When it comes to finding senior care for your loved one, there are numerous aspects to take into consideration. After all, you don’t want your loved one, suffering from a mild form of dementia, to suddenly need to move from an assisted living into a nursing home if their condition worsens. That’s hard on your senior and on your wallet.
At the same time, you don’t want your elder to move into a nursing home unless they’re already in the later stages of dementia – that would be cruel as they’d be restricted from all independence. In that particular situation, you would want to consider a CCRC (otherwise known as a Continuing Care Retirement Community).
So, with that being said, here are 5 steps to find resident care to make the process simpler for you and your loved ones:
- Talk to Your Elder
We say this often and it always bears repeating. Do NOT go looking for elder care before talking to your senior. Even if they’re struggling with a neurodegenerative disorder or a disability that prevents them from open communication, it’s always important to keep your elder in the loop. It’s their life we’re talking about.
Of course, the best case scenario means they can still communicate, which would make step 2 even easier.
- Assess Needs and Wants
Like we said, when you’re trying to find resident care, it’s easiest when your loved one can communicate with you. This way, they can tell you what they want, what they don’t want, and what would be nice to have.
If they don’t know, they you may need to skip to step three or – better yet – contact one of our care advisors; since all of our services are free to you and your loved one – and we’ve been through this thousands of times – we can tell you what your elder needs after meeting with them.
- Research, research, research
You don’t need to become an expert overnight, but when you find resident care, it’s very different from moving. You’ll want to know what laws are in place to ensure your senior’s protection, you’ll want to know what rights your senior has, and you’ll want to know all the different forms of residential care including assisted living, adult family homes, nursing homes, independent living communities, etc.
- Make a List and Visit
Next, you’ll want to make a list of all the facilities that are nearby, in areas you like, and meet all of your elders’ needs. Once you have that list, schedule some tours and walk-throughs.
Similar to house-hunting, you may not know if they appeal to you right away or not. As a result, you should schedule multiple tours at the same communities. This way, you can see the facility at multiple hours and get a general vibe from the place. Are people out and about or is it dead quiet and lonesome? Do the staff know the seniors by name? Are people friendly? This will no doubt be the most laborious part of your tasks when you want to find resident care.
- Choose a Community
After you’ve made it through steps one through four, you need to pick a location.
As we prefaced in the beginning of this article, it’s important to find resident care that follows a long-term plan, otherwise you may need to move your elder again and that could be all the more disastrous for their health.
Of course, we walk you through each of these steps when you choose our services (and it’s free), so if it sounds like a lot, or it’s a bit daunting, or you need help with certain parts, we’re here for you.