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Moving into assisted living is a great step towards helping your parent enjoy their golden years. With the care and resources available to them in an assisted living home, they can spend more time enjoying the activities and people they love, and less time worrying about obligations like cleaning and cooking. You can also be confident that someone will be there to care for them if they have a medical emergency or need to get to the doctor's office.
Assisted living facilities usually offer a lot of services and amenities for their residents. However, residents don't always use them to the fullest. Here are four ways you can help your parent get the most out of their assisted living experience.
Accompany them to facility-led activities and meetings.
Most assisted living facilities offer a lot of activities, classes, and clubs for their residents. However, some residents never become involved in these activities because they're afraid to "make the leap" and attend for the first time. They may feel a bit shy and self-conscious.
You can help your parent get more involved in these activities by going with them the first few times they attend. Look down the facility's list of activities, and find one that you know your parent will love. Then, make plans to visit them and attend the activity with them. Even if you do not directly participate, you can sit alongside your parent and help them get to know others who are attending the same activity. Hopefully, your parent will have a great time, make a few new friends, and be excited to keep attending in the future.
Find out when the facility provides transportation to medical appointments.
Most assisted living facilities offer transportation to medical appointments, but only during certain hours. Find out when these hours are, and then help your parent make their doctors' appointments during these hours. This way, you don't have to modify your schedule to take your parent to the doctor's office.
Of course, you may want to be there for certain appointments, but you can always meet your parent there and allow the facility to provide the transportation. Chances are, they have vehicles that are easier for your parent to ride in with their wheelchair, scooter, or walker -- which makes for a safer experience. You also don't have to worry about canceling your parent's appointment if you have another obligation come up. Your parent will get to the doctor whether you're able to come along or not.
Visit often and engage in fun activities when you do.
One of the main advantages of your parent being in an assisted living facility is that you will no longer have to do things like wash their clothes and clean their apartment for them. Sadly, for some elderly adults, this means their children stop visiting as often since they no longer have responsibilities to take care of when they do visit. However, failing to visit is not making the most of the services offered by the assisted living home. You should really take advantage of the fact that the staff does the cooking and cleaning in order to spend more time having fun with your parent.
Consider bringing a new game, book, or movie with you each time you visit your parent. You can then enjoy reading the book or watching the movie together as you visit. If your parent is healthy enough to leave their home, you could even take them to a park or a local mall to do some shopping.
Assisted living allows older adults to live their lives with fewer worries related to self-care and home maintenance. By following the tips above, you can ensure your parent enjoys their assisted living experience and all it has to offer.
Share7 July 2017
