Moving into assisted living is a big decision and a major change in a person’s lifestyle. Before starting this new chapter of your life, ensure that the place you select meets your requirements and aligns with your lifestyle. It’s crucial not to rush into this decision, but rather to take the necessary time to be sure you or your loved one’s needs are met.
Whether you are looking for assisted living for yourself or for a loved one, you should first visit a facility to get a feel for the place and understand how it functions. This is also a great opportunity to get to know the caregivers, ask questions, visit the location, and talk with residents to assess how people engage with the facility and feel about it.
Websites and online tours are a good starting point for selecting those assisted living facilities that generally match your needs. Once you visit them, you will get a better picture of how they are run.
At St. Dominic Village, our goal is to ensure that potential residents feel fully informed and confident when making the decision to move into an assisted living facility. By physically visiting the facilities and engaging with the staff, you will be able to assess each one and choose the one that is most suitable for you or your loved one. Here are five reasons you should visit St. Dominic Village today!
1. See All the In-Person Details
While website photos can be captivating, an in-person visit to an assisted-living facility truly showcases what a place feels like. At St. Dominic Village, we invite you to explore every nook and cranny, from our residents’ spacious apartments to our welcoming common areas and serene outdoor spaces. Only by walking through our facility can you truly appreciate the warmth and care we provide.
Wondering about cleanliness? A tour of our premises will highlight our impeccable standards. Forget about stained upholstery or unpleasant lingering odors. Instead, you’ll witness the pristine conditions we maintain daily. As for the ambiance, St. Dominic Village strikes the perfect balance: a buzz of activity without being overwhelming, ensuring our residents never feel isolated in silence. Often, it’s these subtle nuances that define quality living, and they’re aspects that might not always be evident in professional photos.
While here, take a moment to explore our individual apartments. You’ll notice thoughtful floor plans that maximize comfort and utility. For those who have a flair for cooking, you’ll be delighted to see our kitchenettes, thoughtfully equipped for whipping up those cherished recipes.
But more than aesthetics, our commitment to safety shines through in every detail of our assisted living facility. From strategically placed handrails and designed-for-safety showers to our well-lit and spacious hallways, corridors, and apartments, your well-being is at the forefront. After all, the essence of transitioning to St. Dominic Village is to embrace a safer, more convenient way of living, and our assisted living facilities reflect this at every turn.
2. Meet Staff and Residents
A few minutes spent chatting with staff and residents can be far more enlightening than reading countless online reviews about an assisted living facility.
Cheerful, helpful staff means they like their work and are happy working there—the perfect kind of people to surround and take care of you or your loved ones.
You get to see how the care team works together, how they behave toward residents, how often they visit each resident, and what a typical day feels like. If the staff is overworked and stressed, this will inevitably be reflected in the care quality.
During your tour, you can also ask specific questions regarding care. For example, you can see what type of care is offered to dementia patients. You can enquire about the medication schedule and the therapies offered. You can also discuss any health issues you or your loved one has. These questions can hardly be answered online and a one-on-one conversation can be far more helpful and revealing.
3. Experience the Culture
There is nothing like visiting a place to get a feel for its culture. Some places are laid back while others are formal. A guided tour of an assisted living facility can provide genuine insights into its operational ethos and core values.
Every facility has its unique approach—some prioritize outdoor endeavors, while others anchor their activities around religious observances. There are facilities that take pride in fostering a close-knit community through frequent inclusive events, while others appreciate and honor the need for personal space and private moments. Indeed, the preference spectrum is vast—ranging from those who yearn for a carefree environment to those who find solace in a more organized setting.
Your visit’s ultimate aim is to gauge if the facility aligns with your lifestyle aspirations. Say, if cherishing communal bonds and engaging in shared moments resonate with you or your loved ones, it’s imperative to find a place that actively promotes such social interactions.
With over 31,000 assisted living facilities across the United States, your options are indeed extensive. But amidst this vast array, your quest is to pinpoint the one facility that aligns seamlessly with your anticipations—a place that genuinely evokes the feeling of ‘home’. At St. Dominic Village, our commitment is unwavering—to not just be another facility but to be that comforting haven you’ve been seeking.
4. See the Available Care in Action
Assisted living facilities are there to help residents with daily activities as well as medication routines and other health and everyday requirements.
You want to assess the quality of the care staff, their training, their daily schedule, and the medical and therapy services they offer. After all, nothing is more precious than your health and your loved one’s well-being. Such conversations can hardly be had over the phone or via a website—face-to-face communication is always best.
So, before deciding on a facility, you should talk to the medical and nursing staff and ask how they tackle health issues. Is there a doctor available 24/7? What happens during a medical emergency? Can you call an off-site doctor? How often do physicians visit the facility?
5. Make Sure You Like the Food
You can hardly check the taste and quality of food online. Even with pictures, it can be difficult to judge the quality and freshness. It’s important to evaluate the menu choices and ingredient quality in person.
Taking a tour of the restaurant of an assisted living facility also allows you to ask about any specific dietary restrictions you may have, such as for diabetes or high blood pressure. You can also inspect the kitchen to ensure it is well-run and clean. If the food is provided by a third party, it’s important to inquire about that as well.
Time to Ask All the Questions!
An assisted living facility is a home away from home. You want to choose the best facility for you, which means that you want to tour the location and see first-hand how it’s run. You also get to ask all the questions you have in mind.
How much does it cost? What’s included in the price? Does an assisted living facility accept Medicaid? How does the cost differ if you choose shared accommodation instead of single occupancy?
There are so many questions to ask that it’s almost impossible to make up your mind based on a website, online reviews, and a phone call. Assisted living is an investment in your well-being, so you shouldn’t rush into a decision.
Here at St. Dominic Village, we know that you want your loved ones to enjoy living in a community that cares for them. In order to do that, you need to find a senior care facility that offers physical and spiritual wellness to all residents, whether they are in Independent Living, Assisted Living, or Rehabilitation and Nursing Care. Ready to see St. Dominic Village for yourself? Call us now at 713-741-8701 to arrange a visit or schedule a tour by clicking this link here!