$7000/month for 24 hr care for relative ? Too Much ?

[morrobay]

I have a relative who is not capable of taking care of self, ie has to be escorted to bathroom during the night.

Some Mexican women take care of this with day and night shifts.

The total expense for this in home care including rent , food , some medical is $7000/month.

This seems way too high. Opinions ?

Edited March 17, 2016 by morrobay

[robblok]

Depends where it is, probably not Thailand.

But 2 people 7 days a week plus rent and food and medical is about what one should expect. Just deduct $3000 for food medical and rent. Then you got 4000$ for 24/7 2 people. so that is 2000 for 1 12/7 now devide by 7 x 5 = 1.400$ a month a person .. if you look at hollidays it gets even lower.

[tonray]

A good private care nursing home in the US is anywhere from $6000 to $10,000 per month.

[TheSiemReaper]

Could be done much cheaper in S E Asia. The Philippines in particular...

[Sheryl]

This question cannot be answered without knowing location, and if it is not Thailand then might not be the best forum for it.

For what it is worth, if this is in the US then yes, $7,000/month for in home care is typical, would be even more if through an agency.

[timber]

7000 baht per month for untrained people, double that if you want trained people

[Dave12345678910]

The old man in Aus just to be moved into a home. $400k AUD deposit required. Then $150 per day plus medical!!!!! I'm dying over here!

[Saastrajaa]

Very sad topic. Of course, no (or very few) nursing homes exist in Thailand, as it's still embedded in the culture that children should care for their parents themselves, in their home, in old age (one of the nicer aspects of Thai culture, IMO).

Still, if I ever get to that state--unable to care for myself--I hope I can deal with it in as brave a way as my mother did. She was in her late 70s, had Parkinson's, and was beginning to experience a type of dementia associated with that. Since she never wanted to be a burden on anyone, she made the decision--while she was still in control of her faculties--to stop eating. She went into a coma a few days after that. Once she was in the hospital (luckily, in a US state where they won't forcibly keep someone alive against the family's wishes), we kids did exactly what she had trained us to do since we were young: we told them not to keep her alive artificially. She died peacefully and on her own terms.

[gk10002000]

It certainly can cost that much but it can cost a lot less. What I have seen a lot of in the Los Angeles California area is live in Filipino care givers, often with one child. Some even have a little bit of formal nurse training. My buddie's wife is Filipina and for a few years she was a part time caregiver. They worked in shifts caring for people. They worked through some agency, but I recall a few acquaintances from years back that were "employed" directly by the families. One gal I dated a bit was a single Mom with a young daughter. Now with the social security crackdowns, direct employment might not be as doable as in the past.

Of course there are other live-in options also. If the house arrangement fits, I have seen people take in boarders in exchange for caring. Terms up for negotiation.

We are moving my Mom into my youngest sister's house at the end of the month. Never would have thought that the problem child in the family would end up being a nurse and taking care of things like this. And her two kids just got out of college and onto jobs.

[craigt3365]

I had a live in caregiver for my mother in Nevada. We paid a few thousand dollars a month. Found the caregiver ourselves and she was happy with the pay, free food, free room etc. A room at a no frills assisted living home was a bit under $4k/month. This was in a rural community.

Here, there are many nursing homes available for around 20k/Bath/month. Just a bed in a room with others. Private rooms are 40k Baht/month and up.

In home, 24x7 care should cost around 12-15k Baht/month. We've gotten helpers through a lady who runs a training school for nurses. Some work out OK, some not so OK. Thai speakers only. The best one we've had so far is a lady from my wife's village. Absolutely fantastic. Now paying her 18k/month as she's so good...and the job is sooooo hard. My mother has severe dementia now.

[dddave]

One has to be very careful hiring Filippina, Hatian or really, any uncertified health care aids...and even the certified ones can cause problems. My US girlfriend hired a pair of Filippina sisters to care for her elderly aunt who seemed great until we began to notice hidden bruises...long story short, they were abusing her. We later found out from a social worker that this was not at all uncommon.

A close relative lost most of her inheritance because her father signed all his assets, bit by bit over to his caregiver. Eventually, they had to get a court order just to see him. Still in the courts more than 5 years after his death.

The boomers are hitting their 70's...and their care will become a full blown crisis.

[geriatrickid]

Could be done much cheaper in S E Asia. The Philippines in particular...

Yes. Especially with the reduced life expectancy that would accompany such care.

