Skilled nursing facilities and their services are commonly brought up amid related topics of post-hospitalizations and recovery options and medical complexities, but often the terminology is commonly misinterpreted. To patients, their loved ones, and caregivers, it is important to know exactly what comprises skilled nursing services and when those services should be considered and utilized.
A skilled nursing facility (SNF) has its own unique role in the health continuum. The facility is neither a hospital nor a basic residential care facility. The truth is that this facility is one where there is a certain level of medical care necessary, which requires licensed clinical supervision and monitoring, which cannot be accomplished through basic custodial care alone.
What is Skilled Nursing Facility Service?
In essence, skilled nursing facility services entail medically necessary treatment provided by qualified licensed healthcare professionals such as registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and therapists under the oversight of a licensed physician. Such treatment is mostly provided on a 24/7 basis.
However, what makes an SNF unique from other healthcare institutions is not its structure but the medical complexity of its services. Care services are prescribed by a physician, recorded in a medical manner, and varied according to the progress of patients.
The services of a skilled nursing facility may typically be needed following a hospital stay, surgery, illness, and/or injury when a patient has ceased needing intensive hospital care but is not stable enough to be safely cared for at home.
Services Provided in Skilled Nursing Home Care Services
The extent of skilled nursing home care services is established by the need for professional medical judgment and intervention. Some of the common care services include management of chronic and post-acute conditions, intravenous therapies, pain management programs, administration of medications, and management of wounds.
The interventions mentioned above need professional nursing judgment, and they should not and cannot be delegated. Care for a surgical wound, for example, involves evaluating and adjusting treatment protocols for potential infections, among other factors, that can only be considered by a professional nurse.
Moreover, the patients mainly dealt in the SNFs could be the ones with difficult or more complicated situations, such as caring for patients with illnesses related to heart issues, lung diseases, or neurological disorders following a stroke.
Rehabilitation and Therapy as Part of Skilled Nursing Facility Services
The rehabilitation facilities also play a very integral part of the skilled nursing services at home, most notably where patients have experienced some form of orthopedic, traumatological, or neurological conditions. The forms of rehabilitation include physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech-language pathology.
The benefit of therapy in a skilled nursing facility relates to coordination. The therapy team coordinates with the nursing staff in such a way that therapy intensity and schedule can be varied depending on the day’s medical condition.
Nevertheless, intense rehabilitation offered at a skilled nursing facility can generally be more structured and dictated by tolerance. Though a success for patients who require more medically complex care, it would seem to potentially not fit well for a patient who can withstand intense amounts of rehabilitation outside of traditional nursing observation.
Skilled Nursing Facility Services vs. Skilled Nursing Services at Home
One area where there tends to be a lot of confusion is when comparing services provided at skilled nursing facilities and skilled nursing services at home. Both require licensed medical care but are significantly different regarding setting and assumptions for medical practice.
The home health skilled nursing is done for patients with a stable medical condition, a safe environment, and intermittent medical contacts. However, owing to medical complexity, skilled nursing facilities need constant medical oversight, easy access to medical staff, and ready availability of medical equipment.
For patients with a dynamically changing illness, complicated pharmacotherapy, or a pronounced tendency for falls, SNF care could perhaps create a more controlled setting than home care. For patients who have a well-organized family environment and a relatively stable illness, on the other hand, SNF Care in the Home could be deemed sufficient.
Regulatory and Clinical Oversight in Skilled Nursing Facilities
Services offered by skilled nursing facilities are governed by strict regulations in terms of staffing ratio requirements, clinical records, infection control measures, and patient safety. Such regulations are not simply bureaucratic in nature but impact care delivery on a day-to-day basis.
Clinical supervision ensures that care plans are reviewed, physician orders are strictly adhered to, and that results are measured against predetermined benchmarks. This level of accountability becomes important in cases of patients who have insurance or government programs, in which medical necessity needs to be demonstrated.
For healthcare systems and payers, skilled nursing facilities represent a controlled-cost alternative to hospital stays, provided that the quality of care is managed.
Decision Factors: When Skilled Nursing Facility Services Are Appropriate
The choice of skilled nursing care requires reviewing many issues such as the medical and functional complexity of the care required, availability of caregivers in the home, and time required for recovery from illness. One of the first issues that have to be addressed is whether the patient needs constant evaluation by qualified caregivers.
For instance, a patient requiring daily wound assessments, dosing, and therapy may require skilled nursing services at home. However, as the requirements change, skilled nursing care in the home health setting might lower costs and enable more autonomy for patients.
This step-down process points towards the importance of skilled nursing facilities as a transition care system and not as an option for all patients.
Limitations and Real-World Considerations
Although the services of skilled nursing facilities are of great importance to patients, there are those who might require the services of these institutions but may not find the environment liberal.
In addition, having access to skilled nursing home facilities may have impacted by insurance coverage, number of available beds, or geographical locations. Such limitations may completely influence the decision as much as the medical need for discharge, which can be a crucial area to focus on.
Conclusion
To understand what is skilled nursing facility service, it is necessary to go beyond the mere description and explore the functional and organizational aspects. Skilled nursing facilities offer those medical services, which are necessary, and their purpose is to connect the period of care received in the hospital and the period of independent living for patients requiring complicated medical care.
When applied properly, skilled nursing facilities aid in recovery, lower rates of readmissions to the hospital, and offer a controlled environment in which to heal. However, their utility is also contingent on proper assessment of the patient and proper goals or objectives of caregiving, as well as a smooth transition to less acute facilities such as home health skilled nursing facilities.
Today in healthcare delivery, making informed decisions about skilled nursing facility care is more than having access to available care options – it is about making care options align with quality and appropriateness based on certain needs and considerations.
