Document and Entity Information - shares	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2016	Aug. 04, 2016
Document and Entity Information
Entity Registrant Name	SENIOR HOUSING PROPERTIES TRUST
Entity Central Index Key	0001075415
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2016
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		237,484,059
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2