Assisted Living

Assisted living is generally for seniors who cannot live independently in a private residence, but who do not need the 24-hour medical care provided by a nursing home. An assisted living residence is defined by the Assisted Living Federation of America as a special combination of housing, personalized supportive services and health care designed to meet the needs—both scheduled and unscheduled—of those seniors who need help with activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, eating and monitoring medications.

Assisted living, according to the Wikipedia, is a philosophy of care and services promoting independence and dignity. Assisted living promotes independence and dignity by offering residents many of the same benefits as independent living, while at the same time providing assistance in day-to-day living activities.

Physical layouts of assisted living residences vary. An assisted living residence can actually range from a small residential house to a very large facility providing services to numerous residents. Living spaces at assisted living communities are specially designed with emergency-call devices, wheelchair accessible rooms, custom handrails and other amenities. Most of these communities also have personal care professionals to assist residents in performing activities of daily living. In addition, assisted living communities offer a wide variety of fitness and leisure activities, as well as services such as laundry, housekeeping and local transportation.