There are many memory care communities to choose from, so the search can easily feel overwhelming. To ensure you’re making the right decision for yourself or your senior loved one, find out what you should look for in a memory care community.
Positive Relationships
When you’re evaluating memory care communities for yourself or a senior loved one, you want to ensure the community you choose is one that nurtures positive relationships. This is a senior’s home and it’s important that all residents feel well cared for and comfortable, especially since seniors in memory care communities can become easily confused. As you evaluate community options, think about these two types of relationships and how they may be impacted by the community you choose:
- Relationship Between Seniors and Caregivers - You want to ensure the caregivers at the community you choose have your trust. Positive relationships are essential for a healthy memory care environment. Because seniors with memory challenges can become easily confused, it’s helpful to be surrounded by trusted, familiar, and friendly faces.
- Relationship Between Family Caregivers and Community Caregivers - Family care teams play a key role in keeping seniors healthy and happy in their community. It’s valuable to have lines of communication open between community caregivers and family caregivers. They need to always be on the same page when it comes to care decisions and routines.
Social Opportunities
Many seniors who live alone struggle to fill their days. This can lead to a lot of loneliness, especially when family members are busy with work, school, and extracurricular activities. As seniors age, transportation is often a challenge, too, making social engagement even harder. Plus, seniors with memory challenges can also find social interactions strenuous, especially if they become forgetful or easily confused.
When seniors move into a memory care community, they now have a built-in social life. There are always people to talk to and interact with, from staff to other senior residents. Each day is filled with activities, from shared meals to exercise classes and so much more. These communities make it easy for seniors to get to know each other in a comfortable and familiar environment.
Daily Routines
Seniors with memory challenges thrive when they have daily routines. When you’re evaluating different memory care communities in your area, make sure the one you choose has a routine that fits your needs. Having Alzheimer’s disease or dementia can make it hard for seniors to keep track of the time of day or what day of the week it is. A routine makes it much easier for seniors.
Each senior has specific needs and activities that they want to incorporate into their days. So, be sure to ask questions about how routines can be tailored to meet your or your loved one’s needs.
Safety
Alzheimer’s disease or dementia can both lead to some safety concerns for seniors. Those with memory challenges are often prone to wander, so it’s important that the memory care community you choose is one that’s safe and secure. Make sure that you select a community that has a wander-protection system for added security. While seniors should feel at home in their memory care community, they should also feel safe.
Selecting the right memory care community is a crucial decision for families and seniors with memory challenges. Think carefully about what your family needs out of a memory care community, and be sure to ask plenty of questions. Not every community is right for every senior, so the more research you do and the more people you talk to from the community, the better.
Learn more about understanding the needs of seniors with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Download this free guide now.
