Before Donna Rankin Love wrote her new book about living in senior residential care, she made that move, not as her last choice but as a well thought out choice -a pre-emptive move. ALCA and geriatric care managers want aging adults to make a move by choice rather than a crisis move. The 90-year-old author has a new book out that I think all Assisted Living Directors, geriatric care managers and any in the field of aging should purchase. The Kind of Village This Is: Life in a Senior Residential Community
Donna’s Pre-Emptive Move
Donna watched her four adult sons grapple with their angry aging Dad’s denial of his deterioration, crisis-driven nursing home placement, subsequent failed attempt at-home care and final placement he did not choose. His overwhelmed caregiver son’s had to make the choice for him. Donna decided to get ahead of that curve and spare her sons a second epic parent drama. She also wanted to make her own choices about her future. She had written 3 books after 80 walked across the United States for Peace followed that up by walking across Russia- all in her 60’s.
This woman already had the courage to make hard choices and understood the rewards. Donna had a gorgeous, dollhouse home, complete with a labyrinth in Capitola California and loads of friends. Yet for a year she visited many CCRC’s. co-housing communities and other senior housing choices to see what would be a fit for her. She was shopping as if trying on dresses she would wear in her future.
After a year of checking the senior housing market, she invested in a place that worked for her when she had no health problems and could make her own choice to relocate.
What she settled on was on an assisted living community in the California wine country. Her reasoning was it was a community that fit her like that perfect sheath. It was comfortable, had a community of residents who were compatible and was warm and friendly. It mattered that the mission that matched her own and she was living near a son who would be helpful but she was not dependent upon. After three years she moved to a new facility as her initial choice had 4 directors over 3 years and she wanted a financially stable place to live. Finally, she settled on Spring Lake Village. She still travels with her college roommate drives to visit her many family members in the Bay area and was traveling Mexico this December. She also blogs regularly at Writing For Our Lives
Not every older person should move
Most elders prefer to age in place. It is important that you realize the losses in moving as an elder and how the move will replace them But if you do see this in your future, you need to be realistic about future losses and gage whether the family will be there to support you at home. Check in to whether you have the money to afford care in-home and consider the chaos for your family by putting off planning for your aging decrements.
Aging Life or Geriatric Care Manager can be of help to and elder or family in considering whether to move or actually moving to have a smooth well-planned pre and post-move. My Geriatric Care Management Operations Manual shows you step by step on how to set up a GCM move management service.
Save your family from last-minute emergency calls from the ER- have your housing and aging bases covered. A move to a higher level of care may be a good choice and if so make it pre-emptive moves, like Donna, ahead of the curve. She is also available to speak at CCRC or Assisted Living about her book and the value of planning ahead for a move at donna684@comcast.net.