ICF vs SNF

[kynurse09]

Can someone tell me the specific differences between a skilled nursing facility and an intermediate care facility? Thanks

[Aem1215]

I can. First of all many places are a combination of both ICF and SNF patients. ICF refers to a patient who requires long term care at a level that an assisted living facility can't provide. SNF refers to a facility that has beds that have been certified to place patients who require "skilled" services such as therapy and skilled nursing services. These used to be geriatric patients, but now skilled facilities are seeing younger patients who are stable, but require continued care and monitoring for acute conditions vs. chronic conditions. An ICF level patient may be placed in a skilled bed, but a skilled patient must be placed in a skilled bed. For this reason, many facilities have all their beds certified. Other facilities typically divide their skilled and ICF beds by unit to differientiate. Any questions?