A new type of elder care (1 Viewer)

[Linda]

Jean Makesh, CEO of Lantern assisted living facilities, said, "I thought I knew a lot about elderly care. The more and more time I was spending with my clients, that's when I realized, 'Oh my god, I have no clue."

He redesigned the center to resemble homes from the 30s and 40s. Instead of harsh fluorescent lights, he installed lighting that functioned as day and night. He even pumped in scents like peppermint for aromatherapy.

He believes his approach will change the tide in elder care. "In five years, we're going to [be able to] rehabilitate our clients where they can live independently in our environment," he said. "In 10 years, we're going to be able to send them back home."

http://www.upworthy.com/one-man-turned-nursing-home-design-on-its-head-when-he-created-this-stunning-facility?c=ufb1

 

[Salli]

What an amazing place!

 

[Krena]

Environmental improvement in elder facilities is a good idea, but nowhere near touching this huge issue.

I have been dealing with elders in continuous care facilities that are the best of their kind for five years, and the two biggest issues are quality of care (not enough workers caring for the residents), and the ENORMOUS expense.

The costs are wildly varying depending on the location, but the cheapest my family members were paying was $8,000 a month. The most expensive was $15,000 a month. The latter is for a one bedroom apartment with awful meals and 24-hour private care (supplied by the family as a supplemental option).

Dementia, unfortunately, is a very long and slow decline. This elder warehousing business has a long way to go to reach humane and affordable.

Complicating this is compassionate care for those who are dying. Hospice used to be nonprofit but now it is a quite profitable business that the government supports fully. Few states support death with dignity.

So sorry, Linda, you were presenting an option for the future that appears positive and cheery. This industry needs a major overhaul. I know that there are new styles of elder care popping up like smaller home-like facilities, and there are some who provide good care with a good and clean facility, but they appear to be in the minority.

Perhaps the baby boomers will help sort this out.

 

[Stargazer]

What an amazing place!

I saw an interesting article that incorporates child care/preschool with elder care. As one who has worked in a retirement home many moons ago, I can see where this kind of arrangement would have to be carefully set up and monitored, but the overall concept is AWESOME.

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/weekendreads/the-preschool-inside-a-nursing-home/ar-BBoujOf​

 

[Krena]

Salli, Stargazer,

This is a good idea, and one of my elders participated in a day care facility. This took care of a small part of the day, but provided caregiving respite and stimulation.

As a society, we need many ideas and active plans.

In my post, I realized that I had provided no suggestions, but I thought that would be outside the scope here. I am glad you posted.

This is an issue that all of will deal with but it is one of life's confounding problems. This is far from a topic that is filled with excitement or mystery. The current realities of this issue, I am sorry to say, are depressing and mostly do not seem pressing until it is time to confront it.

 

[Linda]

I've been dealing with the elder care world for several years, too. As Krena said, the expenses are astronomical especially compared with the level of care.

The main reason I posted this article was because of what the owner said - that everything he thought he knew was wrong. This gives me a little hope.

 

[Krena]

Linda.

Yes, thank you for providing a little hope.
We need all the hope that we can muster.

 

[Salli]

In the UK, care homes are charged on a sliding scale. If you have more than £23,000 in savings or property, you are expected to pay the full cost of care, which varies widely but would be around £5,000 per month in a council-run care home. If you have less than £23,000, the council will cover a proportion, or the full amount if you are poor enough, of the cost of care. Of course, private nursing homes would cost much more than that.

Last year I had to make the decision to place my Mum's partner into a nursing home as he is suffering with Alzheimer's and dementia and Mum wasn't well enough to deal with it at the time. I felt horredously guilty for doing so, although it really was the only option and has proven to be the right one for everyone concerned.

The care home is clean and friendly, with plenty of dedicated staff. The food is great and there is a lovely garden. Residents are taken on occasional outings to the seaside etc and there are daily activities. That said, I still don't feel they make enough effort to engage the residents with "real" life. It sometimes feels as though it is somewhere they are all just waiting to die. That makes it a sad place for me to visit. However, since Ron always tells me what a lovely holiday he is having, and how wonderful the "hotel" is, this is more of an issue for me and my Mum than it is for him.

 

[Krena]

It sometimes feels as though it is somewhere they are all just waiting to die. That makes it a sad place for me to visit. However, since Ron always tells me what a lovely holiday he is having, and how wonderful the "hotel" is, this is more of an issue for me and my Mum than it is for him.

It is harder on the friends and family of those with dementia though it depends on the progress of dementia and default personality. My father never knew where he was for two and a half years.

This illness is heartbreaking to witness.