Comparing Senior Care Options Equally

One of the most difficult things about selecting the correct senior care facility is comparing the listings on an equal level. It is best to compare the apples to the apples and the oranges to the oranges.

But oftentimes it can seem like you are comparing one bowl of fruit to another, completely different, bowl of fruit; nothing matches up.

If you are looking at a Skilled Nursing Facility that also offers Independent Living and you compare that facility to a Skilled Nursing Facility that does not offer Independent Living it may very well seem that the facility with Independent Living has more amenities. However, you need to be aware that many of the listed amenities for the facility simply aren't available to the Skilled Nursing residents (like in-room phone services or high-speed internet). During the process of selection, it is important to make sure that the amenities that are listed are available for your specific level of care.

A senior care facility that offers at least Assisted Living, Memory Care, and Skilled Nursing is also known as a CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community). It is not uncommon to find CCRCs that incorporate Independent Living as well. If you are only interested in looking at facilities that offer multi-care levels it is important to compare each level independently.

Just because one facility has the amenities you'd like at one level of care, it may not necessarily have the amenities you would like at other levels. What you will probably find is that there is no perfect facility, and perhaps while one senior facility will offer amenities that you prefer at one care level, another facility may offer better amenities at another level. In this, very common, scenario it is usually better to weigh the importance of the amenities against the complex logistics of moving in between care levels.

A good rule to follow is to pretend that none of the senior facilities are CCRCs and compare the amenities of each level independently so that you can fairly judge one facility from another. While it may seem that there are benefits associated with a multi-level senior facility, like the convenience of not having to move yourself or a loved one from one location to another, oftentimes CCRCs will front load their amenities toward the Assisted Living residents but may not compete very well against other Skilled Nursing facilities that don't offer multiple levels of senior care.

That is why, here at Senioridy, we list each facility under a separate Care Category for each Care Level that each facility offers. While each listing will display how many senior care levels are available at that particular facility, amenities for each care level are different, depending on the level of care being compared. You can select any listing and compare it to any other listing within the same level of care knowing that all listings within that category all have the same potential values. For example, when you compare an Independent Living facility to another Independent Living facility you will see a value for each facility's Pet Policy. However, if you are comparing amenities for Skilled Nursing you will notice that Pet Policy isn't on those comparisons. That is because Skilled Nursing facilities don't allow pets, so there is no sense in adding that field into the equation to be compared.

Let's face it: viewing, comparing, and selecting a senior facility is time-consuming, confusing, and tedious, even with the best of tools. In today's busy world, it is hard enough to find the time to even begin the journey of looking. Most of us simply don't have the time to sit down and find the perfect nursing home, assisted living facility, or independent living community in just one sitting, particularly if the desired senior care level has yet to be determined. You may find it necessary to break up your search into a multi-day effort just for the sake of time and sanity.

At Senioridy we incorporate a "My Favorites" feature that will allow you to save the facilities that you have already compared or plan on comparing so that if you get called away, or just need a break from searching, you can return to the website and pick up your search efforts where you last left off.

It is our deepest hope that our tools help you to find the Senior Living Facility that fits perfectly for your needs.