Respite care is short-term, temporary relief to those who are caring for elderly individual who might otherwise require permanent placement in a senior housing facility outside the home. This is care that gives families a short break from the duties of constant care in the home.

Respite care is also scheduled short-term skilled nursing facility care provided on a temporary basis to an elderly individual who needs this level of care but who is normally cared for in the community. An example is a few weeks of time receiving physical therapy while staying in a nursing home after an operation (i.e. hip, etc.). This short-term care happens because the elderly individual can’t care for themselves alone in the home after their hospital stay ends.