A memory care facility is specifically designed to help individuals with Alzheimer's and dementia who are no longer able to safely live on their own or take care of themselves. Memory care facilities offer small group settings in buildings that are specifically designed to support individuals with memory issues.
Research the Facilities
First, you need to spend time researching the different memory care facilities offered in your area. You need to find out how the community is set up, what type of treatments is offered on site, what the security is like, and what other special features the community has.
The environment and setting can vary greatly from one memory care facility to the next, and you want to find one that will work best for your loved one's needs. You want to find a care facility that matches your loved one's personality.
Visit the Facility
Once you find a facility you are interested in sending your loved one to, you should visit the facility a couple of times before getting ready to move your loved one in. That way, you can make sure the facility is really a good fit for your loved one, and you can become more familiar with the staff and how they run your operation.
You should bring your loved one along for a couple of visits. This will give your loved one an opportunity to become familiar with the setting and the staff. This will also give you a chance before everything is finalized to make sure the facility still feels like the right fit when you visit with your loved one.
Educate the Staff About your Loved One
There is a lot of time to fill during the day at a memory care facility, and the staff like to engage your loved one in activities.
Take some time to talk and get to know the staff that will be working with your loved one. Let them know what things your loved one is interested in and what they like doing, and if there are any activities that your loved one really doesn't like to do at all, let them know that as well.
Educating the staff about your loved one will make it easier for them to find topics to talk about and connect with when they are around your loved one, which will help with the transition.
Keep the Room Feeling Familiar
When it comes to the actual moving day, have one or two members of your family set up your loved one's bedroom. They should try to arrange the furniture so it is like the way your loved one's bedroom was arranged at home.
They should bring familiar items to the room, from the pillows and blankets your loved one had on their bed at home to decorations and pictures that they treasure. Bringing items from home and having the room ready for your loved one when they arrive will make things feel more comfortable.
When it comes to moving your loved one into an Alzheimer's memory care facility, research and find one that you feel your loved one will be most comfortable at and well looked after. Visit the facility and allow your loved one to get familiar with the place and staff before the move-in day. Educate the staff about your loved one's interest, and set up their room so it feels like home.
Older adults sometimes see nursing care as an all-or-nothing scenario. They assume they are either at home living independently, or they are in a nursing home where everything is done for them. This is not really the case, however. There are plenty of in-between options for older adults who need some care, but who may not need full nursing assistance yet. Assisted living centers allow this flexibility. Your older loved one can simply have their meals provided for them, or they can have around-the-clock care — or somewhere in-between. We invite you to explore the content provided to learn more.