The combination of housing and services is an affordable alternative that encourages independence for older adults who do not require 24-hour continuous skilled nursing care.
Residents are treated with respect and dignity, which fosters good self-esteem in a home-like setting.

Individual lifestyles and needs are considered 24 hours a day:

• Assisted Living
• Dementia and Alzheimer’s Care
• Respite Care
• Social preferences (eg, active or relaxing)
• Security
• Well being
• For seniors who required Assisted Living or for those who can live most of the time independently, some of the services provided are:
• Private apartments
• Meals supervised by a dietician
• Health and wellness programs
• Social, education, and cultural activities
• Services are the same as assisted living facilities and centers – medication, bathing, dressing, mobility, personal hygiene, transferring, incontinence, health care coordination, housekeeping and laundry.
• Emergency call system.

The key to Assisted Living Concepts is the feeling that you know you are home!

An assisted living center offers private apartments, tailored care and assisted living.  Seniors may opt to pay rental month to month. The private apartments include appliances, parking, utilities and 24-hour security.  Each apartment has an emergency pull cord system.  Most centers offer weekly housekeeping and linen service.

Seniors can elect to prepare their own meals or dine in restaurant style.  The facility normally has a beauty salon, laundry rooms, library, and dining room.  Transportation can be scheduled.

Tailored care plans are offered to those seniors requiring special and specific needs.  Assisted living includes the following levels of service:

• 24 hour staffing by nursing assistants supervised by registered nurses.
• 2-hour monitoring/checks.
• Bathing assistance twice weekly.
• Personal incontinence assistance.
• Personal laundry.
• Full medication supervision.
• Meal reminders and/or escort to and from meals.
• Personal emergency call system.
• Assistance with personal schedules (eg, doctor appointments).
• Delivery of mail.

Assisted living center staff respect the decisions and individuality of the elderly who reside at the center.

Dependent on the individual’s health and choice of living arrangements, a senior may wish to stay in their home. Personal assistants can provide help anywhere from short visits up to and including 24×7 care.  The disadvantage to being at home and only scheduling visits is that should a medical emergency arise where you cannot get to a telephone, the response time for assistance will be delayed significantly.

The option of assisted living facilities/centers is becoming increasingly more common to seniors as they age.  The decision is not easy as ‘assisted living’ does not have a uniform definition of services. Assisted living facilities are not fully regulated.  Each state develops their own licensing requirements, regulations and inspection procedures.

You must carefully consider the types of services you require and how much.  Do you have minor health needs?  Do you want access to an onsite medical facility?  Do you require regular monitoring of chronic medical concerns?  Do you need assistance with medication management?  Are you mobile or do you need assistance?  Do you need your meals prepared and served?  Do you need meal reminders?  Do you need assistance with housekeeping, laundry, and transportation?  Do you enjoy planned social and recreational activities?

By answering these questions on independent living care will be a first step in helping you decide whether to select an independent retirement community, an assisted living facility or a continuing care retirement community.

In an effort to remain independent, some seniors are provided with a sense of security when a trusted friend of family member makes daily telephone calls or visits. They are secure in the knowledge that if they are unreachable that emergency services will be called. In the absence of a family, friend, or neigbour, seniors can enlist the assistance of a medical alarm service provider (who will perform the same function).

A senior who is unable to prepare meals can make arrangements with Meals on Wheels to deliver to their homes.  For those that cannot drive, there are now on-line grocery shopping and banking websites.  For those that are not internet savy, there are many agencies available that will arrange anywhere from three-hour visits to 24 x 7 care at home.

Personal support workers offer companionship, assistance with medications, laundry and housework assistance, personal care and hygiene, restorative/activation activities, and home management activities.

There are many service providers (some are volunteers) that are also available to assist elderly adults with grocery shopping, escorting, transportation, yard chores, and reading the mail. The provider can also network, link, and advocate on behalf of the person with social services and health care providers.

There are also several products available to use at home.  Bathrooms can be equipped with shower chairs or bathtub rails.  For mobility, there are several options depending on the health of the person – walkers, wheelchairs, scooters, canes, bed canes, etc.  In the kitchen, you can use an electric jar opener for those afflicted with arthritis of other ailments.

Elderly independent living allows seniors to enhance the quality of life.

Deciding to become a part of an Assisted Living Community is complex – emotional, health status, financial, and family concerns.

Most communities are purposely built to help older adults live their lives to the fullest.  Every aspect is carefully considered with the residents in mind (including assistance and comfort to Alzheimer and dementia care, geriatrics and long-term care, hospitality and dining, as well as long-term senior housing.

The retirement communities offer every senior option – retirement resorts, independent living, active adult communities, apartments, and a wide range of health care options such as:

• Health care management and monitoring
• Assistance with activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, using the bathroom, preparation of meals, and eating
• Housekeeping and laundry
• Medication reminders and/or help with medications
• Recreational activities
• Companionship
• Security
• Transportation

Assisted living communities are built with continuous and high standards for life safety, comfort, and care.

• Senior apartments
• Retirement communities
• Low-income housing

Independent living for seniors is also known in others terms such as, retirement communities and homes, senior apartments and housing, and independent living communities.  Retirement communities may be standard subdivisions, cluster housing, single-family or attached homes, and mobile or manufactured homes.  Depending on the community, residents may either buy or lease their homes.

Independent living is the ability to maintain one’s residence and lifestyle without medical assistance. Individuals are permitted to bring in outside services of their choice, should this become necessary.

Independent living is ideally suited to seniors that wish to live independently, and who are healthy and able to care for themselves.  They not longer want the burden of maintaining a house.  Individuals want the security in a seniors-only community and wish to live among their peers.  They also have the means to pay for the home they are looking for, or the requirements necessary to receive subsidized housing.

