10 Best Memory Care Facilities in Omaha, NE

Between private and public pay methods, seniors and their families have many ways to pay for a memory care community. If you or your loved one are looking for additional options to pay for senior living, some facilities may accept public methods like veterans benefits, Medicaid, and/or Medicare.

Nebraska and Iowa categorize memory care facilities as assisted living facilities with dementia care. Therefore, memory care facilities may follow similar requirements made for assisted living facilities. Memory care facilities and units also have some additional specifications they must follow.

Assisted living facilities that provide dementia care in Nebraska and Iowa must be licensed and undergo inspections. The dementia care regulations and license requirements in both states are explained below.

Nebraska laws and regulations for memory care facilities

The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) licenses and inspects memory care facilities. To have an Alzheimer’s special care unit, a facility must provide applicable information about that care type. Every type of facility and/or care service must have a separate license. To obtain a license, assisted living facilities and memory care units must meet specific requirements and regulations. You can find inspection reports and areas to find licensed facilities through the Nebraska Department of Health.

Facility requirements

If a memory care facility or unit is licensed as an assisted living facility, they are required to offer a safe and clean environment, as well as the following features:

• Good lighting
• Adequate environmental temperatures
• Sound levels that are acceptable for care provided
• Furnished common areas

In addition to providing care and services necessary for dementia care, memory care units and facilities have their additional facility requirements. To help ensure the safety of the residents, memory care units are required to provide the following:

• Personalized resident bedrooms
• Private activity areas
• Group activity areas
• Separate dining rooms
• Features to help residents orient themselves with their surroundings
• Secured storage for equipment and supplies
• Call and security systems
• Medication storage and distribution area

Staff requirements

Facilities that specialize in memory care must have a sufficient number of direct care staff members, but Nebraska law does not specify how much is considered “sufficient.” Regardless, your loved one will receive qualified care thanks to Nebraska’s training requirements. Administrators and direct care staff members must receive training to meet dementia-specific needs with services like the following:

• Assistance with activities of daily living
• Personal care
• Health maintenance activities
• Supervision
• Supportive services

Plus, your loved one will have knowledgeable care with more specialized training for administrators and direct staff members. Their training must include information on the following:

• The Alzheimer’s disease process
• The facility’s approach to supervising and providing care to memory loss residents
• The skills necessary for proper care

Iowa laws and regulations for memory care facilities

Similar to Nebraska, Iowa qualifies memory care facilities as assisted living programs with dementia care. Therefore, memory care facilities follow the same regulations as assisted living programs in Iowa. In addition to following these regulations, memory care facilities have additional requirements since they add dementia care services.

Assisted living programs with dementia care in Iowa are licensed through the Department of Inspections and Appeals. To receive this license, the program must get a certification and undergo an inspection. After approval, the facility’s license lasts two years. They must also undergo inspections every other year to keep the license. To offer memory care services, assisted living programs must also be certified as a dementia care unit. The Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals has inspection reports and areas to find licensed facilities.

Staff requirements

Every dementia care unit must have at least one staff member available around the clock. Additionally, the facility must provide the dementia care staff with 8 hours of memory care training and education upon hiring, and at least another 2 hours annually. However, staff members who are direct care staff must undergo 8 hours of memory care training and education annually. In this training, staff members may learn about these topics:

• Dementia diagnosis explanation
• Communication skills
• Family issues
• Activities of daily living (ADL) assistance
• Working with challenging residents

Facility requirements

If your loved one wanders and becomes easily confused, you can feel at ease knowing dementia care units are required to have an alarm system connected to all exit doors in the facility. Additionally, staff members must be able to disable locks on doors. Iowa also requires memory care apartments with kitchens to disable or remove appliances.

How to learn more about memory care laws and regulations

While memory care facilities fall under assisted living, both states have additional laws and regulations for assisted living facilities that offer dementia care. For additional information about typical assisted living regulations and laws, visit our guide to assisted living in Omaha.

Nebraska Department of Health contact information

Visit the Nebraska Department of Health website to learn more on assisted living facilities with dementia care.

Search for licensed assisted living/memory care facilities.

301 Centennial Mall South
Lincoln, NE 68509
Phone: 402-471-3121

Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals contact information

Learn more about Iowa’s assisted living/memory care regulations.

Look up Iowa’s licensed assisted living/memory care communities.

Lucas State Office Building
321 E. 12th St., 3rd Floor
Des Moines, IA 50319-0083
Phone: 515-281-7102

COVID-19 regulations for Omaha memory care facilities

As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) relaxed their COVID-19 guidelines, so have states like Nebraska and Iowa. However, both states have recommendations for those who test positive for COVID-19 infection.

After someone tests positive for COVID-19 infection, Iowa residents should isolate for up to 10 days after the test result. Nebraska is slightly different with an isolation recommendation of five days. Following the five day isolation, the Nebraska Department of Health recommends the following protocol:

• Those who did not have symptoms can end isolation.
• Those who showed symptoms and have been fever-free for 24-hours can end isolation but should continue wearing a mask.

