What is a an Assisted Living Advisor and Why Would you Want to Work with One? Part I

A full-service senior placement agency specializes in helping families find the best place for their senior loved-ones to live and receive proper care. Agencies offer concierge services that help people find the best assisted living, memory care, residential care home or skilled nursing facility for them.

A Senior Care Advisor will work with you to find a place that meets your specific needs, preferences and location within your price-point. A thorough advisor checks each Assisted Living Community’s citation report on the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) website, has a relationship with the ombudsman’s office and will only take you to places they have already seen. Advisors have relationships with management, know the history of the locations, and are confident about the communities they choose to work with. The advisor works for you:  the main goal is to educate you so you can make the best choice for your family or yourself. The goal of an advisor should be to make your decision as stress-free as possible and to make a great fit, so you won’t need to make another move. 

Understanding Long-Term Care

Long-term care refers to needing assistance with your everyday routine, or “activities of daily living.” Activities of daily living (ADLs)  are the things we each do every morning:

1. Personal hygiene – bathing/showering, grooming, nail care, and oral care

2. Dressing - the ability to make appropriate clothing decisions and physically dress/undress oneself

3. Eating - the ability to feed oneself, though not necessarily the capability to prepare food

4. Maintaining continence - both the mental and physical capacity to use a restroom, including the ability to get on and off the toilet and cleaning oneself

5. Transferring/Mobility- moving oneself from seated to standing, getting in and out of bed, and the ability to walk independently from one location to another

There are also instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), actions that are important to being able to live independently, but are not necessarily required activities on a daily basis:

1. Basic communication skills - such as using a regular phone, mobile phone, email, or the Internet

2. Transportation - either by driving oneself, arranging rides, or the ability to use public transportation

3. Meal preparation - meal planning, cooking, clean up, storage, and the ability to safely use kitchen equipment and utensils

4. Shopping - the ability to make appropriate food and clothing purchase decisions

5. Housework - doing laundry, washing dishes, dusting, vacuuming, and maintaining a hygienic place of residence

6. Managing medications - taking accurate dosages at the appropriate times, managing re-fills, and avoiding conflicts

7. Managing personal finances - operating within a budget, writing checks, paying bills, and avoiding scams

There are many reasons you might find yourself in need of long-term care for your parent, spouse or yourself; and there are several choices on how to get that care. This chapter focuses on making a move to a location that offers an easier lifestyle for seniors; a place focused on older adults’ specific needs and interests and  can help with their ADLs.   

Stay tuned for part II - Why Move and What are my Choices? on Monday, March 11, 2019

Jodi Glacer, Area Owner, Senior Care Authority, Northern Broward and Palm Beach County