Seniors who select independent living are able to manage their homes and provide for their personal needs on their own.  An adult cannot select this lifestyle if assistance is required in custodial care with assistance in bathing, dressing, grooming, and eating.
Each independent community provides communal space (could range from a sitting room to a community center).  All units have kitchens, however some communities also offer meals in a communal dining area.

Before selecting a senior independent living option, a few of the considerations you should keep in mind are security, parking convenience, availability of public transportation, and distance to the closest hospital and doctor.  Once you have made your decision, you are on your way to the freedom you have been dreaming of!

In San Francisco a total of 50 retired Vietnam veterans and disabled people sat in the Health, Education and Welfare offices in 1997. This was in order to enforce implementation of Section 504 regulations guaranteeing them equal access for federally funded programs. Finally in 1979, Centers for Independent Living began receiving federal funds. Since then, independent living has snowballed. There are now over 400 centers nationwide operating a multitude of different programs from varied funding sources.

For many people independent living means being able to physically care for oneself and living on one’s own. However, independent living is not defined strictly in terms of physical self-sufficiency or living situation. The main element is that the disabled person (not family, friends, or professionals) exercise control and make choices. Independent living implies responsibility on the part of the disabled person to assume control of his or her life and to make choices and take actions. These actions result in desired changes in their lives.

A person who is severely disabled may require support services. Some of these support services include attendant care, housing, transportation, etc. This allows them to live independently in a community instead of being dependant on a friend, family member or in nursing homes. In this case, independent living becomes a service delivery system. Centers for independent living were created in order to identify, create, and improve these services. These services were also to promote access and attitudes in the community favorable to independent living.

The Center for Independent Living believes in many things such as equal access to programs, services, and employment, enforcement of civil rights, equal opportunities and responsibility, and most of all, all people are valued. Without the three men from California, who started the independent living movement, these beliefs would not be carried out today. Independent living is possible for many people thanks to these three men.

Most assisted living facilities are dedicated to enhancing the quality of life, as well as the dignity and independence of the elderly in their homes.

A wide range of home and community health services are available that make a difference in the quality of life for the elderly. These can include home visits to ensure nursing and personal care, and companionship.  Seniors are treated with respect and privacy.  Seniors can be helped privately by assisting living services or through government care programs, personal and group insurance plans and workers’ compensation boards.

Assisted living helps people with some of the following activities: housekeeping, laundry, dressing, preparing meals, eating, bathing, using the bathroom, and administering medications. Many facilities also provide medical care; however, the care offered is not be as intensive as the care offered in nursing homes. Assisted living is not an alternative to a nursing home, but an intermediate level of long-term care appropriate for many seniors. Assisted living bridges the gap between independent living and nursing homes.

Most assisted living facilities create a service plan for each individual resident that details the personalized services required for the resident. The plan is updated regularly and guaranteed to ensure that each resident is receiving the appropriate care. The update is necessary to monitor the changes that may change in seniors’ health conditions.

The difference between a nursing home and an assisted living facility vary greatly. Nursing homes are more expensive and are geared towards frail people who are unable to care for themselves and have numerous heath requirements. Assisted living facilities are normally geared towards elderly persons who are able to take care of themselves, except for a few activities (and this differs with each person).

A person requiring support will normally need assistance with daily living tasks on a regular basis.  They do not have access to alternative ways for assistance on a short or long-term basis. Seniors predominately use the service, however, people with disabilities of all ages are eligible.  Services are provided to those with physical disabilities, learning disabilities, ill health, dementia, emotional and mental heath difficulties, alcohol or substance dependencies, and general frailty.

Support at home services recognizes cultural needs.  Assistance depends on the individual need of the person requiring support and can include:

• Dressing and mobility
• Skin care, oral and personal hygiene
• Oxygen administration and medication management
• Continence care
• Life skills and home management
• Correspondence and financial transactions
• Feeding and meal preparation
• Family support

Priority is given to people with serious conditions (terminal and chronic illnesses, physical safety, deterioration of living conditions) or any circumstances requiring immediate support (eg, vulnerability to exploitation).
Community services include:

• Occupational therapy
• Referral, assessment, and care management
• Self-directed service
• Transportation and parking
• Assisted technology (eg, Velcro strips and mechanical grabbers, voice recognition software, and vehicle hand controls
• Peer advising
• Housing
• Advocacy
• Independent living skills training

Independent living services are essential to ensure that more people are supported at home rather than within an institution.  People with disabilities aspire to be treated safely and fairly and desire to contribute in meaningful ways to society!

Some facilities may be part of a retirement community or a senior housing complex.  Some stand alone, while others can be close to a nursing home (enabling a person to move easily should their health condition change).

Residents of assisted living facilities normally have their own apartment or unit, with support staff.  Meals are provided.  Most facilities offer the following services:

• Health care management and monitoring
• Help with activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, and eating
• Housekeeping and laundry
• Medication reminders and/or help with medications
• Recreational activities
• Security
• Transportation

When choosing a safe, comfortable, and appropriate assisting living facility, you should consider what your future needs will be and whether the facility will be able to support them. Ensure that the facility provides a written statement of the philosophy of care.

Location is another consideration, as you will want to be close to family and friends and other facilities (shopping, banks, businesses).  Before you make a decision you should visit the facilities you are considering more than once and unannounced.  Sample the food and observe the quality and service.

Some facilities do not provide support to people with severe cognitive impairments or severe physical disabilities.  This is an important consideration should your health require this support.  Check to see if the assisted living facilities provide recreational, social, and spiritual activities that interest you.