Top Retirement Communities

What My Grandfather Taught Me About Assisted Living

 By David Canter
   
    My grandfather has been many things in his life: a serviceman in World War II when he was just 18, an engineer professionally, a father of 4 and a grandfather of many more, and an avid outdoorsman. Today, late in his life, and quite a few years since his initial diagnosis with Alzheimer’s disease, he is much reduced in character, memory, and physical ability.

About 3 years ago while walking in his retirement community Grandpa Bob was hit by a car driven by another retiree. When it became clear that he would be permanently impaired by loss of muscle tone, the family was forced to face the reality that he would be forever incapable of living on his own. Subsequently, our family was forced to move Bob to an assisted living facility.

Then in high school, I witnessed the struggle undertaken by my mother, aunt, and uncle to find a suitable assisted living assisted living program for Bob. As a preoccupied teenager I was seldom privy to the details of this endless search for facilities first in New Jersey, where Bob had lived, and finally in Florida, close to my family home. What I did glean from the experience is that a family must research tirelessly online, in person, and often through the experiences of the elderly family member in order to find a suitable residence. Bob spent time in the memory wing of one assisted living program where he seemed cogent and spry compared to the other residents. The level of stimulation was so dismal and the attendants so inattentive that he was rightfully miserable. We had to move him out. Eventually, the family found a suitable assisted living program near home in Florida, one that is not exclusively catered towards memory loss.

Full Article