Seniors Want to Age in Place in their Home

“Ageing in Place” is one of those catchphrases governments love to toss around because they know that survey after survey clearly show that over 90% of seniors want to stay in their own homes as they age. Sadly, most governments spew the ‘Age in Place’ rhetoric but don’t put resources behind their promises, and this applies to all governments, liberal and conservative, federal and provincial.

Governments have knowns since the turn of the millennium that the ‘Grey Tsunami’ was coming as Baby Boomers started to retire. Statistics Canada published that the number of people aged 100 or older increased 50 percent between 1996 and 2006 and is set to triple to more than 14,000 by 2031; each generation also lives longer than the last. Meanwhile, Canadians are having fewer and fewer babies, shifting the historical balance between the young and the old. This made national headlines, you would think governments would do more than form committees to plan for who will take care of our ageing seniors who do not want to be forced into Long Term Care facilities.

5 Reasons Seniors Want to Stay in their Homes:

To Maintain Their Independence – seniors may find it more challenging to do some tasks around the home as they age, but this does not mean they have to give up their home. Having a Home Care Aide visit weekly can help manage some of the heavier tasks like changing bed linens, regular housework, as well as shopping and meal preparation. Of course, Caregivers can also assist with personal care and medication management, if requested.

To Stay with Your Spouse – when couples with different levels of care requirements go into residential care, they are often forced to live in different units, essentially living separately. Sadly, some couples are separated and sent to different facilities making seeing each other regularly a challenge. Home Care Aides visiting a couple at home can provide safe care for the spouse with the heavier care needs, and also support the more independent spouse, if requested.

To Remain in Your Community - seniors thrive when they stay near friends, family, and favorite stores. This continuity provides emotional comfort as change can be unsettling. It boosts our mental wellbeing when we are able to continue going to the hairdresser and shops we’ve known for many years.

To Keep Your Pets – although some Assisted Living residences will allow you to bring one small pet, many do not and there are restrictions. Being separated from pets can cause irreparable emotional harm and leads to isolation and depression.

To Eat What You Want, When You Want – food is such an important part of how we enjoy life, and the ability to choose what we eat is integral part of our quality of life. Most of us enjoy traditional recipes familiar to our culture and have individual food preferences. Facilities must accommodate many food intolerances and disease-specific foods, so meals tend to be more bland When you stay in your home, we shop for foods you request and prepare meals using your favourite recipes, and we serve meals when you want to eat.

Seniors are turning away from residential care, especially after COVID when the risks associated with communal living became more widely known, even in the media. Common safety concerns with residential care facilities include:

Higher Rates of Infection – seniors living in communal living situations such as Assisted Living or Residential Care are exposed to much higher rates of infection compared to those that remain in their own homes. Seniors at home may see one or two Caregivers a day, plus close family members whereas a senior in a hundred bed facility may be exposed to dozens of staff each ay (Care Aides, Kitchen Aides, Cleaners, Maintenance people and Managers) plus dozens of unrelated visitors and delivery people. In your home you control who you are and are not exposed to.

Residential Care Facilities were among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. During the first wave of the pandemic (March through August 2020), residents of nursing and seniors’ homes accounted for more than 80% of all reported COVID-19 deaths. Reports from 2021 indicated that nursing homes continued to account for the greatest proportion of outbreak-related cases and more than 50% of all deaths.

Security Concerns – most facilities have open visitation policies and allow friends and family to visit day and night. While this is good for the resident receiving the visitor, this is an obvious security challenge as people who do not live or work at the facility can easily enter and steal a resident’s valuables, or worse.

Staffing Challenges - 86% of facilities reported experiencing staffing-related challenges and nursing homes were much more affected by certain staffing challenges such as critical staff shortages, increased overtime, absenteeism, inadequate PPE supplies and increased mental health issues.

Aggression and Altercations Between Residents. When dozens of seniors with varying levels of ability and cognition live together under one roof, altercations are bound the occur.

Excerpts from:

https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/aging-place-growing-older-home

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2021001/article/00025-eng.htm

https://www.cihi.ca/sites/default/files/document/seniors-in-transition-report-2017-en.pdf

https://www.insurancechoice.co.uk/blog/2020/02/9-common-nursing-home-hazards

https://sencanada.ca/content/sen/committee/402/agei/rep/agingfinalreport-e.pdf