursing facility indicates her needing “skilled nursing” care. Double whammy if she has dementia. Sad…