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What Care Is Provided In Assisted Living?

Two men talking in Regency Oaks senior living apartment

Have you noticed that you or someone you love is having difficulty with daily tasks? Are you concerned that struggles with the basic functions required for independent living are making it too difficult or unsafe to live at home? If your answer to either of these questions is yes, assisted living may be the answer. In this blog, we’ll provide answers to questions like: What is assisted living? What are activities of daily living? What care is provided in assisted living? What are the benefits of assisted living?

What is Assisted Living?

Residential assisted living in a senior living community is designed to empower residents to live as independently as possible by providing personal assistance and support with activities of daily living (ADL). Individual needs and abilities are evaluated, and a plan of care is developed with the resident’s input to ensure that just the right level of assistance is provided. Freed from the worry and insecurity they may have felt living alone without assistance, residents are encouraged to continue doing the things they enjoy and to live to their highest potential.

What are Activities of Daily Living?

Activities of daily living are those essential and routine aspects of self-care that all of us must do to live in a healthy way. The essential ADLs are:

  • Eating
  • Dressing
  • Walking
  • Changing positions
  • Bathing
  • Toileting
  • Maintaining continence

When a person isn’t able to do these things independently, their quality of life is diminished and living conditions may become unsafe. In addition to ADLs, instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), affect a person’s ability to live independently and thrive. IADLs include:

  • Companionship
  • Mental support
  • Transportation
  • Shopping
  • Planning and preparing meals
  • Taking medications properly
  • Household management
  • Handling finances
  • Communicating with others

As we’ll see later in the benefits section, assisted living communities provide resources that address many of these IADLs and empower residents to live to their highest potential.

What Care is Provided in Assisted Living?

Assisted living communities create an environment in which residents can thrive. The specific types of personal care services provided depend on what the individual needs and wants but may include help with ADLs. Other services provided typically include:

  • Meal preparation
  • Housekeeping
  • Laundry
  • Schedule transportation to medical appointments or local stores
  • Wellness center staffed by medical professionals, including a physician, dentist and podiatrist

Residents are usually encouraged to bring some furnishings from home to help make their assisted living apartments their own.

What are the Benefits of Assisted Living?

An assisted living community provides many benefits both to residents and their family members. Two significant concerns for people who age in place at home are the cost of modifying their home to fit their needs and social isolation, which has been shown to have negative impacts on both physical and cognitive health. In assisted living communities, residents can enjoy:

  • A supportive community of friends
  • A full calendar of events and activities
  • Social events that encourage them to engage with others
  • Cultural programs that provide opportunities for enriching experiences
  • Recreational activities that add a sense of fun to each day

Another important benefit of an assisted living community is the sense of security residents, and their family members have. Communities are staffed 24/7 with team members who are available to provide care, respond to resident needs or emergencies, and make sure the community is safe and secure. If a resident falls or needs other assistance in the middle of the night, a caring, compassionate staff member will be there to help.

Learn More about Assisted Living at Regency Oaks

Take our four minute assessment to see if now is the right time to consider assisted living for yourself or a loved one. To learn more about assisted living in Clearwater, FL, at Regency Oaks, simply call us at 727-330-2142 or use our contact form to schedule a personal visit. We’d love to show you around our community, including our cozy studio apartments, as well as and answer any questions you may have. If you’re not quite sure it’s time for assisted living, learn how our respite care can let your loved one give our community a trial run.