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Signs a Person May Need Assisted Living

It can be one of the hardest things to tell your parent or another loved one that he or she needs more help. That is why it is important to determine the signs that it is time to consider moving into an assisted living facility.

Signs That an Older Adult Needs Assisted Living

An empty refrigerator or filled with spoiled food
The older adult is always wearing the same clothes daily
Failure to clean and tidy the house and yard
Forgetfulness of the older adult
Strange or inappropriate behavior
Signs of depression
Bruises due to frequent falling or balancing problems

Perhaps it is time to consider the need to move to an assisted living facility. But what can you expect there? The need to do certain activities of daily living? This may involve things like cooking, going to the bathroom in the middle of the night, keeping the house, and traveling to some appointments.

Services at Typical Assisted Living Facility

Three meals a day served in a dining area common for seniors
Assistance when eating, bathing, dressing, and bathroom time
Housekeeping services
Access to health and medical services
Medication management
Laundry services
Recreational and social activities
24/7 security
Availability of staff to help with scheduled needs and unexpected issues

It would be stressful to plan about moving, regardless of your situation. Nevertheless, thinking about leaving your home for an assisted living facility can be a different story.

Of course, there are factors that can make you feel very vulnerable as a natural response to leaving your home.

But think that it is just normal to feel that way as it is just like losing your independence or a huge part of your identity. Talking to someone sympathetic in times like this can really help. You may also engage in counseling and therapy as an option where you can give yourself some time to grieve and get used to the change.

Tips To Make It Easier To Move To An Assisted Living Facility

It can be stressful in the beginning to consider living in an assisted living facility, but you can also do things to make the transition much easier.

Stay busy
Know what to expect
Go easy on yourself
Pack well in advance for the move

Support Loved Ones Moving To An Assisted Living Facility

Acknowledge the feeling of loss when your loved one chooses to move
Call and visit them as often as possible in the assisted living facility
Work through the period of adjustment together after moving into the facility
Help them personalize the living space they choose to move into

Choosing An Assisted Facility

About The Staff

Check if the staff has time to speak with you or not. Are they friendly and interested in you? Find out if they interact warmly with current residents or they just seem overwhelmed or stressed out.

About The Residents

Determine if the residents are happy and enjoying their interaction with one another. It will be more favorable if people look interesting to live with.

About The Facility

See for yourself if the assisted living facility is clean and fresh all around. See if the facility is also safe and secure as it provides peace of mind to residents. Moreover, you can find out more about the food, and if the menu options favor your taste.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

3 Important Interview Questions for Memory Assisted Living

One in every 10 people over the age of 65 is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia. That equates to at least 5.8 million Americans this year and the number will continue to grow every year. To address this growing statistic, more memory assisted living facilities are now available all over the country to cater to the needs of seniors who require specialized care due to memory loss. To ensure that a senior gets the level of care that fits his needs, the healthcare team usually conducts an interview with these three common interview questions:

How do you feel about your memory now?

This question is aimed at determining the level of awareness a senior has about his current memory state. In a study, all of the subjects expressed their awareness that their memory is not as good as it used to be.

Most of them have challenges with short-term memory function and they attribute it mostly to an existing medical condition. On the other hand, their long-term memory is a lot better, although most seniors feel that it would also start to deteriorate over time.

When did you start to notice that you’re becoming more forgetful?

It’s very important for healthcare staff to ask this question to know exactly when memory loss began manifesting itself, which will hopefully be a factor in diagnosing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

Most seniors would know when their memory starts to fail them, especially when they start to forget even the most routine and mundane tasks like where they placed their keys or if they already took their medication.

This will allow healthcare staff in memory assisted living to determine the right healthcare plan that will meet the level of care needed by an individual.

How do you feel about losing your memory?

Memory loss is a difficult reality to accept for seniors because it makes them feel hopeless and helpless because they have no control over it. This is why it’s very important to ask this question to acknowledge their feelings about this difficult time in their life and let them know that they are not alone.

Memory assisted living has the primary goal of helping seniors going through memory loss due to dementia or Alzheimer’s disease to accept their condition and not let it define the rest of their life.

Asking this question is the first step to achieving that goal and it will also allow healthcare teams to know exactly how to deal with the elderly to help him go through this journey and still enjoy the best quality of life possible.

With the growing elderly population that’s predicted to overpower the younger population for the first time in history, the role of memory assisted living is more important now than ever.

As with any area in healthcare, interview questions are always the first step to making sure that excellent quality care is given to every senior going through memory loss and other related conditions.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

Active Adult Housing: Why It’s a New Option for Independent Seniors

As you approach retirement, you may begin to think about senior living options where you can enjoy comfort and safety during your late adulthood years. But aside from your typical communities, you may come across the term “active adult housing,” which is now a popular form of independent living.

