If you are looking into an assisted living facility for your parents, then it is very critical that you investigate the different options that each facility will offer. Not all assisted living facilities are alike, so it's important to understand the major features that you will want to look for when shopping around. Before you go ahead and start making plans to put your parents into a particular place, you should research the place and ask about their services in the following areas.

Laundry and Meal Prep On-Site

Doing laundry and making meals are both things that your parents are going to want assistance with. These tasks are part of a person's daily chores and they can pose difficulties as one becomes older. This is why it is so important that you ask the assisted living administrators if there are laundry and meal prep services and what those services entail. Is there simply a laundromat on site that your parents will have the option of using instead of heading to an off-site laundromat, or is there a service that will actually do the laundry for them? Next, you should inquire about the meal prep. Will your parents have the option of having meals prepared for them and served in a communal dining room, or is it up to them to make their own food?

Travel Options

You should also investigate the travel options that the facility provides. Will your parents have access to transportation that will take them to a shopping area and bring them back so that they don't need to drive or walk? Will there be travel options to take them on day trips to museums and other events so they don't feel housebound? These are all important things to ask about. One of the main issues with elderly people is that they oftentimes will not be able to or want to drive, so travel and transportation options are very important.

Memory Care

It's also very important that you look into memory care. You want a place that offers some sort of treatment for elderly people whose memories are in decline. This treatment might be counseling or some other sort of therapeutic approach, but it should also encompass day-to-day memory care solutions that deal with forgetfulness and other issues. You may want to inquire about pill and other medication reminders and how those reminders are handled, for instance.

Share