An alternative to nursing homes

It is a common problem with advancing age that we end up with a need for some degree of practical help with everyday living to be provided for us, as we can do less for ourselves. This may be due to failing physical health or it may be due to growing forgetfulness. Completely independent life becomes too much and an answer has to be found. When the time comes, in many cases, a close family member is equally involved in the decision-making process with the older person themselves. It can be the case that this person will actually be the one to reach a conclusion, and then lead the older person to accept the necessary change in their living arrangements.

That does not always have to be a full-care nursing home, which can be seen as an unacceptable loss of self-determination: a lot of people do not like the idea of ending their days in an institution. Instead it may be enough to arrange for private carers to come into the person’s own home as and when necessary, as an interim measure, while identifying a suitable Assisted Living Facility to provide the right combination of help and support with as much self-sufficiency as the person is capable of.

Assisted Living Facilities are there to fill the gap between the accustomed autonomy of adult life, and the dependence which comes with very advanced age. It provides a flexible solution, and is more appealing to many than any of the alternatives, since the voluntary element to all the help that is provided means that residents do not lose their freedom to choose as they might in a care home.

They do receive as much practical social and medical support as they need, and it is at hand whenever needed, on the spot, so that those close to the elderly person are able to enjoy the same peace of mind about practical matters that they would if their relative was in a nursing home, while the elderly person does not lose their freedom.