Over the years, research studies have proven the need for an independent living option that could cater to residents who are just entering their retirement years and may not require assisted living just yet since they can still manage most of their daily tasks.

In fact, this demographic still doesn’t want to be called “seniors” because they are not quite there yet even if they are not employed any more. But what exactly is an active adult community and what do you need to know about it?

Defining active adult housing

In its essence, active adult housing is a form of independent living that’s specifically targeted towards residents 55 years and older. These communities are typically divided into age-restricted and age-targeted living.

The Fair Housing Act defines age-restricted active adult housing as a community where at least 80% of all residents must have at least one person over 55 years old. Age-targeted communities, on the other hand, are marketed specifically for the 55 and over the market but they are not limited to those above this age bracket.

Residences in active adult housing communities could either be patio homes, townhouses, single-family houses, condos, mobile homes, and apartments. This gives active adults more options to fit their needs and budget without sacrificing the kind of life they want to live.

These independent living communities are also near important areas like restaurants, supermarkets, banks, and shopping centers.

Understanding active adult

There has been some confusion over the term “active adult” in senior living communities. But the simplest way to put things into perspective is to think about active adult housing as lifestyle-based and not care center.

Over the last few years, a lot of developers have created spaces to accommodate the needs of active adults who may be stepping into late adulthood but are still at the prime of their game.

This allows adults 55 and over to move out of their own homes and have the option to enjoy more housing options even if they don’t need advanced care just yet.

The benefits of active adult housing

Finally, active adult independent living offers a lot of benefits to seniors 55 and over who want to live their best life after retirement. Most active adults don’t need a huge living space to function and would want to move to a smaller house that they can easily maintain.

Active adult housing offers a type of independent living where seniors won’t need to worry about renovations, repainting, and caring for their lawns, so they can focus on having a good time and living their best life. Of course, there’s the option to have their peers around and still make memories with the family.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

Why Family Matters in Assisted Living

As the world’s population gets older, the need for a family to understand assisted living and what it offers to the lives of the elderly is becoming much more important.

But while a lot of family members think that their loved ones can have the best life in these communities, what they fail to realize is the importance of their involvement in achieving that goal for their family members.

Loneliness and the Difficulty of Transitioning to Assisted Living

Loneliness is a common feeling among seniors transitioning to assisted living. When someone who has lived in the same house for many years needs to move into a completely different living arrangement, it’s not uncommon to feel separation anxiety and loneliness that could even lead to depression if not addressed promptly.

While assisted living communities aim to provide the most home-like environment for residents, family members still play an important role in helping seniors transition smoothly into this new community without feeling isolated or left alone.

Family members can visit regularly and even engage in activities with their loved ones so they can feel that sense of belongingness to the family even if they’re living in a different community.

They can also offer to assist with caring for their loved one while respecting the roles of healthcare workers and their level of skill to avoid getting too involved.

Quality Time over the Length of Time with Every Visit

A lot of residents in assisted living communities have loved ones, especially spouses, who visit them on an almost daily basis.

Although this could be thought of as a nuisance, it is actually highly appreciated by healthcare workers in these communities because of how they benefit the overall wellbeing of their loved ones and even other residents. Some of these family members eventually build great relationships with other residents and their constant interaction with them allows them to understand the needs of lonely residents who are not visited by their own families.

A lot of healthcare staff in these assisted living communities report that these family members help make the lives of other residents better and not just their own loved ones.

They also remind those family members who fail to visit their loved ones that although they already sent them to these communities, their responsibility as primary caregivers is still not over.

It doesn’t matter if they can only visit for a short period of time because quality time is more important than the length of time in supporting loved ones in assisted living.

The Takeaway

The family will always be a person’s strongest foundation and it holds true even for the elderly population. While seniors need specialized care because of existing medical conditions, they need the love and support of their family members the most to make sure that they don’t feel lonely and enjoy the best quality of life possible.

At the end of the day, family involvement is a crucial part of the care of seniors in assisted living.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

How Senior Housing Promotes Good Quality of Life

It is happening: the American population is growing older. The number of older adults is projected to reach an astounding 94.7 million from 56 million. That’s a 69% increase in the elderly population of the United States. This means that senior housing will be increasingly in demand, as more seniors would choose to live in a more secure and safe community where they could spend the best of their later years. But how exactly does senior housing promote a better quality of life?

An Opportunity for Social Interaction

In 2010, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that spending time with family and friends and enjoying the right leisure activities with them actually helps keep cognitive function longer.

