Residential Vs Domiciliary Care: What’s the Difference?
Deciding that a loved one needs professional care can be a challenging decision. In some cases, they might have been cared for by a partner, children, sibling or friends which is no longer feasible, or their needs might have suddenly increased due to illness or injury. The need for professional care might also have been suggested by a social care needs assessment.
Professional care takes a weight off the mind of both the vulnerable individual and their loved ones. However, the next big decision to make is whether your loved one needs care at home or residential care.
Here, we explain the difference between residential and domiciliary care and how to identify which one your loved one needs.
What is domiciliary care?
Domiciliary care refers to professional care provided at home. A carer or team of carers will visit your loved one’s home as often as needed to help them live there independently.
For example, a carer might visit every morning to help them out of bed in morning and support with personal care tasks like washing, dressing and going to the toilet. Carers can assist with mealtimes, whether it’s preparing food or helping your loved one to eat, and they can also provide medication support to ensure that the individuals take any tablets or other medication on time.
Carers can help with household tasks, too, like washing up, cleaning and laundry. They can assist with shopping, medical appointments and collecting prescriptions if needed. At Wessex Care, our community care services are comprehensive and completely tailored to your individual needs. If your loved one needs assistance with DIY tasks, paperwork, using the internet, walking the dog or more, our carers are here to help.
What is residential care?
Residential care is where a vulnerable adult moves into a care home or centre where there is professional support on hand 24/7. In residential care, your loved one will have a private bedroom and access to all shared areas of the home. They will receive three meals a day, as much personal care support as required and enjoy a range of activities provided by the care home.
There are different types of residential care depending on your loved one’s needs. At Wessex Care, we offer residential care without nursing, residential care with nursing and residential mental health care.
Which type of care does my loved one need?
If your loved one is safe and content to be alone and only needs assistance with certain tasks, domiciliary care may be suitable. This option allows your loved one to remain in their own home for as long as possible and retain their independence.
If your loved one cannot or doesn’t like to be left alone, residential care will be the best choice for them. They will benefit from 24-hour support and they’ll be in a safe, warm and friendly environment with plenty of activities to maintain a high quality of life.
Residential care is suitable for those with advanced needs that cannot be met by relatives or a community carer that visits on a daily basis. For example, if your loved one has complex needs, greatly reduced mobility or experiences behaviours like agitation, aggression and night-time wandering due to dementia, residential care will be the best option for them.
Wessex Care provide domiciliary and residential care in Salisbury for vulnerable and elderly adults. To discuss which type of care your loved one needs, contact the Wessex Care team today.
