Moving to a Senior Living Community vs. Staying at Home

Older adults will have several issues to deal with while living at home. Allow this table to show a cross comparison of living alone vs. a senior living community. A safe community just might be the right choice.

	Home	Senior Living
Social Life	Inaccessibility to friends; unable to participate in events with other people.	Daily contact with neighbors, staff, and acquaintances. Entertaiment is provided every night.
Transportation	Dependent on other people for transportation from location to location.	Facility will prearrange transportation such as a bus or car anytime that the resident requires transportation.
Dining	Unaccompanied/solitary meals; Trouble maintaining a special prescribed diet.	Easier to maintain a prescribed diet, able to eat in room or with neighbors of the community.
Housekeeping	Ever growing difficulty with maintaining the upkeep of household chores.	All clothing, bed linen, and bathroom towels are cleaned by laundry services.
Emergency Assistance	Availability of assistance is variable and not always reliable when needed.	24/7 emergency staff access along with additional alert systems such as alarms.
Exercise	Narrow opportunities to access to proper exercise equipment or space.	Routine appointments by multiple therapy providers to maintain and increase general wellbeing.
Independence	Higher reliance on the assistance of others, requiring help with ADLs.	Staff provide support with daily tasks to ensure safety and independence.

The Cost of Waiting

The true cost of waiting to take charge of your loved one’s health will far exceed the ease delaying the decision.