On the other hand, isolation and loneliness usually lead to depression and early mortality among the elderly, according to a research study from the University of Chicago.

One of the primary goals of any senior housing community is to promote social interaction among its residents. This is done through activities that encourage socialization within the community and with visiting loved ones including communal art classes, games, and hobbies that allow residents to engage in meaningful conversations with other people.

It has been proven to help boost their mood and keep them healthier for a longer time.

Safe Environment for Seniors to Live in

Safety is one of the biggest concerns of loved ones living with seniors. But with senior housing, these worries are eliminated because independent and assisted living communities always prioritize the health and safety of their residents.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries among adults 65 years and older. This is why senior housing communities always make sure that their buildings are designed for mobility and accessibility among seniors by adding hand railings, grab bars, raised toilets, and other precautions to prevent falls among residents.

Independent and assisted living communities also hire security companies to protect residents from break-ins and alarm systems are installed around the facilities for the peace of mind of both the residents and their loved ones.

A Better Lifestyle for Seniors

Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of living in senior housing is the opportunity to live the best lifestyle possible. These communities offer different opportunities for residents to enjoy their life without worrying about daily chores.

For instance, they don’t need to cook for themselves because these communities will take care of preparing nutritious meals that meet their dietary needs and consider their food restrictions.

They can also get assistance with activities of daily living if they have difficulty performing them on their own and they can focus on doing what they love without worrying about running a household.

So if you have a loved one who’s about to enter retirement, a senior housing community is definitely a great choice to give them the quality of life that they deserve.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

Independent Living at Continuing Care Retirement Communities

The term “independent living” may take on different meanings when applied to continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs). It may sometimes imply an active and independent lifestyle, where the senior is free of the need for assistance with performing daily tasks and addressing his/her daily needs.

In other cases, it may mean that a frailer senior, perhaps someone suffering from dementia, is receiving the support services in a memory assisted living facility that is necessary to help them remain as independent as possible, for as long as possible.

This article provides a more in-depth look at what independent living looks like in senior homes. It will also talk about how this is normally a temporary arrangement as seniors will become more dependent and require more care as they age.

Assisted Living Homes vs CCRCs

Before going further, it’s important to establish the difference between an assisted living home and a continuing care retirement community.

Assisted living facilities are for those who require little assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs). They do not provide medical care so the resident must move to a different type of senior care location, such as a skilled nursing center if they need medical care.

Residents can expect a number of services including specially trained, licensed professionals who provide around-the-clock support for activities of daily living. Accommodations are typically comfortable, private, and aesthetically pleasing.

Continuing care communities, on the other hand, allow their residents to “age in place”. They’re in an environment with familiar faces and a daily routine they enjoy, rather than moving from place to place to receive the care you need. CCRCs offer all levels of senior care in one convenient location.

CCRCs employ medical professionals like nurses and therapists who are trained in geriatric care. They carry out individualized health plans that change as the resident ages.

The best thing about living in a continuing care retirement community is that residents can receive higher levels of care on the same campus. For example, many CCRCs have memory assisted living units for seniors who might eventually succumb to Alzheimer’s disease.

Living independently at CCRCs

Now, CCRCs provide residents with a variety of care services if and when they are needed. The seniors in CCRCs can typically be categorized as those needing long-term care, otherwise known as assisted living services, and those that are able to leave in a fully independent manner.

Long-term care refers to help with daily activities like dressing, bathing, using the toilet, and food preparation.

Meanwhile, the seniors residing in the “independent living” portion of a CCRC require none of these. They are living on their own in apartment units or patio-style homes.

It’s important to point out that the health and mobility of a CCRC resident change over time. It isn’t uncommon for those living independently to have caregivers come into their home or apartment once they do begin to need a little bit of help.

Senior facilities typically provide separate assisted living and nursing care accommodations for residents whose care needs have advanced considerably. However, almost all residents prefer to stay in their own apartment or home for as long as possible.

Conclusion

The choice to go for an assisted living or continuing care retirement community depends on the physical and mental condition of an elderly loved one. It is important to do extensive research and tour these places firsthand to ensure that the quality of care is as expected.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

Personal Assistance for Memory Assisted Living Residents

Senior living is a broad industry. In the United States alone there are multiple options available to older people. From active adult communities to nursing homes, personal assistance is a solution that will cater to the preference of the elderly person and his family.

However, the variety is a double-edged sword. As good as having lots of options are, it can also potentially lead to feelings of confusion for the soon-to-be resident and the family member tasked with looking for the perfect senior living facility.

For example, in assisted living communities, people may be surprised to find that there are multiple levels of care involved. Each one comes with different features and has different costs attached to them.