Sorry, but the cost savings touted in some locations is not supported by the actual data. It's like medical tourism that promotes North Americans visiting India for medical care. An unmitigated health crisis as some patients return with deadly complications and resistant infections.

Thai home care is cheap because the person attending is unskilled. It's like the nannies. TVFers want their low cost domestic servants, but then scream when the illiterate Burmese slave/servant drops the kid or breaks something. You get what you pay for.

[2fishin2]

One has to be very careful hiring Filippina, Hatian or really, any uncertified health care aids...and even the certified ones can cause problems. My US girlfriend hired a pair of Filippina sisters to care for her elderly aunt who seemed great until we began to notice hidden bruises...long story short, they were abusing her. We later found out from a social worker that this was not at all uncommon.

A close relative lost most of her inheritance because her father signed all his assets, bit by bit over to his caregiver. Eventually, they had to get a court order just to see him. Still in the courts more than 5 years after his death.

The boomers are hitting their 70's...and their care will become a full blown crisis.

Why be judgmental about a country's citizens? The simple statement of "uncertified health care aid" would have been much better. I have many friends from the PI.

[MaeJoMTB]

Very sad topic. Of course, no (or very few) nursing homes exist in Thailand, as it's still embedded in the culture that children should care for their parents themselves, in their home, in old age (one of the nicer aspects of Thai culture, IMO).

There is one in Hang Dong. One on the corner of the moat opposite the park. One in Mae Rim. And another on the road from the superhighway along the river Ping. And I haven't even been looking, just places I have passed by. That's just in Chiang Mai. Edited March 21, 2016 by MaeJoMTB

[Naam]

Could be done much cheaper in S E Asia. The Philippines in particular...

Yes. Especially with the reduced life expectancy that would accompany such care.

Sorry, but the cost savings touted in some locations is not supported by the actual data. It's like medical tourism that promotes North Americans visiting India for medical care. An unmitigated health crisis as some patients return with deadly complications and resistant infections.

Thai home care is cheap because the person attending is unskilled. It's like the nannies. TVFers want their low cost domestic servants, but then scream when the illiterate Burmese slave/servant drops the kid or breaks something. You get what you pay for.

fact, based on experience, is that in many cases you get a fraction of skill not to mention a fraction of performance from "domestic" domestic employees compared to those from Myanmar.

mileages do vary o course.

[ronz28]

Many predators in businesses dealing with the elderly in the US. Lowest prices are usually from private homes employing CNAs caring for about four people at a time 24 hours a day but you must monitor them more often. Sometimes owned and run by retired nurses with a couple of houses. Regular 70 bed type corporate nursing homes cost about $6k month in Texas depending on level of care needed which always escalates. I would expect Thailand should be far less expensive due to lower cost of living and wages paid there.

[inbangkok]

One has to be very careful hiring Filippina, Hatian or really, any uncertified health care aids...and even the certified ones can cause problems. My US girlfriend hired a pair of Filippina sisters to care for her elderly aunt who seemed great until we began to notice hidden bruises...long story short, they were abusing her. We later found out from a social worker that this was not at all uncommon.

A close relative lost most of her inheritance because her father signed all his assets, bit by bit over to his caregiver. Eventually, they had to get a court order just to see him. Still in the courts more than 5 years after his death.

The boomers are hitting their 70's...and their care will become a full blown crisis.

I fairly certain that immigrants do not have a monopoly on elder abuse.

[puukao]

my dad paid 6000 USD a month....plus whatever else. so likely closer to 6500 a month

so it's definitely possible to pay 7000 USD

[dddave]

One has to be very careful hiring Filippina, Hatian or really, any uncertified health care aids...and even the certified ones can cause problems. My US girlfriend hired a pair of Filippina sisters to care for her elderly aunt who seemed great until we began to notice hidden bruises...long story short, they were abusing her. We later found out from a social worker that this was not at all uncommon.

A close relative lost most of her inheritance because her father signed all his assets, bit by bit over to his caregiver. Eventually, they had to get a court order just to see him. Still in the courts more than 5 years after his death.

The boomers are hitting their 70's...and their care will become a full blown crisis.

Why be judgmental about a country's citizens? The simple statement of "uncertified health care aid" would have been much better. I have many friends from the PI.

Actually, I agree. I was focusing on a personal experience but you are correct, the problems are not confined to any particular group.

When I was checking out care facilities for my mother, my nose always told me a lot about a place; if it smelled of piss, I'd turn and leave.