What is assisted living?

Assisted living generally means a residential place for older people, who would like or need help with certain elements of daily life, such as washing, dressing, cooking and so on. It can be a good choice for older people who do not necessarily need medical care, but do need some help. Some assisted living complexes have varying levels of care and help available, which means that residents can access medical and nursing care, in addition to daily needs, as and when they require it.

Why older people choose assisted living

An assisted living facility may be a good choice if you need more personal care services than you can get at home, but you don’t need regular medical care and supervision of a nursing home. Many people struggle with reduced mobility as they age, which means that they need a different residential environment in order to cope. It can also help to combat loneliness and isolation, as well as physical problems, as there are many similar people living close by

Assisted living helps older people to maintain their independence

Assisted living can offer the best of both worlds to older people, as it usually also offers 24-hour access to care and support services, personalised dependent on your needs, but importantly, also allows residents their own independence to live in their own accommodation and come and go as they please.

What types of assisted living accommodation is available?

The accommodation can be apartments with all their own facilities or larger shared houses with shared facilities. All of them generally have communal areas to socialise and eat, including dining rooms and cafés.

What specific services will assisted living accommodation offer?

These will vary according to the particular place, but the range of facilities might include:

• Emergency buttons
• 24 hour emergency help
• Meals served I the dining room or café
• Help with eating
• Help with washing and dressing
• Assistance with mobility
• Accommodation cleaning
• Exercise programmes
• Social programmes

How do you know if assisted living is right for you or your elderly relative?

This is always a difficult decision to take and a difficult conversation to have with older relatives, but it is important to consider if your elderly relative is struggling with eating properly, washing and dressing, mobility and stability (are they prone to falls?), arthritis, dementia or indeed, loneliness and depression, all of which can mean staying in their own home is increasingly hazardous and detrimental to their continued health and well-being. Read out tips on how to broach these conversations with your older relatives here.

How to choose the right assisted living accommodation

The important thing is to do your homework. All assisted living accommodation developments will be different and offer differing types of accommodation, care facilities and activities. Make sure that the one you choose is the best one possible to suit your older relative.

Most importantly, make sure you like the staff working there. They are going to be key to the happiness of residents and it is important that they are kind, welcoming and efficient. So:

How are the staff?

• Are they kind when you visit? Do they have time to talk to you or are they rushed off their feet?
• Do they answer your questions in s straight-forward way, or are they evasive?
• Do they mind if you want to be involved in your parent’s care? Beware of negativity or evasion on any of these issues, as it is generally not a good sign.
• Visit at an unspecified time and gauge their reaction. This can be very telling!
• What is the ratio of staff to residents?
• How qualified are the staff?
• Do they always have a nurse or doctor on site?
• What are their emergency procedures?

Also look for the basics:

• Is it clean and tidy?
• How does it smell?
• Try the food/ visit at mealtimes to see how much residents are enjoying the food and what assistance they are getting with eating is needed
• Do the other residents look happy? Chat to them and ask how they find the accommodation and facilities.
• If your elderly parent has a pet, can the accommodate them? It can be very upsetting to separate and older person for their pet and extremely detrimental to their health.
• What are their social and exercise programmes and how varied are they?

And check their finances:

• Is the assisted living facility financially sound? Ask to look at their reports

How to manage the move to assisted living

This is always a very stressful and difficult time, but it can be turned into a huge positive, if handled well. Some helpful advice is to:

• Plan as far ahead as you can, so the move in not rushed and plan with your older relative, so they feel involved in the key decisions and take ownership of the decision to move
• Recognise that this is not an easy time for your elderly parent and that they will find the move emotional and stressful, so be patient
• Make it exciting by planning what new furniture or smaller items might be needed for the move and making excuses for small shopping trips to buy them
• Allow your older parent time to think about what they want to keep and what they want to discard. This can be very difficult
• Talk to the assisted living accommodation about what they can and can’t take and acquaint them with what your elderly relative likes to do and what they are interested in, as well as specific care issues, so you can be sure they can accommodate it. Taking familiar things with them will help the transition enormously.
• Encourage your older parent to look forward to and join in the social activities on offer
• Once they are there, visit as often as you can

Paying for Assisted Living

It is advisable to take specialist advice on how to pay for assisted living and other care costs. A good starting point is The Society of Later Life Advisers