The Importance of Knowing these Levels of Care

When searching for memory assisted living facilities, knowledge about the different levels of care or personal assistance is handy, crucial even. Through this information, people will know about the different support mechanisms available to aging loved ones as years passed. Knowledge also gives those looking for an assisted living facility the confidence to ask the right questions, which will then inform their opinion when decision time comes.

Personal Assistance for Residents in Memory Assisted Living Homes

It’s important to note that assisted living facilities aren’t as heavily regulated as nursing facilities are. This is because assisted living homes offer care in a less clinical environment. The intention is to make the elderly feel cared for in an environment that’s more like a comfortable communal home or, in some cases, individual luxury apartments. No white walls and sterile linoleum floors.

From an administrative perspective, instituting different levels of care allows the people running assisted living homes to hire the right kind of staff, depending on the assistants required by residents at a given time. Say an assisted living community has more residents this year that need assistance to get to and from the dining room three times a day. So, that community needs to hire more caregivers compared to one where the majority of the residents walk on their own to meals.

Levels of Personal Assistance in Memory Assisted Living Communities

Memory care units can exist as part of a wider assisted living community or as its own standalone facility. Its residents need a higher and more specific type of personal assistance due to their medical conditions. Since they cater to senior residents with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, they cultivate an environment that helps residents with memory loss succeed and feel at home. Activities are failure-free and dining programs emphasize dignity. Staff members receive additional and ongoing specialized training in dementia care and often lead support groups or educational opportunities for family members as well.

Talking about Levels of Care

Learn about the personal assistance features when pursuing assisted living to make a loved one comfortable during the later stages of life. Take time to talk about levels of care during your tour. Most assisted living communities will assess potential residents in order to make a guess about their initial level of care needs. Use this information not only to plan for your initial costs but also to gauge your future costs based on any decline due to medical conditions.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

How Technology Benefits Seniors and Improves Senior Housing

It’s hard to imagine a time when a cellphone wasn’t just an arm’s length away. However, this age of technology has paved the way for us to forge connections, learn new things, and work from anywhere. What’s interesting to note is that it isn’t just millennials who are benefitting from all this technological innovation.

The results of a study conducted by the Pew Research Center, nearly half of adults over 65 have a smartphone. It has also shown that 56% of adults over 50 use YouTube and Facebook regularly.

Technology is already set to benefit seniors, and senior home care is no exception. Older adults and their loved ones are using technology to keep connected, stay entertained, and remain safe.

Technology also gives the senior home care industry the opportunities to keep older adults safer and more comfortable while living in senior housing.

Internet of Medical Things

The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) is created by having medical professionals in different fields and from all over the world connected to each other through the web and technology.

The medical world has started to use the information gleaned from this knowledge exchange to help seniors with their medication schedules, vital signs, and implants to assist with their health.

Here are three examples of technology that have proved beneficial for senior housing residents.

GPS Services

In the last decade, the Global Positioning System (GPS) has greatly improved location accuracy. Primarily, GPS can help locate a resident in an assisted living facility who becomes lost.

For example. seniors with memory issues stemming from Alzheimer’s disease have a habit of wandering. This could leave them disoriented or lost even if they know the location well.

The Alzheimer’s Association notes that “more than 60 percent of those with Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia will wander.” If they are not found and picked up within 24 hours, they could suffer serious injury or even death.

Cameras

The National Council of Aging (NCOA) says that about one in 10 adults over 60 faces some sort of abuse, whether it’s physical, emotional, sexual, neglect, or some other form. The NCOA added that only one in every 14 cases of abuse are usually reported to authorities.

Cameras allow seniors’ families to make sure seniors are being treated properly. Cameras are also useful to health professionals as it allows them to track the movements of elders with health and mental issues. Doctors can study their habits and tendencies even without being there physically.

A less invasive alternative for a camera is sensors. Installing these small, wireless pieces of technology, lets you keep track of how active a person is.

If the sensors pick up on changes in activity, they can send an automatic notification (via text, phone, or email) that something may be wrong. For example, if an elderly resident isn’t getting out of bed at a certain time, these sensors can let you know.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

A Guide to Finding the Right Facilities for Alzheimer’s

The senior care industry has grown throughout the years. Part of this growth is the establishment of facilities that offer different levels of care — skilled nursing, assisted living, and independent living. Alongside them, the number of memory units and other facilities for Alzheimer’s have also grown in response to the increasing number of persons with Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Memory care units exist as part of an assisted living facility or as a stand-alone unit. They are ideal when a person needs trained caregivers who understand the needs of someone with dementia or Alzheimer’s.

