It makes sense to check out the décor before sending a loved one to a long term care (LTC) facility. Maybe even try the food in the cafeteria, check the comfort level provided in the beds, observe the cleanliness of the bathrooms, and determine whether the lighting is appropriate. Yet the most important aspect of LTC does not come from the outward appearances but from the caregivers.
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One of the more frequently asked questions I receive from families involves training of assisted living community staff. What are the training requirements? How to do communities train their staff? What tools are used? What expectations should families have regarding training?
I’d like to introduce an addition to our group of contributing writers — a true expert in the field of elder care and assisted living training.
Welcome, Debra Fox!
Debra is the founder and CEO of Fox Learning Systems, a company dedicated to changing the culture of elder care through e-learning that uses engaging, documentary-style video to connect with both caregivers and consumers. Debra founded the company in 1997 after personally observing the overwhelming challenges providers face in training and retaining staff to care for vulnerable older adults.
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For those of you that haven’t already seen it, I highly recommend you go watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
The previews and trailers don’t really clue you in to the fact that a large portion of the movie is set in an assisted living community. I say assisted living, because the house and number of residents appeared to be much larger than what we would consider to be a board and care today. Having obviously not been alive during the first half of the 1900s, I couldn’t help but wonder whether assisted living in that era was really as jovial and friendly as portrayed in the movie.
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A reader named Denise asked a great question about activities while preparing to move into an assisted living community. She asked:
I would like to hear more about activities that can be done with my mom while she is in my home awaiting the transition to assisted living. I loved the articles by the activity director. I used her suggestions and found a wonderful facility for my mom for Feb. 1. I interviewed the activity director and she was very helpful. Thank you for the help. Denise and family
Some good suggestions are to keep your mom involved in activities of daily living (ADLs) like food preparation and laundry. Start preparing her for the transition by shopping for items that she may want to put in her new home.
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We are pleased to announce that The Project - The Children’s Rare Disease Network has joined our Charitable Giving Program.
The Project is creating an online community where children with rare diseases, their families, and the organizations that support them will have the opportunity to communicate, collaborate, become educated and tap existing resources, helping them with their daily challenges.
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Americans are getting older - in fact, way older. We are on our way to a profound shift in our population; one which will have costly impacts on our nation. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that by 2030, when all of the nation’s 76 million surviving baby boomers will be 65 and older, nearly one in five U.S. residents will be 65 and older. This age group is projected to double by 2050, increasing to 88.5 million from the 38.7 million we currently have in 2008. The Census Bureau projects that the 85 and older population growth will be even bigger, tripling from 5.4 million in 2008 to 19 million in 2050.
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Earlier this week, we formally announced the “By Families, For Families Guide to Assisted Living.” We were thrilled when we woke up the next day to find that MSNBC had covered the story on the business section of the website.
Thank you to everyone for your readership and contribution.
You can read the MSNBC announcement here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28277138/
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