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When looking for assisted living facilities for our senior loved ones, we often struggle with making the best decision for them and their needs. As opposed to independent living facilities, assisted living facilities provide a bit of additional support for your senior loved one so that they can retain a bit of their independence while still ensuring that they are safe and well cared for.
Deciding what kind of community would be best for senior is best started with taking a look at the services provided in assisted living facilities. Does my senior need a little help with getting themselves dressed in the morning? Are they able to go to the grocery store on their own and provide three meals a day for themselves without assistance? Do they need help doing basic household chores like laundry, vacuuming, cleaning the bathroom, and more?
If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” then assisted living is most likely the way to go to ensure that your loved one receives the best care that they need. That care starts with the services provided.
But what kind of services are typically provided in assisted living facilities? Let’s take a closer look.
Typical Services Provided
While no two assisted living facilities are alike, there are several different services that you’re likely to find between each and every assisted living facility. The services provided in assisted living facilities are designed to make your or your senior loved one’s life easier, allowing them to still retain that bit of independence that they need and desire while ensuring that they’re in a safe area and can be cared for in case of an emergency.
Round the Clock Care
Speaking of which, there are almost always going to be medical services provided in assisted living facilities. These medical services can include a wide host of things, like having an on-site doctor to help assist with appointments, a relationship with the local hospital to be on call for emergencies 24/7, or even trained nurses that work on each floor to assist with medication disbursement and everyday tasks.
Nutritious Foods
Assisted living facilities also provide food services. These food services can include three meals a day provided by dietary professionals, unlimited snacks, diet counseling, and more. This is an extremely important service because food insecurity is such a major problem for the elderly in our communities. Because many elderly men and women struggle with being able to get to the grocery store on their own and to pay for their groceries, this service is one of the most important ones that assisted living facilities offer.
Housekeeping
Another extremely important one of the services provided in assisted living facilities is the housekeeping service. Doing chores and keeping your home clean is difficult enough even when you aren’t elderly. Laundry, cooking and cleaning, vacuuming, dusting, and more are difficult and time consuming on the best of days, and even younger people struggle to handle all of these tasks. At assisted living facilities, though, these tasks are handled by the careful hands of the staff, ensuring that your senior loved one is well taken care of.
Caring Staff
With the help of the staff at senior assisted living centers, your loved one will have clean clothes, fresh sheets, and a spic and span living area. You can also rest easy knowing that your loved one will have assistance with their basic dressing and hygiene needs, since so many seniors struggle with this as well.
Assisted Living vs. Independent Living
These services are the major differences between an assisted living facility and an independent living facility. An independent living facility is just that: independent. It’s a senior center that basically functions like an apartment complex. There’s no additional help, no meals provided (except in separate cafés or dining halls), no housekeeping services, and no additional assistance that you wouldn’t find in a typical apartment building. Assisted living isn’t like this.
How Do I Know What’s Best For Me?
The easiest way to determine if you or your senior loved one needs assisted living is to gauge how much help is needed. First, think about how often you need help or how much you have to help your loved one with basic tasks. As stated previously, if your senior loved one struggles with dressing themselves everyday or has issues with bathing or other basic personal hygiene, then an assisted living facility is your best bet.
Second, think about why you want to change your living arrangements or why you think it’s best for your senior loved one to move into a facility like this. Are you making the move because you want to downsize and spend more time with other seniors, or are you wanting to change your current living situation because the one you’re in simply isn’t sustainable any longer?
If you or your loved one falls into the second category, then assisted living is going to be your best bet as opposed to independent living. If your senior is focused on changing their living situation because they need help, then independent living is simply not going to cut it.
Before you make any decisions, however, be sure to consult with your primary care doctor and other professionals in the area. Ensure that you’re making the right choice for both you and your family.
What Kingsley Offers
Here at Kingsley, we understand the value of services provided in assisted living facilities and how those services can make or break an experience. Assisted living is a huge adjustment for both our residents and their families, and we make the promise to you that our residents are always at the forefront of our minds when making decisions in our center.
The best part about Kingsley is that if you or your loved one does need more advanced care in the future, then we also offer memory care services here in our facility. We’re able to assist with residents who are starting to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s symptoms without moving them much from the home they’ve come to know.
If you’re interested in making Kingsley your new home, then contact us and schedule a tour today!
