Athulya Assisted Living

How do you treat a 5- year- old child? By paying attention to him, talking to him in the way he likes, spending time with him, satisfying his cravings, allowing him to express himself… Well this is the same approach you have to use when it comes to a 70 year plus senior. Yes, old age is childhood revisited and we must treat elders like children, giving them individual attention and focus. There has been a paradigm shift in elder-care from old age assistance to "patient centred care" and this is what excellent assisted living facilities offer these days. What is patient-centred care? The Person-centredness care is all about what we do WITH elders and NOT what we do TO them. Patient-centred care focuses on the geriatric individual, his nature and disposition, his socio-cultural background, his health priorities, his likes and dislikes etc and provides elderly care based on these factors. It is a highly individualized or personalized approach tailor-made t

Stress is an inevitable part of everyone’s life, at some phase. Ideally, retired life is perceived to be a peaceful one. As a senior, you should have plenty of time for relaxation, leisure and personal interests. This was certainly missed out in the hustle and bustle of work life. Sadly, however, with aging come new concerns and challenges that cause anxiousness and stress. This is more prevalent in elders living alone. Some common causes of stress in seniors are Loss of a loved one Getting adjusted to a new environment Newly diagnosed ailments  Physical injuries Dealing with retirement itself Financial concerns Taking up another employment opportunity (full time or part time) Facing any drastic changes in existing lifestyle Impact of Stress Due to aging, the body immune system becomes weaker thereby making elders more susceptible to infection and illnesses. This condition can further deteriorate due to stress. The body’s ability to safeguard itself from inflammati

Today’s changing lifestyles and technology interventions has a profound impact on senior citizens. Consequently, Senior Care is facing a different reality with sophisticated demands on both the healthcare and the accommodation aspects. There are several promising options available due to Preventive Health Maintenance and Healthcare Innovations. This enables senior citizens to have a better quality of life. These options provide the required support systems for fulfilling their daily living and medical needs. Thereby, seniors can lead an independent and more comfortable life with dignity. Does the location of Assisted Living Facility play an important role in decision making? Of late, Assisted Living (AL) is growing increasingly popular as a Senior Care option in the context of both housing and daily living requirements. Location of AL significantly impacts following aspects – Proximity to medical facilities – Elderly citizens are likely to face health issues due to th

Every stage of life has its own advantages and disadvantages. Elderly age, for everyone, appears to be the most difficult one with all its psychological and health issues. People in this age bracket tend to get depression at greater levels compared to other age groups because life asks you to compromise on so many things such as physical strength, mental health and social negligence. However, with a little bit of preparedness, old age too could enhance the experiences of life and you the best sort of memories to add to the bag. Having said that, it’s also a fact that seniors may require assistance in many ways to live a quality life. Assisted living facilities are often taken for regular retirement or senior living homes. Though the Assisted Living Facilities borrow the concept of functioning from senior living homes, they are well advanced in every aspect of senior living and are designed to proactively provide assistance with all the necessary daily activities. Assisted l

Imagine you are reading the last paragraph of the book you loved so much. It gives a great feel that you are about to complete it. At the same time, it makes you feel missing such a good read if you finish the last paragraph! ‘Retirement’ is just another word for many. But, for the person who is undergoing this phase, it is a mixed-feeling than a word! There comes a day for everyone where one should decide and say this is enough. However, deciding ‘that’ day is more difficult than one could imagine. Few feel happy for the relaxed and peaceful life they have after experiencing a complete life and few feel sad for they are going to miss the active professional life that they have been living for the past 3 or 4 decades.  Unable to decide when is the right time for you to retire? Here are 3 simple questions to ask yourself if you are retirement ready.  Unable to Cope with Job Responsibilities -  The transition into aging slows you down gradually. The body will be in dege

Aging is an inevitable part of human life but is accompanied by numerous changes in one’s routines particularly after retirement due to lifestyle modifications. This sudden turn in day- to- day life causes stress, anxiety and sense of deprivation. Seniors also face many home emergencies after retirement leading to dependencies on their family members and care takers. In many developing countries like India, the percentage of ageing population is likely to exceed the demographic distribution of the youngsters and employed workforce shortly. Hence it is important to address and improve attitudes towards aged persons and ensure government participation in elderly care. Else, there is a prospect of facing a socio-economic crisis globally thanks to this   generation imbalance. Common Retirement Emergencies for Seniors Health Issues: Retired adults alone at home are likely to face health issues both life threatening and chronic, physical disabilities, malnutrition concerns a

Nobody likes loneliness. And for seniors, loneliness can become too painful. They find their children and grandchildren busy in their own work and it seems there is nobody in the whole world to take care of them. Moreover, attending funerals of their beloved ones makes them feel worse. Their loneliness gradually makes them enter a state of depression. They feel the need for making friends and friendship is the only medicine for them at this stage. It is not that the more number of friends they make, the happier they become. Rather, they want to optimize their friendship and befriend selected people. Friendships at this stage happen following the theory of emotional selectivity. They tend to lose ties with friends showing superficial emotions and instead prefer those with whom they can form strong ties of friendship. The activities of daily living also tend to change with age. They find difficulty in performing their basic tasks and need someone to assist them. Of course, they