Nursing Home Alternative FAQ

The Brookside Homes are designed to be a TRUE nursing home alternative.

Q: What is the difference in providers in terms of resident/caregiver interaction?

Brookside: Brookside maintains a 1 to 3 Caregiver to Elder ratio and nearly 100% retention. Because of this Elders and Caregivers are able to form consistent and strong bonds.

Nursing Home: In an institution the caregiver to resident ratio ranges from 1:12 to 1:20 depending on "call offs". Also, turnover is a consistent problem in nursing homes. As a result, the resident is unable to form bonds with caregivers that are seldom seen and often different.

Q: What amount of personal, hands-on care can be expected for each Elder?

Brookside: 8.89 hours of care per day

Nursing Home: 3.83 hours of care per day

Q: Does the Elder have access to the full range of health care services that may be needed in long term care?

Brookside: Yes. All Elders living at Brookside would otherwise be in a skilled nursing facility.

Nursing Home: Yes, depending on the level of care required by the resident.

Q: Are private units available?

Brookside: Brookside: Brookside does not have “units”. All bedrooms are private, there are no semi-private or shared rooms.

Nursing Home: Private unit availability varies, and often can not be guaranteed for extended periods.

Q: Is Transportation provided for: (A.) Medical Appointments? (B.) Non-Medical Transportation?

Brookside: (A.) Yes. Brookside will coordinate and/or provide transportation to and from doctor's appointments. (B.) Brookside will coordinate and arrange transportation for the Elders. Outings and car rides are a regular part of a week for Brookside Elders and staff.

Nursing Home: (A.) Typically, the patient agrees to accept and utilize the facility doctor. (B.) Limited to pre-scheduled group functions.

Q: Are there Nurses on staff?

Brookside: Yes.

Nursing Home: Yes.

Q: Is there a set schedule for when the individual must wake up or go to sleep?

Brookside: At Brookside, a personal schedule is followed for each Elder. It is based on what is 'normal' for that individual. If someone has always been an early riser, the Caregivers know the Elder well enough to know when something is out of the ordinary. The home conforms to the Elder, not the other way around.

Nursing Home: Due to the high number of residents, nursing homes tend to follow an institutional schedule with little variation.

Q: Are residents involved in menu planning? Can residents help with meal preparation and have access to the kitchen?

Brookside: Each individual can have as much or as little input as they would like. Meals are home cooked by the caregivers and thus the Elders are involved in meal preparation and planning.

Nursing Home: Typically the food is of a standardized nature and there is very little choice of what to eat and when.

Q: Are there special diets available to the residents? (ex. renal diet, diabetic diet, vegetarian diet, etc.)

Brookside: Yes. Due to the Caregiver to Elder ratio, we are able to accommodate whatever special diet the resident may have.

Nursing Home: Yes. However, these dinners are mass produced and served not according to personal preference but to convenience and cost effectiveness.

Q: Does the facility allow residents to bring their own furniture?

Brookside: We encourage individuals to bring whatever possessions are important to them, even pets.

Nursing Home: Some individual belongings can be kept in the room, as well as a storage area.

Q: Are residents encouraged to participate in certain activities?

Brookside: In addition to scheduled activities, Caregivers encourage choices that provide the spontaneity and variety that make life worth living. These often come in the form of spontaeneous and unplanned events, such as Bocce of the front lawn or sharing a cherished family recipe.

Nursing Home: Group activities are scheduled daily and residents are encouraged to participate.

Q: Does the floor plan allow for easy mobility? Are bathrooms accessible to residents using wheelchairs and walkers?

Brookside: Brookside was designed from the ground up to be an ideal alternative to nursing homes and personal care homes. All areas of the home are handicapped accessible.

Nursing Home: Most nursing homes are designed to be handicapped accessible.

Q: Are housekeeping and laundry services available? How often?

Brookside: Housekeeping and laundry services are a part of maintaining the Elder’s home. This is provided by the caregiver on duty as often as necessary (at least once daily), and the Elder is included in these activities when possible.

Nursing Home: Facility housekeeping and laundry is provided, per facility schedule. Mass laundry services require personal clothing items to be “tagged” with resident’s name.

Q: Are there extra fees for certain services?

Brookside: No. The only time that the resident might incur additional costs are if the individual requires dedicated one-on-one care.

Nursing Home: _Depending on the facility, there can be different fees for varying levels of service, amenities, etc.

Q: Security?

Brookside: The Neighborhood within Neighborhood design allows each home to provide support and security in case of an emergency. Additionally because of the small home it easy to monitor and react to anything out of the ordinary.

Nursing Home: Few nursing homes have dedicated security staff. In practice it is very difficult to keep institutional settings completely secure, due to the size and the amount of visitors.

Q: What is the monthly cost for Brookside?

Brookside: Inspite of the higher quality of care and environment, Brookside is less expensive than the vast majority of nursing homes.