Care Homes for the Elderly - Any Reviews?

My friend worked in a local care home for the elderly a few years ago and said that one small chicken was bought to feed 14 residents. There was, at about the same time, a report in the newspapers of a care home matron buying pet mince (minced beef intended as pet food) to feed the residents of her home. Seems like some homes just like to rake in the money and then spend as little as necessary on the needs of their residents (who are actually customers). When my own uncle was in a care home for the last 18 months of his life they lost all his socks and some of his pyjamas and just phoned us asking us to take more. When he couldn't eat certain things they provided they told us to take him something he could eat. That's what you got for nearly £500 per week. It's probably more than that now.

Some homes are better than others but residential homes for the elderly are not the 'home from home' that they are advertised to be. There are set visiting times like in hospitals (that doesn't happen 'at home') They all have to eat the same food - there should be choice and many complain that their clothes get mixed up so that they are not always wearing their own clothes.

EDIT

I'm referring to my experience of homes in the U.K. by the way. Things might be very different elsewhere.

Having worked with several different companies, I can tell you there are many excellent homes out there. I have had no experience with the private individual run homes, but worked with major companies for over 25 years.

You have different classifications of homes. Some are assisted living only and some are skilled facilities which will have anything from the slightly disabled to completely bedridden. A skilled facility will most likely have skills such as tube feeders, tracheotomies, etc.

All are regularly inspected by the state. Of course there are some incidents, but I never witnessed an episode of abuse.

CNA's (Certified Nursing Assistants) deliver care, and some of them are the best things in the World. They can easily become a nurses right hand, as they spend so much one -on- one with the patients.

You know you always hear of the bad that happens, but never the good -it doesn't make the news.

Like the home I worked at where most all the aides brought their own bags of hair ribbons and clips to fix the ladies hair, because so many of them had no one to bring them anything.

I was a nurse for many, many years, and working with elderly was my heart.

It is a families job to do their homework before placing a loved one anywhere. Know the area, ask to see the latest state and/or federal survey results. Come at odd hours and report to the administrator immediately, anything you see that seems not quite right to you.

I have been involved with a number of nursing homes. My experience is that those people who pay their own way get treated very well. Those who divert their savings to their kids and then let Medicaid pay for their nursing home care get "government" level care, which sucks. This is because nursing homes are private companies, and Medicaid has a fixed fee they pay, so it's only natural that the nursing home will give the minimum care they can get by with and still qualify for the fixed fee which Medicaid pays. That's how entitlements work. Socialism in action.

My mother went into a nursing home that wasn't far from us. We visited her often and we never felt we had to "keep an eye" on her as far as abuse. I believe that even if we didn't visit often, she would have been treated the same way - with dignity and respect.

That nursing home posted daily menus and activities on their bulletin boards. We were welcome to visit 24/7; also when she was first admitted, gave me an Inventory sheet with required items, filling in the amounts. Labeling her clothes/items w/her name was required, with permanent marker. Laundry service was offered, but I did her laundry to make sure her clothes wouldn't be misplaced/switched-even with her name on them.

When she died, nothing of hers was missing. I donated her things to the home.

Don't lump all homes into "bad treatment" categories. I know of several people first hand that get excellent treatment.