How to Choose the Best Assisted Living Facility

Seniors and adults with disabilities who need assistance with their daily activities, and access to medical care, are accommodated in facilities that provide “assisted living.”

When this is the case, either the residents or their families may want to look into assisted living facilities, to ensure they have access to trained caregivers. Aside from that, residents of assisted living facilities may need continuous medical care and the assistance of licensed nurses.

What Does Assisted Living Provide?

Assisted living facilities, also known as nursing homes, provide seniors with individualized care. Active social life and an active way of life are also provided by assisted living.

Medication management, bathing, dressing and grooming, are among the most common assisted living services. In addition, services like cleaning, food, transportation and social events are usually included. Staff is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to ensure your safety, comfort and well-being is being taken care of. Bring your personal belongings to make your new residence feel like home.

When new residents move in, they are screened to ensure that their care is personalized to fit their exact needs and requirements. For example, cognitive care may be provided by certain assisted living facilities, as well. In addition, residents on special diets may require separate dining rooms and menus, at these facilities.

Factors to Choose an Assisted Living Facility

Here are some things you should pay extra attention to, before choosing an assisted living facility.

Affordability

It is essential to keep costs in mind while deciding on an assisted living facility. The last thing you need is for your parents to fall head over heels in love with an institution that doesn’t fit their budget.

Decide how your parents should use their retirement savings or sell off assets, to pay for the expense of housing, with the help of a financial adviser. If your husband will cover the expenses, agree on a budget before you begin.

Obtain price estimates from a few of the best-rated senior care facilities in your region. Unfortunately, the assisted living facility may not give you a straightforward answer, if they do not precisely know your family’s requirements. When you tell them upfront what you can afford, they will be able to determine whether or not your budget is reasonable for their services.

Quality of Food

Providing your parents with their favorite dinner once a week can make a big difference in their quality of life. Talk to the staff about your parents’ food preferences, and limits, to see if there is any possibility to provide this for them. To get an idea of how they manage serving sizes, ask to view the food while you’re there for a meal.

If residents get hungry between meals, you will want to know if they have access to snacks or additional servings of their favorite foods. Anyone with a high appetite may benefit significantly from this.

Security

The risk of injury increases with age. Accessible handrails and non-slip floors are also important in the facilities you evaluate. As an added precaution, make sure the building itself is well-protected.

This is not just a deterrent to criminals, but it may also prevent persons with Alzheimer’s or dementia from escaping. Especially for the elderly, this may be a stressful scenario since they may get lost and agitated.

Location

Locate a nearby assisted living facility. It should be easy to get to your parents’ house to visit, so that you may spend more time with them without having to alter your daily routine.

Unless additional family members are nearby, choosing a place outside of town provides minimal advantages. However, as your parents become older, visits from loved ones are important for their well-being.

Talk with the Staffs

It is not unusual for families to want their elderly parents to be treated with the same amount of care and attention that they get from their loved ones when they move into an assisted-living facility. A great sense of compassion for elderly persons is desired, even if this may be a demanding standard for staff.

It is comforting for your parents to meet employees who seem to like their jobs and have strong relationships with the residents. If you are on tour, pay attention to how the staff interacts with the residents.

Make sure you ask your tour guide about any poor reviews you come across online. Then, if they are aware of the problems, find out what they are doing to correct them.

You may learn a lot about how the institution handles disagreements, by their answer. The way they respond tells you whether or not they are interested in finding a solution.

Avoid assisted living facilities with no defined procedures for dealing with disagreements. Your family’s issues will likely be handled the same way if the staff is dismissive or unfriendly.

Check Reviews

Your loved ones’ search for the finest assisted living facilities in your region might become easier by reading online reviews. In addition, reviews may provide insight into what it is like to live in an assisted living facility, from the perspective of residents who have been living there.

Everything from lousy service, to the quality of the food given at dinner, is discussed by reviewers in their posts. Everything you will not hear from a tour guide is here. In the end, it is not all about the ratings. Even so, a tour of the facility is highly recommended.

Find out what works, and not, for your parents. Then, move on to the next assisted care facility, if you read anything concerning, such as allegations of abuse or neglect. When there are so many options for assisted living, why put your parents in harm’s way, by putting them in a possibly toxic environment, right?

Extra Care

Consider an assisted living facility that provides cognitive care, if your elderly parent has Alzheimer’s or dementia. Residents with brain disorders benefit from routines designed to reduce their stress levels.

These services are provided by professionally trained caregivers, who have previous experience with the specific challenges of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Patients with dementia should have more frequent check-ins from their caregivers.

Conclusion

Now that you have learned what to look for in an assisted living facility, for your parents or other family members, you can make an informed decision. Next, you will need to do some research, make some calls and make reservations for tours. If possible, bring along your loved ones; they will be the ones living there. Finally, trust your intuition, if something does not seem right, and ask questions.