Memory care facilities also have amenities that ensure the security of its residents. This prevents residents from wandering away unsupervised.

What to Look for in Facilities for Alzheimer’s

If you have a loved one or family member who’s been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, how do you go about looking for the right place for them? You can work with a professional specializing in the field of eldercare to help you find the right memory care facility.

However, if you’d like to save on the added expense, you can follow the tips below.

Conduct Online Research

When looking for facilities for Alzheimer’s, an online search is always a good place to start. Some specific resources to help you find licensed memory care facilities include:

Eldercare Locator
State Department of Social Services
Your local Department of Social Services and/or Aging Services
Your state’s general website (i.e. “name of state.gov”)

On the last resource, you can input search terms that fit your location. For example, if you live in Bellevue, Nebraska you can go log on to Nebraska.gov and type in “memory care in Bellevue” on the search bar. This should lead you to the state department that oversees the licensing of memory care and/or assisted care and to information about licensed facilities in the city of Bellevue that accepts residents suffering from dementia.

Narrowing your Search

Once you’ve obtained a list of licensed memory care units, the next step is to define the geographical area where you want to focus your search. You can narrow this down further by selecting three facilities to visit. After picking out your three options, get in touch with each of them to schedule tours.

See the Facility

Be thorough when touring the three memory care units options you’ve picked out. Walk the halls and look at the rooms. Stay for lunch and observe the activity of the unit. Most importantly, meet the caregivers and ask questions. Ask if they can refer you to another family of a resident to speak with someone who has experience with the facility.

Some Questions to Ask when Evaluating Memory Care Units

When evaluating the quality and cost of facilities for Alzheimer’s, here are a couple of questions that could serve as your guide.

What kind of training do caregivers have?
How many caregivers work during each shift?
What is the resident to staff ratio?
How does the staff handle difficult patient behavior?
What happens if my loved one is admitted and does not adapt to his/her new environment?
Is the facility able to care for residents for the rest of their life?
Can hospice come in?
What is the facility’s emergency plan for emergencies, such as a hurricane or fire?
How much is the basic monthly fee and how often does this change?
What are the levels of care and their rates?
Is there an e required deposit?
Does the facility work with long-term care policies?

Hopefully, these tips provide you with the confidence to go out there and find the best memory care facility for the needs of your elderly loved one.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco

What You Need to Know About Paying for Independent Living

The aging population is growing more every day and with it comes the increasing need for elderly care. Retirement is an inevitable part of life and when that time comes you may want to start considering your options for places where you can still live as independently as possible in a safe and secure place designed specifically for the elderly. Independent living is a residential care option that offers the lowest level of assistance to its residents. Also called a retirement community or senior housing, this community is the ideal choice if you just want a place where you can minimize your daily responsibilities and focus on living an active life and socializing with your peers.

But the question is: how can you pay for independent living?

The Cost of Independent Living

The average cost of independent living ranges between $1,500 and $6,000 per month, according to the American Seniors Housing Association.

This depends on the type of residence that you choose, the amenities offered in the facility, the location of the residence, and the level of services that you can enjoy while living in the community. The cost will also depend if you wish to buy or rent the residence.

The Payment Options

Unfortunately, you cannot use Medicaid or insurance to pay for independent living costs, as they are only used for nursing homes, home care, and assisted living facilities. This is why you’re required to use your personal income to take care of these expenses.

With the help of your family, you can use your personal income, savings, pension payments, or investment retirement accounts. You can also use these other options to pay for independent living:

Annuity Payments

This is a type of insurance that is often part of a retirement funding strategy. Here, you’ll be making an initial investment where you will be entitled to a future payment that can be scheduled annually, monthly, quarterly, or as a lump sum.

Social Security Benefits

Your social security retirement benefits can be used together with your other pension payments to cover the cost of independent living.

Housing Assistance

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers several programs to help low-income seniors find safe and comfortable living arrangements as stated in Section 202L Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program.

If you meet the eligibility requirements for low-income housing, the government will pay 30% of your income to be paid mostly on rent and other expenses.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

The government also offers Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for individuals aged 65 years and older who have disabilities, are blind or have limited assets and income.

If you belong to this category, you can apply for SSI to over for expenses like your monthly payments for independent living.

At the end of the day, you have to choose a residence where you can feel safe, comfortable, and as independent as possible.

Independent living facilities offer you the opportunity to enjoy the best quality of life in your late adulthood years.

Richmont Senior Living is proud to serve Ashland, NE and the surrounding cities: Memphis, Springfield, South Bend, Greenwood, Murdock, Waverly, Murdock, Ithaca, and Chalco