Nursing Home/Assisted Living Resources
Texas Watch and the Texas Watch Foundation are dedicated to helping consumers during this difficult time. For more resources, please visit www.texaswatch.org/covid19.
If your loved one is in a nursing home/assisted living facility:
Questions to consider if your loved one is still in a home:
- Can I drop off deliveries?
- Are regular healthy-living programs in place?
- How are residents staying engaged?
Questions to consider before removing a loved one from a home:
To ask healthcare providers:
- If you have previously cared for a loved one before they entered a nursing home, what needs have changed?
- What is being done to limit employees' and caregivers' exposure to COVID-19?
- What type of care — assisted living, or nursing — does my loved one need?
- How often are those who enter the building (delivery workers, healthcare workers, etc.) screened for symptoms?
To ask yourself:
- Do I have the resources to care for my loved ones at home? (i.e., how can I get groceries, can I get medications for them?)
- Am I in close contact with anyone who might have COVID-19?
- If aides are coming to the house, what is the backup plan if they do not show up because they are sick?
- If the person is alone and falls, who will come to help?
- Is it my loved one receiving physical therapy or other appointments through the facility, and how can I enable these appointments to continue?
- Can I offer healthy-living activities for my loved one?
- Who would take care of my loved one if I would get sick?
Additional Resources:
Can I get compensated for caring for a loved one? (AARP)
CDC’s checklist for long-term care facilities
How do you know if your loved one is safe in a nursing home? (US Reports)
Family caregiving during coronavirus (US Reports)
Opinion: End the secrecy on virus deaths at nursing homes (Austin American Statesman)
Sources:
What to know before removing loved ones from nursing homes amid COVID-19
Health Department advises families to remove loved ones from nursing homes if it’s safe
What to Ask if a Loved One Is in a Quarantined Facility
Practical Guide for Caregivers Dealing with Coronavirus
Nursing homes taking precautions to keep residents safe
'It's nonsense' | City and State officials still won't name nursing homes with coronavirus outbreaks (KVUE)
40% of coronavirus deaths in Texas linked to nursing homes, assisted living centers (Houston Chronicle)
Number of nursing homes with publicly reported cases of the coronavirus soars (Washington Post)
Last updated: May 4, 2020
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