Aging in place is a terminology that’s used to describe the act of staying in your homes until you pass away from old age, as opposed to aging in a facility. According to statistics that was gathered by Adzooma, approximately 90% of United Kingdom seniors prefer to stay in their own homes as opposed to living in a facility. In fact, what this shows is that an overwhelming amount of the elderly prefer to ‘age in place’ regardless if their cognitive and physical ability makes it difficult for them to do so. It’s important that family members become aware of their family member’s true desire as it can affect their health and overall happiness. Let’s take a look at why it’s beneficial for families to utilize live in home care services to take care of their elderly parents, as opposed to bringing them to live in a facility.
Why Do Seniors Prefer To Age In Place
1) Maintains independence
Age related conditions can cause the elderly’s cognitive and physical ability to decline. This can make day-to-day tasks difficult for seniors. At some point, they may need help in order to do basic tasks. As a result of this, independence isn’t something that is possible on their own. However, with the help of a live-in care specialist and family members, seniors can maintain a certain degree of independence as they live in their own homes. This kind of independence is not feasible for people who live in senior living facilities. In fact, residents in these facilities have a lower level of control over their routines and their own lives. As a result of this, many seniors in living facilities, experience depression due to an inability to maintain some form of independence. By aging in place, citizens are able to maintain a larger degree of Independence, which helps to give them a sense of pride and dignity.
2) Healthier And Safer
We’ve all been told that live-in facilities are safe and clean for the elderly. However, when COVID infections were on the rise, many nursing homes were afflicted with the virus and as you know, death rates were especially high in elderly living facilities. This is because while the facility itself may be clean, staff members may practice unsanitary practices such as to not wash their hands when using the bathroom, intermingle in large crowds before they go into work and more. As such, most experts would agree that it is a much safer and healthier option for the elderly to live in their own homes. In fact, many scenarios have said that they feel much safer and healthier by staying in their own homes.
3) More Cost Effective
Believe it or not, the expenses associated with a live-in care facility are particularly high. Recent estimates suggest that the average private room can cost up to £75,000 per year. In some instances, you can even get shared rooms, but the expenses associated with those can be as high as £ 20,000 per year. Alternatively speaking, by utilizing live in home care services, you would pay a fraction of that cost.