University of FloridaSolutions for Your Life

Download PDF
Publication #FAR6017

 

Choosing an Assisted Living Facility1

Suzanna Smith2

Figure 1. 
[Click thumbnail to enlarge.]

Assisted living facilities are a type of housing for frail elders and people with physical and mental disabilities who don't need nursing care but cannot live independently (AoA; Ball et al., 2000).

These residences offer personal care, health care, around-the-clock supervision, and other services. With a wide variety of facilities out there, selecting a residence may be difficult.

If you or a family member is thinking about a move to an assisted living residence, it's important to visit several times and to make at least one unannounced visit. Look for a warm, home-like atmosphere where residents seem happy and staff members are friendly. The facility should be easy to get around with a walker or wheelchair, be comfortably cooled or heated, and have a security plan.

Visit during mealtime to check out the quality of the food, where and when it is served, and residents' enjoyment of their meal and time together. You'll want to see the rooms to envision whether they are large enough to meet your needs for kitchen and bathroom space.

There are many other questions family members will want to consider, such as whether it offers social, recreational, and spiritual activities, and whether transportation is provided. Also, check with the Better Business Bureau or the state agency on aging for any complaints against the facility and be certain the facility is licensed. Make sure you know what is included in the monthly rate and the costs of any other needed services. Request a sample contract and read it carefully, getting any advice you need from people you trust.

Listening, learning, and living together: it's the science of life. "Family Album" is a co-production of University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, and of WUFT-FM. If you'd like to learn more, please visit our website at http://www.familyalbumradio.org.

To listen to the radio broadcast:

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/488.mp3

References

Administration on Aging (AoA). (n.d.) “Facts: Assisted Living.” [April 13, 2012]. http://www.aoa.gov/aoaroot/Press_Room/Products_Materials/fact/pdf/Assisted_Living.pdf.

Assisted Living Federation of America. (n.d.) Guide to choosing an assisted living residence. [April 13, 2012]. http://www.alfa.org/alfa/Checklist_for_Evaluating_Communities.asp.

Ball, M.B., Whittington, F.J., Perkins, M.M., Patterson, V.L., Hollingsworth, C., King, S.V., and Combs, B.L. (2000). Quality of life in assisted living facilities: viewpoints of residents. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 19, No. 3, 304-325.

Elder Care Locator Fact Sheets (2005). Assisted living. Retrieved June 26, 2006, from http://www.eldercare.gov/eldercare/Public/resources/fact_sheets/assisted_living.asp [delinked 14 August 2012].

Florida Department of Elder Affairs. (2003). Florida affordable assisted living housing: Choosing a facility. http://www.floridaaffordableassistedliving.org/consumer/facilityselect.html [27 September 2012].

National Center for Assisted Living (n.d.) A consumer's guide to assisted living and residential care. Retrieved June, 2006, from http://www.ncal.org/consumer/thinking.htm.

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR6017, one of a series of the Family Youth and Community Sciences Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Broadcast as program 488 in August 2006. Published on EDIS July 2012. In the interest of time and/or clarity, the broadcast version of this script may have been modified. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2.

Suzanna Smith, associate professor, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, Dean.