Short-term live-in care

Care and support aren’t always long-term and might only be needed for as little as a few weeks. In these instances, short-term live-in care provides a solution that allows you or your loved one to receive necessary care and support at home.

Jump to section:

What is short-term care?
The benefits of short-term care
When is short-term care needed?

Quick summary

Short-term live-in care can be beneficial in a number of circumstances – including for respite care or in the interim while a care assessment is completed.
Live-in care doesn’t always have to be a long-term solution – short-term care can be appropriate in many situations.
Short-term care can help to reduce the risk of hospital readmission and further illness or injury.

Short-term live-in care can be required for several reasons – for example, convalescent care or intermediate care for a few weeks following a hospital stay. Alternatively, respite care may be needed so that your usual carer can take some much needed time off.

Additionally, short-term care can be provided for a fixed-term while your loved one’s care assessment is carried out to find a more long-term solution.

What is short-term care?

Following a stay in hospital – for surgery, injury or treatment – you’re generally entitled to six weeks of free care, whether it’s provided by the NHS or your local authority. Before your discharge from this period of care you’ll have a care and support assessment to find out whether longer term care is advised.

When having a care assessment, it is important that you or your loved one express your desire for live-in care. This is critical to securing funding if necessary and ensuring your preferences are met.

Short-term live-in care from Elder is delivered by a skilled social carer, who you’re matched with based on needs and personality. Live-in carers are experienced in supporting people with wellbeing, domestic duties, personal care and mobility.

Elder-approved live-in carers are used to working with multiple teams to ensure your wellbeing and recovery – supporting occupational therapists, GPs, community nurses and social workers to ensure all complex care needs are met.

It’s not only after a hospital stay where short-term care may be needed. Other short-term care scenarios can include:

Respite care when the primary carer, who may be a loved one, needs a break to go on holiday or recharge
Following short-term illness or a fall
A period of care while a family waits for the outcome of a care needs assessment or means test

Short-term live-in care

Whether you need care for just a few days, or a few weeks, we’ll connect you to a qualified live-in carer, you can trust to care the way you would.

Find out more

The benefits of short-term care

One of the main benefits of short-term live-in care is that it provides continuation of care following a hospital stay or during respite care – reducing stress, disruption and logistical challenges.

Being able to stay at home is preferred for many people receiving short-term care – as it prevents the challenge of having to move between locations including hospitals and care homes, which can cause stress. It can also provide additional comfort to someone with dementia or vision loss, as they’ll be familiar with their environment.

When it comes to respite care, the primary carer being able to take a break is essential for them to look after themselves and reduce the strain that caring for a loved one can have on their wellbeing.

When is short-term care needed?

There are a variety of scenarios where a person may need short-term care. It’s an incredibly flexible service available to support with a variety of circumstances people can find themselves in.

Support discharge from hospital

Convalescent care is one of the most common types of short-term care and is received following a stay in hospital. To make sure people can be discharged on time and to reduce the chances of readmission, short-term care is used to support recovery.

Short-term care following a hospital stay can help people get back on their feet by having someone there to do daily errands, support with personal care and offer the peace of mind of another pair of eyes should your loved one need medical assistance.

Support recovery from illness

Similarly, short-term care can assist people in their recovery from an illness or fall. Having support at home to complete daily tasks such as laundry, cooking, cleaning and running errands as well as assistance with personal care can help ensure recovery isn’t compromised.

An alternative to hospital or care home admission

Having short-term live-in care can help to avoid hospital admission and readmission following illness or surgery. Having someone at hand to assist with daily tasks means you or your loved one can focus on recovering and not risk injury or relapse.

Short-term live-in care can also provide an alternative to short-term care home admission for convalescent or respite care.

To support end-of-life care

Short-term care can sometimes be appropriate to help with meeting certain goals in a short space of time, such as getting the home environment and routine established for at home palliative care, or helping the family to develop specific skills needed for care at home.

Respite care

If a family member or loved one is the primary carer, they will need to take breaks to look after their own wellbeing, go on holiday or for illness. When this happens, it can be stressful for the care recipient to enter into a care home for a short period.

Short-term live-in care can provide respite for the primary carer, helping to provide support and care whilst they take a break.

As well as providing respite, short-term care can also be appropriate in a number of other cases. For example, some families may choose to experience short-term live-in care as a means of understanding whether long-term live-in care is for them.

Answering your questions

We understand you may have questions about short-term care and whether it’s the right solution for you. If you’re concerned about the cost of short-term care – we have a guide to help you understand the costs you’ll be looking at and how you can secure funding if necessary.

In many cases, the starting point to arranging short-term care will begin in hospital with an assessment. However, you can also arrange care directly with Elder. To get started, you can give us a call and complete a care appraisal.