What do the holidays look like for your family? Perhaps you take time to view old photographs while warming the soul with a hot chocolate or revel in the joy of watching children excitedly unwrap gifts, narrated by the echoes of traditional music.
Whatever your traditions, celebrating with the older generation is often an extraordinary part of the festivities. Naturally, extra time spent together means you, other family caregivers, and visiting relatives might recognize some new difficulties your aging parent or loved one faces.
If you notice your loved one needs more help than you can provide or they are not able to live safely and independently at home, there are senior care options you and your loved one can consider.
A Brief Guide to Levels of Care
Independent Living
In independent living, seniors live independently (or with a spouse) within a community designed specifically for older adults. Seniors can benefit from organized community activities, an accessible home, social opportunities, and fewer home maintenance responsibilities.
Best suited to: Seniors who would like a more leisurely retirement with a more active social life but don’t require any support with activities of daily living (ADLs) like cooking, eating, getting dressed, and bathing.
Assisted Living
Assisted living communities are very similar to independent living, but at this level of care, seniors can also access around-the-clock professional ADL support. In assisted living senior care, residents can enjoy daily meals served in a communal dining area.
Best suited to: Seniors who wish to remain independent but require some support with ADLs.
Residential Assisted Living
In residential assisted living, seniors live in a house with a small number of other residents. This type of senior living community is often a family home, with communal dining and living areas, private or shared bedrooms, and bathrooms.
Best suited to: Seniors who require ADL support and enjoy living with others in a comfortable, home setting.
Skilled Nursing
Skilled nursing provides seniors with more complex medical needs access to 24/7 care provided by registered nurses. Skilled nursing can be a long or short-term option.
Best suited to: Seniors with chronic or acute health conditions who require short or long-term medical care from registered nurses but do not need to be in a hospital.
Home Health
A home health provider will visit seniors and provide the ADL or medical support they need (e.g., wound care, nutrition, or monitoring of chronic illnesses). A home health care plan can cover anything from an hour or two daily to more extensive care, depending on a senior’s needs.
Best suited to: Seniors who wish to age in place but aren’t entirely independent.
Residential Assisted Living: The Perfect Balance
Sitting right at the center of the spectrum of senior care levels, residential assisted living is the obvious choice for many aging adults. Residential senior living care plans can be customized to suit a wide range of needs; some require just a little practical assistance, whereas others need more frequent ADL support and coordinated care from various professionals.
Residential Senior Care at Silverleaf Eldercare
Silverleaf Eldercare offers a residential assisted living experience like no other. Housing a small number of residents at each of our three homes, we deliver quality care to suit individual personalities, needs and wishes.
At Silverleaf, we believe in person-centered care. This involves seeing a senior as a whole, respecting their values and preferences while delivering carefully integrated care that supports their mind, body, and spirit. We believe seniors should always be at the heart of their own care. Silverleaf provides person-centered care by staying firmly grounded in values, including grace, patience, hospitality, empathy, and integrity.
Ways Silverleaf Eldercare delivers person-centered care:
- Providing residents with passion projects based on their personal interests and talents.
- Keeping an exceptionally high staff-to-resident ratio (1:6) allows caregivers to spend more one-on-one time with individual residents.
- Offering a choice of home-cooked meals tailored to residents’ preferences and dietary requirements.
- Hosting diverse activities and events, including yoga, meditation, and monthly concerts.
- Residents are provided with access to the digital iN2L library, where they can find meaningful content that matches their physical and cognitive abilities.
- Using CarePredict to accurately predict changing care needs, increase staff response rates, and reduce falls.
- Allowing residents to receive care onsite from their own trusted physician, home health agency, psychiatrist, therapist, or other professional should they wish.
Call us today to arrange a tour to find out how senior living at Silverleaf Eldercare can improve your loved one’s quality of life while giving you the peace of mind you deserve in 2024.