Expanding in-home health care for the elderly is catching on.

Oregon and Tennessee are two states which are pushing public money away from nursing homes and into more individual care given to the elderly in their own homes.

This is major.

We’re looking at a big shift in the elder care industry.  Warehousing the elderly in nursing homes may become a thing of the past, and I’m glad to see this changed.

“It truly gives the elderly citizen choices in the future, but I don’t believe it will replace the nursing home as a provider of care for the frailest…elderly patients,” Greg Coggin, a spokesman with National Healthcare Corp says.

What I think that means is nursing homes will still be in existence, but will not be the orphanages  for older people as we have known them in the past.

Nursing homes will be more like hospitals and the stays will probably be much shorter.

Is our current nursing home system archaic?

Certainly no sane older person really wants to go to one. That should tell us something. 

Why we take away most of an elderly person’s possessions and place him or her in a room mate situation in what can be a cold place, is really beyond me.  That may be one reason why some of our elderly lose their sense of identity in nursing homes. 

Besides nursing home care is getting very expensive.

I think that was the main reason why Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen has pushed long term home care for the elderly.  He was a former health care executive before running for office.  He also knows health care can break the state’s budget if we are not careful.  Tenn Care almost did a few years ago.

Hence the necessity of a different direction.   Yes, money.

Who will benefit?  The elderly, of course- and their families.   

I’ll be writing more about this in the coming days because I’m so enthusiastic about a change which has been  a long time coming.

It could mean that you and I will never spend a day in a nursing home when we’re old.  Or if we must go to one, our stay will be very short. 

Read  more about in-home health care new state Law opens options for in home care (Hurry, I’m not sure how long this link will be live)

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