Going into a care home? to pay or not to pay..?

[onebadbaby]

Following the election debate- was just wondering what others think about this- conservatives are proposing that old folk pay 8k upfront now and then pay nothing if they do need a care home later, Labour propose wave the fees after the first 2 years, God knows what the Lib Dem policy is- they don't appear to have one.

I think I like labours policy best- it seems the fairest.

According to the telegraph the average price of resedential care is £25,000 and nursing care £35,000 (this is an average- it costs more in some areas and less in others- apparently the home counties are the most expensive).

That's probably the Rolls-Royce of care homes, onebadbaby, I'm sure there are price levels in between, before you get down to the state-funded option (clapped-out Metro with the exhaust hanging off)

(that was in ref to your £1m btw)

With people living to such old ages and therefore the possibility they'll develop a condition like dementia, we're sitting on a time bomb.

Ouch, SGM.

I meant more nursing care vs residential care vs sheltered accommodation; hopefully many of us will never need to go as far as nursing care...

Dementia/AD is the real problem, isn't it. You can cope at home or sheltered through a lot of physical deterioration (with support, obviously), but once dementia sets in,you really need 24hr supervision...

we had a scare last year with my (American) grand mother. She was being discharged from hospital, but needed more nursing care with the possibility that she would stay there for a long period.

Anyway, when she came home after 2 weeks because she was better, she was calling up family and friends bragging that she got into the fancy nursing home . She later told me that amongst the senior citizen crowd, it's actually quite competitive - the nursing home your family gets for you. .

At one stage, they were all going on weekly tours of them, getting free lunch in the process, touring the facilities, financial advisors on hand etc.

I hope to go the Dignitas route the second I feel I'm losing my grip on reality, I just hope I can recognise it.

Tbh, my gran would have been happy anywhere she was kept clean, warm and fed. She was in a world of her own and Alzheimers was kind to her - she was pretty content until she died in her sleep.

It was my grandpa who benefitted from staff who seemed to enjoy their work, were respectful & loving towards the residents and tried to keep things as "homelike" as possible. He was in his 90s, in a failing body but with a mind that was as sharp as it had been 50 years before. That's more scary to me.

My gran would walk up and down the corridors, quite content, going only she knew where. My grandpa would mourn the fact that she wouldn't sit beside him so he could "feast his eyes" on his beloved wife of 65 years.

Thank god they had some cash and didn't end up in separate rooms which would have been the case in a lot of places my dad and his brother looked at. My gran died in her sleep and my grandpa never spoke again. He died 3 days later from a broken heart.

Worth every penny of my father's inheritance

alypaly

I had absolutely no idea that a care home was so expensive. I think it is something people don't plan for. As a forty year old - I hope that I will never have to go into residential care and I thnk my mother, who is now 80, thought the same and now it is a reality we must face. I just wish we had put this in mind years ago.

expatinscotland

Like you say expat - we must teach our children how to become self-sufficient and to plan financially for the future. As it is, local authorities will assist if your assets are below a certain amount Paying For Care

If my dad was still alive I can't help but think all of this would be much harder but at least they could be together in a home maybe.

Sorry I don't know how to delete a post or edit it so here it is again -

alypaly

I had absolutely no idea that a care home was so expensive. I think it is something people don't plan for. As a forty year old - I hope that I will never have to go into residential care and I thnk my mother, who is now 80, thought the same and now it is a reality we must face. I just wish we had put this in mind years ago.

expatinscotland

Like you say expat - we must teach our children how to become self-sufficient and to plan financially for the future. As it is, local authorities will assist if your assets are below a certain amount www.mmcgcarehomes.co.uk/information.asp?article=26

If my dad was still alive I can't help but think all of this would be much harder but at least they could be together in a home maybe.