Which is more expensive, 24-hour care or live-in care?

24-hour care is generally more expensive than live-in care because it provides continuous hands-on care through caregivers working in shifts and is typically billed by the hour.

What services are provided in 24-hour care?

Depending on the agreed care package and individual needs, 24-hour care may include nighttime supervision, position changing in bed, complex care support, bathing and dressing, toileting, meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication support, companionship and general supervision.

What services are provided in live-in care?

Live-in care packages may include bathing and dressing support, toileting, meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication support, companionship and transport support, depending on the individual's needs and agreed care package.

What is the difference between 24-hour care and live-in care?

24-hour care provides continuous hands-on support through a team of caregivers working in shifts, ensuring someone is available day and night. Live-in care involves a caregiver living in the person's home but generally providing around eight hours of direct care, with rest and personal time outside those hours.

Who is 24-hour care suitable for?

24-hour care may be suitable for people who require continuous supervision and hands-on support because of complex, serious or unpredictable care needs, including situations where overnight monitoring is necessary.

Who is live-in care suitable for?

Live-in care may be suitable for people who mainly need support during the day with activities such as bathing, dressing, meals and medication, but who are relatively independent and generally sleep through the night.

Do you provide live-in and 24-hour care throughout the UK?

Live-in and 24-hour care are currently provided in Bedfordshire, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire.

24-Hour Care vs Live-in Care: What’s the Difference?

You might think that 24-hour and live-in care are the same, but they’re not. As similar as they are (they both take place in the home and both provide an elevated level of care), they address different needs and have some important differences in what they actually look like.

Afterall, to be forewarned is to be forearmed, as they say.

The Differences Between 24-hour Care and Live-in Care

The easiest way to show the differences between the two is to briefly describe each one.

Live-in Care

The live-in caregiver lives in a room in your loved-one’s house, and care is delivered by that caregiver while they are staying with your loved one.

Caregivers will occasionally be replaced by a respite caregiver, or there may be two or three caregivers that spend a period of weeks or months with your loved one before switching with another for short period.

One of the major differences is that live-in care does not involve round-the-clock, hands-on care. Instead, the caregiver will provide about 8 hours of direct care where they are with your loved one.

Outside these hours, the caregiver will rest and have some time to themselves. They can be called upon outside their hours if an emergency takes place or if they’re needed (especially at night), but there’s the chance that they might be out. These hours are generally agreed upon before the start of care (though they can be flexible).

Care is usually focussed around the mornings and evenings, and the caregiver sleeps at night (again, they can and do provide assistance at night if needed).
24-Hour Care
By contrast, 24-hour care does not involve a single caregiver living in your loved one’s home (although it could if circumstances require it).

Instead, a team of caregivers work in shifts to make sure that your loved one receives direct, hands-on care at every moment of the day and night. There is never a time when your loved one is alone.

Which Is Better?
People sometimes assume that 24-hour care is the better or more complete form of care (and sometimes the fact that it’s more expensive contributes to this idea), but this isn’t true.so it is impossible to predict how these changes will progress. But there are some general things you can look out for.

It’s not about one being better at all. Each is aimed at meeting different needs and solving different problems.

As a result, it’s best to think about it in terms of which one is the better fit for your loved one’s situation.
Who is 24-Hour Care For?

24-Hour care is designed for people who specifically need to be observed at all times because of an advanced serious condition.

This overnight care is especially important for people who need active, hands-on support and observation at night because of unpredictable and serious needs.

One example of this is someone with advanced dementia, who has the tendency to get up and wander around at night. Without 24-hour care, a person like this is at high risk of having an accident that severely harms them.

Who is Live-in Care For?
Live-in care is for those who mainly need day-time care and a significant degree of support for daily activities like bathing, getting dressed and preparing meals, but who are otherwise fairly independent and want time to themselves.

The caregiver, in addition to providing practical and care support, will also bring a valuable source of companionship and emotional support.

If your loved one typically sleeps through the night and does not have any tendency for wandering at night, 24-hour care isn’t really necessary, and live-in care is probably better.

It’s also worth pointing out that a major advantage of having live-in care is that it does provide your loved one with a greater degree of privacy and independence, and allows greater familiarity with the caregiver because there is more one-one-one care with the same caregiver.

But then again, this comes with the specific needs of a person form whom live-in care is a better fit. For someone needing round-the-clock care, companionship is not as important a concern as their health and safety (and they can still connect with their caregivers, anyway).
So, 24-Hour Care or Live-in Care?
We shouldn’t think of the choice in terms of “24-hour care vs live-in care”. Each has a specific role to play, and your loved one’s condition and state of life dictates which one they should be getting.

Because of that, conversations with your loved one’s healthcare specialists and home care providers should be an important part in deciding when one of these elevated forms of care are required, and which one they need.

And on that note, if you want more information about what comes with 24-hour care packages and live-in care packages, you can check out our website or speak to us directly – we’d love to hear from you.
Frequently Asked Questions

1. Which is more expensive?
24-hour care is more expensive than live-in care because it is billed by the hour, and there are more hours of care provided with a 24-hour care package.

2. What services are provided in 24-hour care?
It depends on the care package that is agreed upon because all of our packages are specifically designed to meet your loved one’s needs.

Having said that, the following support services can form part of any given care package:

Nighttime supervision (including position changing in bed)
Complex care support
Bathing, dressing and personal support
Toileting
Meal preparation
Light housekeeping
Medication support
Companionship
General supervision

3. What services are provided in live-in care?
Again, it depends on the agreed upon care package and your loved one’s needs, but the following are often included in the package:
Bathing, dressing and personal support
Toileting
Meal preparation
Light housekeeping
Medication support
Companionship
Transport support

4. Do you provide live-in and 24-hour care throughout the UK?

At the moment, we provide live-in and 24-hour care in Bedfordshire, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire.

How Can We
Best Serve You?

We're here to support you every step of the way. Whether you have questions about our services or need assistance in finding the right care for your loved one, our compassionate team is ready to help.

We understand that this journey can be challenging and we're committed to providing you with the information and support you need.