{"id":13712,"date":"2018-06-25T07:00:21","date_gmt":"2018-06-25T12:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=13712"},"modified":"2018-06-29T13:15:36","modified_gmt":"2018-06-29T18:15:36","slug":"what-is-assisted-living-really-like","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Assisted Living Really Like?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>What Is Assisted Living Really Like?<\/h1>\n<p>Navigating senior living can be overwhelming for many families as the transition\u00a0is often emotional and uncertain.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-13716\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like-350x184.jpg\" alt=\"What Is Assisted Living Really Like?\" width=\"350\" height=\"184\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like-350x184.jpg 350w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like-768x403.jpg 768w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like-1024x538.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2018\/06\/what-is-assisted-living-really-like.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Having an idea of what assisted living offers on a daily basis \u2014 including activities, amenities\u00a0and\u00a0care \u2014\u00a0can help families better understand what their parent or senior loved one will experience there.<\/p>\n<h2>Ways Assisted Living Has Changed Over Time<\/h2>\n<p>Assisted living is no longer &#8220;institutionalized.&#8221; In fact, most assisted living communities have moved towards\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aplaceformom.com\/blog\/luxury-assisted-living-3-12-2013\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-cke-saved-href=\"https:\/\/www.aplaceformom.com\/blog\/luxury-assisted-living-3-12-2013\/\">luxury, resort-style living<\/a>\u00a0that has become more attractive\u00a0to active seniors and their families.<\/p>\n<p>There are a plethora of activities and amenities offered to seniors in assisted living today, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Barber and beautician services<\/li>\n<li>Book groups<\/li>\n<li>Dining and food services<\/li>\n<li>Gardening clubs<\/li>\n<li>Housekeeping and laundering services<\/li>\n<li>Physical and occupational therapy<\/li>\n<li>Scheduled transportation services to outings outside of\u00a0the community<\/li>\n<li>Theater outings<\/li>\n<li>Wellness and physical fitness, catered to individual needs, including:\n<ul>\n<li>Catered fitness regimes<\/li>\n<li>Water aerobics<\/li>\n<li>Walking<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It&#8217;s important to consider whether your loved one would want to take advantage of\u00a0amenities and participate in the events offered before moving into an assisted living community.<\/p>\n<h2>What Assisted Living Is Like, Today<\/h2>\n<p>Assisted living really depends on the senior living professionals\u00a0in\u00a0each community. The good and\u00a0forward-thinking\u00a0companies and providers have created senior condo-like settings where care is provided discreetly, on a resident&#8217;s own schedule, inside their own apartment or home, and by consistent staff.<\/p>\n<p>Daily schedules are different for each\u00a0resident\u00a0and should be, as they are catered to individual needs.\u00a0That alone shows how the\u00a0trend in care has shifted to each individual.<\/p>\n<p>A regional sales\u00a0representative discusses these changes:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;An example of how assisted living has evolved over the years would be that I have eleven\u00a0events planned for today in one location.\u00a0Our approximately 100 residents choose\u00a0to\u00a0do several, or none of these events. However,\u00a0these events are in addition to\u00a0social and family events, and planning their own days that might include\u00a0reading, walking, socializing, driving, and television.\u00a0The biggest difference is that they are invited to double the opportunities to engage, learn new hobbies, or go out in a group if driving is difficult,\u00a0or no longer feasible.\u00a0There is no cleaning, shopping, or cooking time unless chosen, so each resident has a different routine,\u00a0which is self-selected \u2014 and we provide the opportunity. It makes every day more engaging and fun. Even mealtimes in our dining room offer many options and times, so residents can choose to come when it works best for their schedule.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>Why Ongoing Staff Training Is Important<\/h2>\n<p>Trusting every person on staff who interacts with residents to provide great care carefully \u2014 and respectfully \u2014 is a huge task.\u00a0Asking them to do it lovingly, and then ensuring follow through is also monumentally important. Many communities provide\u00a0emotion-based care training,\u00a0which emphasizes person-centered care; a great way\u00a0to hire caregivers for their heart, and train them to do tasks correctly.<\/p>\n<p>Communities also have a hiring, screening, and orientation process which is detailed and organized to find the right associates.\u00a0Managers need to be constantly monitoring\u00a0and modeling great care to new staff, as well as constantly offering ongoing training to all staff.\u00a0At the end of the day, communities have people taking care of people. Things can inevitably go wrong, so each community needs to be able to address, correct and always apologize when they do. In fact, sometimes entire company policies need to be changed to prevent the same mistakes, but the important part is communication with families and staff.\u00a0These are dads and moms, aunts and uncles, friends and loved ones,\u00a0and they need to feel honored and respected.<\/p>\n<p>Learn how many communities\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aplaceformom.com\/blog\/5-20-16-how-to-build-an-assisted-living-care-team\/\" data-cke-saved-href=\"https:\/\/www.aplaceformom.com\/blog\/5-20-16-how-to-build-an-assisted-living-care-team\/\">build their assisted living care team<\/a>\u00a0through ongoing communication, teamwork, training\u00a0and\u00a0standards of care.<\/p>\n<h2>Why\u00a0Emotional Connections With Staff Are Important<\/h2>\n<p>Families, without\u00a0exception, want communities\u00a0to care for their loved one the way they do.\u00a0They want to be asked personal questions and they want to share family stories. They want to trust care staff and\u00a0any\u00a0associate working in senior care should be attempting to gain that trust once it is earned.\u00a0Staff\u00a0becomes part of the family, and an integral conduit of communication, support, and guidance.<\/p>\n<p>A community operations representative discusses her relationship with residents and how they positively impact her life:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve been invited to family parties, holiday gatherings, and I&#8217;ve had residents and staff throw me a surprise baby shower after living with me at work during my first pregnancy.\u00a0I received knitted baby gifts sent to me at home after his birth, and I was so honored residents did this kind and thoughtful things for me.\u00a0I have loved working in assisted living communities because you are working in 100 seniors&#8217; homes.\u00a0These are the stories that happen everyday if you are looking at the right communities.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Family and staff and resident interaction\u00a0are\u00a0what most families respond to when they visit.\u00a0It&#8217;s a palpable energy when the community is working in synergy, which is why the emotional connections are so important.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What Is Assisted Living Really Like? Navigating senior living can be overwhelming for many families as the transition\u00a0is often emotional and uncertain. Having an idea of what assisted living offers on a daily basis \u2014 including activities, amenities\u00a0and\u00a0care \u2014\u00a0can help families better understand what their parent or senior loved one will experience there. Ways Assisted Living Has Changed Over Time [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7026,"featured_media":13716,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,200],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-13712","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-assisted-living","8":"category-families-caregivers"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What Is Assisted Living Really Like?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Navigating assisted living can be overwhelming, so having an idea of what communities offer on a daily basis can help. 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