The type of residential care home your parent enters is not something you or your parent choose directly. It is determined after assessment under the Single Assessment Mechanism for Elderly Services (SCNAMES).
Government-subsidised residential care places are divided into two types:
- Care-and-attention home (C&A home) places -- for older persons in poor health, with physical disabilities, or with mildly impaired cognitive ability who cannot take care of daily living by themselves but are mentally suitable for communal living. They provide accommodation, meals, personal care, and limited nursing care.
- Nursing home places -- for older persons in poor health, with physical disabilities, or with impaired cognitive ability. They provide a higher level of nursing care, residential care, and social support.
“Residential care home for the elderly” (RCHE) is an umbrella term covering the two types of places above.
Learn more -> Full comparison of subvented, contract, and private care homes