Assisted Living vs In-Home Care in Anchorage
As families come together to consider care options for your senior family members and loved ones, so many aspects are looked at. The financial aspect must be considered. Of course, the level of care will be a top priority. There is so much to be weighed in these situations. One of the factors most difficult to weigh are the feelings of the senior involved, because there are no numbers or statistics to compare.
For a senior considering these options there are going to be a lot of overwhelming feelings.
One of the best things a family can do is stay positive. A senior might feel like needing more care makes them dependent or that living in a senior community will isolate them from friends and family. These things are not true, but when our lives are changing it is easy to fear the worst. Much like starting school, going away to college, getting married and retiring, moving to a senior living community is a new stage in life and a new adventure. It is perfectly normal for that to come with some anxiety.
If you are considering the choice between in-home health care in Anchorage and assisted living, a great tool is respite care.
Baxter Senior Living in Anchorage, Alaska offers respite care which allows for seniors to have a short stay giving the family time to travel or handle other personal business. This is a great way for your senior loved one to experience a senior living community without pressure. They will have time to experience the amenities and meet the staff. They will get to enjoy the activities especially designed for seniors and make friends with other residents. They can even try Baxter’s fabulous cuisine during their stay!
Consider Differences in Daily Living
To understand the concerns and realities for a senior in this position, let’s consider the differences in daily life and living standards that come with either in-home health care or assisted living. Consider what a day for each looks like. We won’t consider one of the days that Baxter takes a bus trip, because the trips are varied, aren’t an everyday occurrence and the senior residents are away from home all day. We won’t consider one of the several days a week that a Home Health Aide does not visit a senior who chooses in-home health care, because this day may be spent mostly stuck in the house, watching television and taking naps.
On an average day, a senior who lives in a familial home and has in-home health care will make their own breakfast and lunch, sometimes aided by prepackaged foods from services like meals on wheels. If the senior needs medicine they will take that and record their medicines and other health related vital statistics that they can handle on their own. By the time the scheduled Home Health Aide arrives, a lot of seniors will have a list or idea of tasks they would like help with or errands that they need to have run.
The experience at Baxter is a little bit different.
Breakfast and lunch are served hot and made to order. If the resident needs help with taking medicines or recording vitals, there is a personalized plan that makes sure they will have assistance with these things as well as activities of daily living that are needed such as moving from the bed to a chair or eating meals. With no meal preparation to do and housekeeping and laundry services once a week, residents have free time to enjoy activities like morning stretch, crafter’s corner and movie matinee.
When a senior or loved one has in-home care, it is important that the Home Health Aide does as much as possible to help the senior while they are there.
They may do a load of dishes or vacuum for the senior, but more than likely there will be a trip to the post office or grocery store. Home Health Aides often accompany seniors to their doctor’s appointments. Because there is so much to be done and so little time to do it, a family member or friend of the senior may come over after work to help out. They will likely finish the tasks the Home Health Aide was unable to get to in their scheduled time.
Assisted Living Communities Offer a Wide Range of Services
Assisted Living communities like Baxter offer transportation to medical appointments for their residents. Assistance is available 24 hours a day, and each resident has a personalized care plan to help them get all of the assistance that they need. When family and friends come to visit loved ones in assisted living the visits can be spent enjoying quality time together because there are no additional tasks to take care of.
If you choose in-home health care in Anchorage, Home Health Aides work during normal business hours. If your loved one has needs after hours or on weekends, these services may not be available or will come with additional fees. Of course, any medical needs will involve tele-medicine or a visit to the emergency room. Seniors with in-home health care provide their own dinners, and again often rely on services such as meals on wheels or expensive delivery services for dinner. Sometimes it is easier to grab junk food because it tastes good and doesn’t involve any preparation.
While Baxter is not a medical facility and does not provide 24 hour care, assistance from medically trained professionals is available around the clock. Dinner is served hot, fresh and made to order like breakfast and lunch. Nutritional meals are comfortable yet fine dining and are even available as room service. Evening activities available include things like board games, card games, action movie night and sing-a-longs.
Be Understanding and Show Support
It is important to understand that a lot of fears about assisted living are simply fears of the unknown, which is perfectly normal! Be supportive of your senior loved one and help them make sure that their decisions are grounded in logic and not emotion. Sometimes, a senior family member or loved one will cling to the idea of staying in their current residence mistakenly thinking that will keep them independent. The truth is a home to take care of can become quite a burden for a senior. If there are stairs to climb, it can even become a hazard. Parts of the home may even be unusable to the senior beyond storage. If the senior is no longer driving, they may be effectively home-bound and not be able to enjoy outside activities and a normal social life. Make sure your loved one is not fooled by these misconceptions.
Each senior is different and is in a different situation with its own specific needs. If what is right for your senior family member or loved one is assisted living, consider Baxter Senior Living in Anchorage, Alaska.
