Looking for the right retirement home can be a daunting and stressful task, but it doesn’t have to be. People often interchangeably refer to nursing homes and retirement facilities as the same thing, but they couldn’t be farther from the truth. A retirement home provides the same level of independence as any other living arrangement, with the added benefit of additional onsite facilities being available.
While researching the homes available to you, it’s important to keep your personal needs in mind as you determine whether or not a home is suitable for you. Let’s go over a few of the most important facilities to keep in mind while looking for your perfect home.
1. Living arrangements
Some retirement homes are designed like large apartment buildings, with full sized individual apartments for each resident, with different facilities and staff being available on different floors. While these homes put you in close proximity to other residents, they often come at a lower cost and provide easy access to the facilities.
Another option is a retirement community, where each resident of the community has their own condominium, completely independent from each other. These arrangements provide a higher degree of privacy and personal space, but come at a higher price. While similar facilities may be available, they won’t be as easy to reach as a result of being in different buildings. This is important to keep in mind while determining whether or not a community or home better suits your personal needs.
2. Medical facilities
One of the most important functions of a retirement home or community is providing easy access to various facilities. One of the most important facilities people look for in a home is the medical facility. Different homes will provide different levels of medical support so it’s important to keep that in mind while doing your research.
Some homes will provide a minimum amount of medical support, and these homes are good for residents with very few health concerns. Others may have dedicated medical staff available around the clock, which can be very useful to those who have some health issues they need to monitor.
Many homes don’t have medical facilities available on site at all and focus more heavily on providing facilities of convenience instead. Your individual needs will heavily influence which sort of home is best for your circumstances, so don’t overlook this factor in your decision making.
3. Recreation and Entertainment
Homes and communities can offer a variety of recreational and entertainment possibilities. Gathering halls are commonplace in homes, they provide a location to meet with other residents, talk and play games, and some homes will even have entertainers regularly come through and put on shows.
Exercise rooms are another facility commonly available to residents. Arts, clubs and outdoor entertainment are often found in these homes, and some even regularly hold parties for residents, and celebrations for holidays. While these events may not be important to everyone, if a sense of community is important to you and your needs, these are the sorts of homes you should consider.
4. Dining and travel assistance
While many homes will include personal kitchens in their units, often times they also provide access to a dining hall. Dining halls provide a social eating experience, and some homes employ skilled chefs to provide meals to residents who are interested. Often times a daily menu will be available, but some arrangements will allow you to order whatever you like, much like any other restaurant. There are even homes that can provide fine dining options.
Another great service to look out for is whether or not they provide community outings. Community outings can range from driving residents to shopping districts, to taking them to the cinema. A common community outing available is a bus to the local casino or slots. These services are great for those with growing difficulty driving, or just those who enjoy the community aspect of it all.
Whatever your individual needs may be, there is likely a home near you that can service them. With a bit of research, you can find the perfect living arrangement without all of the stress that comes with this big step all too often.
