Arranging admission to a nursing home: preparation and choices

If living at home is no longer possible, a lot will come your way. A move to care often involves practical choices, but also calm and overview. Then it helps to keep the first steps small.

When is moving to a nursing home necessary?

Is living at home really no longer possible, even with a lot of care? Then a nursing home may be needed. That is a big step, and it helps to first get a clear picture of what still does and does not work at home.

First, apply for a Wlz indication from the CIZ, via the CIZ about a Wlz application. The CIZ will contact you and make a decision within six weeks. Is there a waiting list? Then you will receive a waiting status.

There are four, from 'urgent placement' to 'wait as a precaution'. While you wait, the care office can arrange bridging care, so that your loved one continues to receive care at home or elsewhere. After admission, the care team takes over the daily care.

How do you arrange the indication and waiting time?

The process starts with the CIZ. There you apply for a Wlz indication if ongoing, intensive care seems necessary. The CIZ will contact you and make a decision within six weeks.

If you receive that indication and there is still no place, you will be placed on a waiting list. How long you wait varies from person to person and depends on the number of places and the number of people waiting. In the meantime, you keep the care until a place becomes available at the location of your preference.

The care office must ensure suitable bridging care. This can be Wlz care in your own home, or temporary stay in another institution. The care office will discuss with you which bridging care is possible.

If you have questions about the waiting time and the options, contact the care office.

What choices do you have when arranging living and care?

You start by making clear what help is needed. Independent client support can help with that. After that, look for the right route. For social support, go to the municipality. For nursing and care at home, the district nurse is the starting point. For ongoing intensive Wlz care, go to the CIZ.

After the assessment, it will be recorded on paper which care is granted. After that, you can look at how that care will be arranged. With care in kind, you choose from contracted providers. With a personal budget, its own rules apply for purchasing care.

If living at home is still possible, a home adaptation may help. Think of a stairlift, a shower chair, or removing thresholds. In Zoetermeer, you apply for this via the Wmo. Make a Wmo report to your municipality.

How do you talk together about the move?

If your loved one lives in a care institution, there should be a care plan, also known as a care-living plan. It contains the agreements about care and support. Think of nursing, guidance, the daily routine, what your loved one finds important, and what you as a family caregiver do.

With care under the Long-Term Care Act, such a plan is mandatory. It must be ready within six weeks after the start of the care. The care provider discusses the plan with you at least twice a year.

That conversation is a good moment to voice things. Clearly indicate what is going well, what could be better, and what wishes there are. You are allowed to be there and take part in the discussion. Write down your questions beforehand.

What do you notice after the admission?

After admission, the care team takes over the daily care. You no longer have to do everything yourself. That can create space to be mainly a partner, child, or friend again.

For you as a family caregiver, a lot changes. Yet you remain welcome and may stay involved in the care and the agreements. The care plan also states what you do and what you agree on together.

It is good to know that your role changes, but does not disappear. You continue to think along about what is important for your loved one. And you can continue to join the conversations about the care.

What can you do if you need to arrange this now?

1. If there is a waiting list, ask the care office about bridging care.
2. Discuss with independent client support which care route is appropriate.
3. Then see whether care in kind or a personal budget applies.
4. If staying at home is still just possible, you can make a Wmo report in Zoetermeer for a home adaptation.

With an admission, it helps to think along about the care plan right away. That way, you record what is important for your loved one and what you can continue to do.