Choosing an assisted living facility is a difficult choice and your choice can be compounded when your loved one has dementia. There are several amenities offered by facilities to help you feel confident in your choice.
Specialized Facilities
Some assisted living facilities are purely for residents with dementia, whereas some have specific floors or wings. Since residents with dementia often have unique needs that are different than the rest of the residents, you want to select a facility that is able to offer specialized care. Specialized facilities typically have additional monitoring because dementia patients are known to wander away when they are not lucid. Monitoring can not only prevent your loved one from walking outside the facility unnoticed, but can also protect them from people who may try to take advantage of them.
Tracking Devices
When possible, you want a facility that has an additional way of monitoring residents by using tracking devices. These devices are typically worn on the ankle or wrist and use GPS to help find your loved one if they are lost. Your loved one may not make it outside of the facility, but could easily hide somewhere on the property if they become scared or confused. If your loved one takes regular medications or has medical conditions that require consistent monitoring, finding them within a matter of minutes can be important to their health, even if you are certain they are on the property.
Familiar Items
You want to choose a facility that will allow your loved one to bring as many familiar items as possible. Many facilities come fully furnished, which limits the possibility of bringing your loved one's favorite chair or other larger items. Having as many familiar items as possible can make transitioning from their home to a facility easier. Furthermore, in the earlier stages of dementia, it can be easier to bring them back to the current time and remember what is currently happening if there are familiar items in an unfamiliar place.
Various Levels Of Care
Unfortunately, dementia is a condition that will progressively become worse. Since it is likely your loved one may have additional medical needs throughout the rest of their life, it is better to choose a facility with different levels of care. If your loved one needs more care than an assisted living facility can provide, they can simply be relocated to another area of the same facility. You can avoid completely uprooting them as their needs change. Having some consistency, such a friends they have made while in the facility or the same medical staff, can improve their quality of life during lucid periods.
With many options for assisted living facilities, the choices can be overwhelming. Choose a facility with several amenities that are designed to give residents with dementia the best possible care.
Share29 December 2015
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