Assisted living facilities are designed for people who need some help with daily activities (for example, to bathe, get dressed or take medication as prescribed). These facilities can help older adults with memory problems, a tendency to get confused or with physical issues. Some facilities have special programs for people with Alzheimer’s or dementia-related disorders. Assisted living facilities can also provide help for couples who want to continue living together, even though one or both require more assistance than the other can provide.
Assisted living facilities can range from small and home-like to large communities. Residents may have their apartment or a room with a bathroom, or they may share a bedroom and a bathroom with another resident. These facilities provide meals, help with daily activities (including personal assistance) and offer some social and recreational activities. For each of the residents, a service plan is developed to help determine what services and activities they need or want. The degree of supervision and health care available and the specific services and activities offered vary, sometimes to a large extent, from community to community.
Homes for adult family care
Households for adult family care provide a full-time family-type home where up to five elderly or disabled adults live. The resident could have their room or could share it with another person.
Assisted living communities
Assisted living communities provide arrangements to live full time in a less restrictive and more home-like setting. Communities can include individual apartments or rooms for a single resident or shared with another person.
How to choose the ideal place?
If you or a loved one decided it is time to move into an assisted living community or a family adult care home or use the services of an adult care center, you would want to visit several communities or centers and talk to the staff and the residents or participants. The visits to the different communities will help you to know your options and determine where you feel most comfortable and choose the place that best meets your needs.
When you visit a community or a center, you may want to ask some of the following questions, as well as any other questions you may have.
Does the community or center have a license?
Ask to see the current license issued by the Agency for Health Care Administration. The license should indicate if it is an assisted living community, a home for adult family care or an adult care center. The license must have a validity date and an expiration date.
What are the charges and what services are provided?
Ask them to explain clearly the charges and all the services. The community or center may have a fee for certain basic services that are provided to all people as well as a second charge for additional services that you may want or need. Think about other services you may need in the future, and not just your current needs.
What documents should I fill out?
Before selecting a community or a center, ask for written information about the services, a copy of the contract or residency agreement, or any other document that you can take home with you. You can read them at home and write down any questions you may have. You can also examine the documents with a friend or family member. Then make an appointment to talk about your questions and concerns. Before signing any document, please read it carefully to make sure you understand it and that all your questions have been answered. When you sign documents, ask for a copy for your records.
What activities are offered?
Ask to see a program of activities. Does this have a variety of activities that you will enjoy? Is transportation available to go to the community activities of your choice? Are there planned trips?
What meals and snacks are provided? Are special diets available?
Ask how many meals or snacks are provided. Are they offered at certain times of the day or can you choose when you want to eat? Is a variety of foods served? Are special meals or diets available?
Are some nursing services provided?
Does the community or center provide some nursing services? What do the services include? Even if you do not need nursing services now, you may need them in the future.
Are special services offered for people with dementia (such as Alzheimer’s disease)?
Ask what special services and activities are offered for people with Alzheimer’s or dementia. Are the staff trained to meet the special needs of these residents or participants? Is there equipment to ensure that a person does not walk out of the institution?
The best option will not only depend on the quality of care, but also on the correspondence between the needs and preferences of the resident and the services and philosophy of the institution or center that he chooses.
Two aspects deserve special attention: the style of care and risk management. It is crucial that the choice you make has the conditions to meet the changing needs of the resident. The style of attention is the way in which these needs are valued and met, medical, functional, emotional and social.
Residential Plaza at Blue Lagoon provides an affordable home with assisted living services that allows adults to live in a safe, caring and supportive environment that helps them maintain their dignity and independence. If you want to know our assisted living community, visit: www.residentialplaza.com and coordinate an appointment to know our community.
Residential Plaza at Blue Lagoon also has a Memory Care Program that provides 24-hour accessible medical care, based on the Montessori Program for Aging and Dementia, in a home environment for adults with Alzheimer’s disease and related-dementia disorders.
