Below is an informative and poignant reflection from a granddaughter whose loved one recently moved into a senior assisted living community.
“I've been personally reflecting on elder care and senior assisted living communities. My grandma was recently moved into a residential assisted living facility that has five rooms and cares for individuals with various needs, including those with Alzheimer's and dementia.
Like it is for many families, the decision for my grandmother to move to a care community was complicated. When my grandpa passed away last year, my grandma moved in with the family. However, as her health has declined over the last year, it's become increasingly difficult for her care needs to be met at home.
My uncle is a local pastor and has visited many parishioners at this assisted living home. He noticed the empathetic culture and the compassionate nature of the caregivers. As a result, my grandmother was willing to try living in this assisted living residence.”
Senior Care, Hospice Care, and Palliative Care Accommodations in San Diego
RanchView Senior Assisted Living is a family-owned and operated independent assisted living community in Encinitas, California. Our owners have firsthand experience of having loved ones living with Alzheimer's and dementia and know all that goes into making decisions around memory care with a loved one. We walk alongside families as they traverse the difficult road of Alzheimer's and have supported the greater San Diego community for decades.
Reflections on the Move to Assisted Living
Many details, large and small, go into choosing where a loved one will live. Some might be generally aware of what this decision entails, but it is only talked about if a family is in the midst of it. We’re learning so much we never knew or thought of as our parents go through these older life stages. Here are some things we’re reflecting on:
- There is a fairly standard, simple list of tasks we do ourselves without thinking (these are ADLs, or Activities of Daily Life).
- Great effort is required from others to assist us when we cannot perform these basic tasks.
- The challenges that arise when someone we are connected to loses the capacity to do one or more of these tasks are rarely talked about, rarely publicly seen, and rarely figured into life plans for ourselves or loved ones.
- Mom's chart shows how many basic tasks she can now not perform. This results in a profound effort for all of us—especially those she lives with.
- The profound physical and mental effort required to make up for one person unable to perform these tasks must be spread out over several people unless fewer people view the service for the person with incapacities as their primary occupation. Service to an incapacitated person cannot be given in our few margins of life.
RanchView, A Memory Care Community with Hospice Care Accommodations in Southern California
RanchView Senior Assisted Living in Encinitas, California, is a senior care community in Southern California. We understand that our residents' holistic experience of life (social, spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical) is vitally important. Therefore, our compassionate caregivers provide top-notch, individualized care to each member of our communities.
Here at RanchView Senior Assisted Living (and at our partner locations, MesaView, HarborView, and BayView), our caring, highly competent staff work hard to provide holistic care to each member of our memory care communities.
If someone you love needs memory care or you’d like to schedule a tour, please call us. We’re happy to help.
