Even After Choosing Assisted Living, It’s Still Important for the Elderly to Remain Actively Engaged in Life

August 14, 2018 by ·

It’s a wonderful thing when an elderly person ultimately realizes the value of assisted living, and when they choose this for their future, that’s only the beginning of the story. While every assisted living facility is different, it’s important for seniors to remain active wherever they choose to live. If they don’t, if they have a tendency to remain in their room, isolated, then that can cause some problems, but more than that it means he or she will not be taking full advantage of the benefits assisted living offers.

Assisted Living in Saraland AL: remaining Actively Engaged

Assisted Living in Saraland AL: Remaining Actively Engaged

How can seniors be actively engaged in life?

Human beings are social creatures. As a result, spending more time surrounded by other elderly men and women is one of the best assets to consider. By being in their room all the time, they will not have the opportunity to meet other residents at the facility. They may be completely unaware that there are other seniors who share common interests, love the same hobbies, and who could make them feel completely welcome in this new environment.

Another way is to lean on staff for guidance.

Quality and experienced staff members at an assisted living community will often have a great deal of experience and knowledge about the various activities that take place on a daily or weekly basis. If an aging resident is new to a particular facility, he or she can simply ask some or a select few of the staff members there and, if they don’t know what types of activities are going on, they can certainly find out and relay that information.

Make use of the dining facilities.

Depending on the assisted living community, the dining facility may be a restaurant style area where residents can sit down at their own leisure, whenever they feel mealtime is appropriate, and choose food from a select menu. If they choose to eat dinner, for example, at 6 o’clock in the evening, they will likely be surrounded by numerous other residents and that can get them some exposure to new people, new friends.

Consider keeping their door open in the afternoon.

If an elderly resident keeps their door closed whenever they’re inside, they will miss numerous opportunities for new friends or other residents to simply say hello as they walk by. But keeping their door open, it allows these aging seniors the opportunity to remain actively engaged in life, meet new people, and take advantage of whatever benefits that particular facility offers.

If you or an aging loved one are considering assisted living in Saraland, AL, contact Ashbury Manor Specialty Care and Assisted Living at 251-317-3017.

Filed Under: Assisted Living in Saraland AL · Tagged:
About Cindy Johnson

Ashbury Manor’s Administrator since 2008, Cindy Johnson is a long-time expert in the assisted living field. Prior to her arrival at Ashbury Manor, Cindy managed acquisitions and crisis management for existing and new larger senior care project developments for eleven years. As regional manager for an Oregon-based assisted living management company, Cindy was directly responsible for operations for five 50-65 bed assisted living facilities. As manager during the transition to new ownership, Cindy reorganized internal operations and conducted leadership training for Executive Directors. As a result of her management and expertise, one of the company’s facilities (in Ocala, Florida) received a deficiency-free survey, resulting in the lifting of a moratorium on operation.

A nurse for 36 years, senior care has always been Cindy’s passion. Desiring to work more closely with residents, Cindy became a Category II Administrator in 2005. As Ashbury Manor’s Administrator, Cindy understands the complexities associated with dementia and cognitive impairment and she has fallen in love with seniors with dementia or cognitive impairment and their families.

Cindy is Treasurer of the local “Senior Coalition” chapter. She enjoys mentoring new candidates who want to become administrators.

As a 16-bed facility, with Cindy's training and experience, our residents and their families can be sure Ashbury Manor’s carefully selected staff provides the expertise of a larger facility while maintaining the individualized personal care of a small special needs home.
Google Verified Author