Elderly Care and Caregivers in Phuket: Home Care, Assisted Living and Costs

The main options

• Live-in or live-out caregiver at home: the option most residents use first, because it lets someone stay in their own home.
• Part-time or agency nursing and home care: visits for medication, hygiene and mobility help.
• Independent living or serviced apartments with some support: suited to active older people who want community, but not purpose-built for dementia or complex needs.
• Assisted living and residential care homes: staffed around the clock, with nursing oversight.
• Nursing homes and hospital-based care, including rehabilitation after an illness or operation.

Guides disagree on how many dedicated elderly care homes Phuket has. One says there are real options, and another says formal long-term care infrastructure is limited and that many families use live-in carers, move to Bangkok or return home. Treat Phuket as a place where you should research carefully and plan early.

What guides report it costs

• Live-in or trained home caregiver: roughly 15,000 to 40,000 baht a month, with some guides quoting about 20,000 to 35,000 for trained staff.
• Part-time home care for a few hours a day: roughly 12,000 to 25,000 baht a month in Thailand-wide guides.
• Assisted living: about 25,000 to 85,000 baht a month, depending on the guide and the facility.
• Nursing home or full nursing care: about 40,000 to 120,000 baht a month, with expat-focused facilities at the top end.

Prices differ widely between sources, so ask each facility for a written list of what is included, such as meals, nursing, medication, laundry and transport to the hospital, and what costs extra. Also ask what happens if your needs increase, and whether the contract can be ended.

Medical care and insurance

Private hospitals in Phuket such as Bangkok Hospital Phuket and Siriroj are the usual medical partners of care homes, and the health and insurance guide explains how private hospitals and insurers work. Long-term nursing home fees are often not covered by standard health policies, so read your policy for exclusions. Ask a facility which hospital it works with and how it handles emergencies.

See the emergencies guide for numbers and the dentists guide for routine care.

Hiring and supervising a caregiver

• Use recommendations from other residents, agencies or your estate, and check references.
• Check the person's right to work. The household help guide explains permits and employer duties.
• Write down the schedule, tasks, days off, pay and what to do in an emergency.
• Check in regularly. Family or friends who visit are the best safeguard.

For dementia or complex needs, an agency or a specialist facility is often better than a single carer, and families should expect to need a plan for backup cover.

Planning ahead

• Put your documents in order: wills, powers of attorney and medical wishes. See the wills guide and the documents guide.
• Keep copies of insurance policies, medical records and medication lists, and tell someone where they are.
• Know the visa rules that apply to your stay. The retirement guide explains the retirement route.
• Talk to your family about what you want if you can no longer live independently.
• Visit several facilities, ask to see rooms and meet staff, and visit unannounced if you can.