Care home vs private live in carer – comparison

Live in care is a great alternative to care home support. It is affordable, professional and personalised. Below we have outlined the main benefits of live in care, in comparison to care home.

The cost of care

When considering the best care option, the cost is probably the factor that affects the decision the most.

We often look for “care homes near me”. But it is good to know that the cost of care home depends on the location. For example, Lancashire is the least expensive area, while Oxfordshire is the most expensive one. Considering the differences in prices for different locations in the country, the full time home care cost is between around £ 30,000 and £50,000 a year.

It seems that the price of live in care could be comparable, or even sometimes lower to the price of a care home. Many people don’t even consider a live-in carer, because they think it is more expensive than a care home. As you can see, it is not the case. Actually, live-in care can be less expensive. For couples, it may be even more economical.

The quality of care

When we decide to either place our elderly loved ones in a care home or look for a private carer, we require the highest quality of care.

Since live in care means one-to-one assistance, the live in carer is focused solely on one person in care at a time. Round-the-clock support is personalised and professional. The quality of care, in this case, is considerably high. The private live in carer wanted is always the qualified one. At Veritas Care we offer only experienced and trained carers.

In a care home, the staff is responsible for many patients at the same time, so one-to-one care is out of the question in this case.

The lifestyle, independence, and freedom

The most obvious disadvantage of a care home is the fact that the senior has to move out from home. They have to leave all their beloved belongings and valuable home memories behind. Since in the majority of care homes it is not possible to keep pets, they also have to leave their pets. Also,

Although care homes have their bedrooms for every person, they have shared all the communal areas. So dining rooms and lounges are shared with the other residents. Not every senior is happy to share their living space with so many peers.

Living in a care home sometimes develops loneliness. In organised facilities, seniors have to follow strict rules. For example, they may not be able to accept visits or this possibility may be limited.

Arranging a place in a care home

Although theoretically care home can be state-funded, many formalities have to be met beforehand to meet the eligibility criteria. Those include means-testing, that is not always considered fair and not everybody will get the state funding in the end.

Additionally, there is a problem with care home places availability in certain areas of the country — these are called “care deserts”. So even if for example, a person is ready to pay the full fee for the care home, they may not always be able to find a place.

Arranging live-in care

The process of arranging live in care is way more simple than the one for getting care home. In most cases, all we need to do is to contact an agency that helps with matching carers and the families. It can be done by contacting the company using their contact details. It is usually also available to send a care assessment form to get a quote.

Below we present a simple comparison of live in care and care home, in the form of a table.

Care home vs private live in carer – comparison

Looking for “care homes near me“? Look no further. Here at Veritas Care we believe that nothing compares to the comfort of your own four walls. For more information on how our live in care can improve your life or the life of your loved ones, please contact us.