Moving to a Retirement Community is really good for your brain! Staying active and socially engaged is an important part of healthy aging. Basic rent includes one to three nutritious meals a day, utilities, concierge services, planned activities, and transportation.
In this setting, care is not available in-house but is easily brought in from the outside. Many Retirement Communities partner with in-home care agencies. This can keep the cost of care down. An in-home care company can offer care at a Retirement Community in 15-minute increments for example. One caregiver can see multiple residents, fill their schedule and eliminate their driving time.
When a lot of care is needed, the cost of rent plus the cost of in-home care can become cost-prohibitive. If you begin to need more than 6 hours of care in a 24 hour period, another setting may be more affordable. A progressing dementia diagnosis, requiring close supervision can not usually be safely accommodated in this setting. Another reason people seek alternative settings is that retirement communities do not accept Medicaid.