A person can stop wearing a mask once they have either:

• Tested negative twice on a COVID-19 antigen test (must be taken 48 hours apart)
• After day 11 if they are symptom free

Additionally, Nebraska has an official vaccination campaign, Finish Strong Nebraska, which encourages those eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Individual senior living facilities may have additional requirements. Nebraska assisted living communities — and therefore memory care facilities — do not require masks for fully vaccinated residents. However, if your loved one is not vaccinated, they recommend wearing a mask and continuing to practice social distancing.

Memory care communities feature specially designed buildings that help seniors with dementia become quickly acclimated to their new surroundings. Your loved one will receive quality care provided by specially trained staff members who know how to handle specific dementia behaviors. While these aspects are customary in memory care communities, it does not diminish the importance of these commonalities. In addition to these features, memory care communities in Omaha are typically multi-tier care facilities. Here, you’ll learn more about how your loved one can easily age in place in Omaha.

How stand-alone and multi-tier care facilities differ

A Place for Mom partners with three stand-alone memory care partners in the 10-mile radius of Omaha City Hall, according to A Place for Mom’s proprietary data. These are located in Omaha itself. A majority of our memory care partners in Omaha offer multiple care types on the same campus, meaning assisted living, independent living, or both are also available. This helps seniors age in place in case their care needs change. This can be beneficial if your loved one is not yet affected by or diagnosed with dementia. If they only require assistance with activities of daily living but expect to need memory care in the future, they can live in assisted living until the change for memory care is needed.

A community with additional care types on the same campus typically has more amenities, activities, and staff members available. A community with multiple care types may not be a necessity because a senior with dementia typically stays in memory care indefinitely. This type of community may help find hospice care faster though. Approximately 10 of our memory care partners offer on-site hospice care. By having access to hospice care on-site, your loved one will not have to find a third party agency or move to a different community. Aging in place like this helps prevent confusion for seniors with dementia.

How memory care facilities are specially designed

Approximately 84% of our memory care partners in Omaha are specially designed to accommodate memory loss. This type of design varies according to the community. This may mean the community has at least one of the following:

• Secured entrances and exits
• Wander guard or similar systems
• Easy navigation features like colored walls
• Natural lighting

A community that is designed for memory loss can help your loved one navigate through the halls easily by themselves, which provides them with a sense of independence. These types of communities also help prevent confused seniors from wandering outside of the community without a family member or care attendant.

Our partners’ specialized memory care programs

A common feature for memory care facilities in Omaha are specialized memory care programs. While the program changes depending on the community, the overarching theme is to offer individualized, person-centered care to help ease symptoms and common behaviors as well as provide dementia-friendly activities. This typically includes having staff members who are specially trained in Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia care.

About 92% of our Omaha memory care partners have specially trained memory care staff members. So, you can feel at ease knowing a majority of these memory care communities have staff members who are qualified in common dementia-related behaviors, such as the following:

• Restlessness
• Wandering
• Exit-seeking
• Disorientation
• Agitation
• Anxiety

Memory care in the surrounding Omaha suburbs

Whether your loved one prefers a city lifestyle or suburban living, Omaha has memory care options available in both areas. Almost half of our memory care partners near Omaha City Hall are located outside of the city itself. However, about 65% of seniors prefer living in the city, according to A Place for Mom proprietary data. When comparing our memory care partners in the city versus in surrounding suburbs, they are all virtually similar. Even when looking further away from Omaha City Hall, the average cost is almost exactly the same.

Health care for seniors in Omaha

Your loved one will have access to top-notch care in the Omaha area with many local hospital systems offering a variety of geriatric care services and personalized care for seniors with dementia. Here are some of the most prominent hospitals with the highest ratings in the region.

Transportation for seniors in Omaha

Approximately 92% of our memory care partners in Omaha offer on-site transportation services. This could be complimentary or for an additional fee. This is the best travel option for seniors with dementia since they will need to have a caregiver available at all times. It is important for your loved one to feel safe with a caregiver in case confusion occurs in an area outside of the community.

Since a majority of Omaha residents own a car, the city does not have a lot of public transportation options. However, the public transportation options Omaha does have are accessible to those with disabilities. All buses offered through Omaha Metro can lower so your loved one will not have to take a large step up. Additionally, every bus has two wheelchair spaces and a ramp. These buses offer metro fare discounts for seniors aged 62 and older, as well as adults with disabilities.

If your loved one cannot access the bus stations or needs additional assistance due to a disability, the area has a complimentary ADA paratransit service called MOBY. Your loved one must qualify under ADA eligibility criteria to use this service. When using MOBY, a senior must make a reservation for next-day travel, but a reservation can be made up to 14 days prior to the service.

For help determining eligibility and scheduling a service, contact Omaha Metro at 402-341-0800.