Contributing Writer: Diane Lansing, RN
Caring for someone living with Alzheimer’s disease or another dementia is often hard work. There may come a day when you realize that the best way to care for your loved one is to allow someone else to care for them.
Perhaps this means moving to a specialized memory care unit. Here are eight tips to help make this transition a little bit easier:
1. It may be helpful to visit the memory care unit together with your loved one a few times prior to admission. You might join residents for coffee, attend an activity of interest to your loved one, or enjoy special entertainment.
This allows staff to get to know both of you. Even if your loved one doesn’t quite remember these visits, it will leave them with a familiar and positive feeling about the location.
2. Share as much information as possible with your loved one’s new caregivers. Include their background, likes and dislikes, normal routine, and preferred activities.
3. It’s probably best for your loved love not to be involved in the chaos of packing, moving, and setting up their new room.
Perhaps one family member can take your loved one out to do something special while other family members do the actual moving.
4. Set up your loved one’s room to look as much like their home as possible. Include personal items that provide comfort such as a favorite quilt, copies of photographs, or a special piece of furniture.
This isn’t the time to purchase a lot of new items to make their room look more attractive.
5. A decade ago we encouraged family members to stay away for the first week or so after admission to allow the resident to adjust. Today this is rarely the case.
Go ahead and visit, and try to maintain enjoyable routines like watching a favorite TV show together, playing cards, or sharing a meal.
6. Arrange to talk with a primary caregiver daily for the first few days after admission. You’ll have an opportunity to learn how your loved one is adjusting, and this allows staff to bring up any concerns or questions.
7. You will undoubtedly have mixed feelings about such a significant move. As much as possible, display a positive and supportive attitude.
People living with dementia are very good at picking up on other people’s emotions. If you come across as worried or upset, your loved one will, too.
8. Trust yourself in knowing that you made the best possible decision for both you and your loved one at this particular stage in your lives.
Transitioning to a memory care unit is rarely without challenges. It nearly always takes time to adjust. But with support from the memory care staff and a positive outlook, you can help your loved one adapt and thrive in their new home.
About the Author: Diane Lansing is an RN with over 20 years of experience working with residents of memory care units. She currently enjoys volunteering at Elim Rehab and Care Center in Fargo, North Dakota where she previously worked as a nurse manager.
Diane blogs at NursingHomeVolunteer.com, a place for long-term care volunteers to share ideas and encourage one another.
Are you considering memory care, or have you already made the tough decision? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below:
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My grandmother has been living with me for the past few years and her dementia has gotten a lot worse lately to the point where she needs a nurse or caretaker to watch her all of the time. I work during the day and this makes it difficult, so I am thinking about finding a senior care center for her. You make a great point that you should visit the memory care unit together so that my grandma can meet the other residents and attend some activities. This way she can get to know the staff and I can see if she has a positive experience there. This would give me peace of mind that the care center would be a good place for her.
Thank you for sharing Rosie. I also highly recommend getting a referral for a placement consultant, as they will be able to make this process much easier on everyone involved.
My grandma is preparing to move into a memory care home. I didn’t know that it was such a big transition. I really liked your idea of making their room similar to their home and to display things that are meaningful to the resident. I think that will help my grandmother a lot.
My grandmother has dementia, and it’s becoming very hard to care for her. Because of this, we think it may be best to put her into a care service. It was helpful when you mentioned that my family and I should try to maintain a routine with her, as it will help her feel loved. Thanks so much for all the great tips on how to transition my grandmother into a care service.
I like how you said that arranging to talk with a primary caregiver daily for the first few days after admission. My grandma is going into memory care. Thanks for the tips on transitioning as an Alzheimer’s assisted living.
I like what you said about including items of comfort in the room of your loved one who struggles with memory loss. Helping your loved one move to a memory care facility is a great thing to pursue. My neighbor has a grandmother with Alzheimer’s, so I’ll suggest they find the best memory care facility in their area.
I loved that you mentioned we need to keep a positive and supportive attitude through this process. With changes comes mixed feelings, and the best way to make this transition easier for your loved ones is by showing them a good attitude. It is a big step for both of you and showing them that you love them is the best way to go.
My father has developed dementia over the years. I think it’s time he moves to memory care from a good facility. Thanks for the idea that I should introduce him to the staff as if they’re friends so that he would learn to trust them.
I like your advice about arranging a talk with your primary caregiver before making the transition. Obtaining the right senior care is essential to the wellbeing of your loved one. My grandmother could benefit from professional care, so I’ll help her find the best healthcare service to employ.
I found it interesting that you might visit the care facility prior to admission so that the staff can get to know both of you. You could also see how the staff is able to take care of your loved one. I’ll have to look more into skilled nursing facilities that help with memory care.
I like how the article explains that when moving your loved one to memory care, you want to make sure you aren’t worried or upset as they will be too. We are looking into moving my grandma into memory care. We will keep this in mind when we finally move her.
My dad is thinking about going to a memory care facility. Making sure they are professionals could be really nice. Thanks for your tip about how to make the transition easier.
I loved that you mentioned you need to visit your potential memory care facility a couple of times prior to admission. My husband and his brother are thinking about finding a memory care facility for their grandfather, and we are looking for advice. I will let them know about your recommendations to help him with the transition.
It was really helpful when you said to visit a couple of times before the admission. My sister and I are wanting to find a memory care facility for our mom because she has been struggling with dementia for a couple of years now, and we want to make sure that she is safe in a facility. We’ll make sure to keep this information in mind once we find one for her to go to.
I think you are right to emphasize the importance of spending time with the elderly. My mom was just diagnosed with dementia and is losing her memory. I need to check her into a facility that will help her feel less lonely.
My sister and I would like to transition our mother into a senior community so her medical needs will be attended to. Well, thank you for explaining here that it would be best to visit the memory care with her so she’ll have an idea of what it looks like. We’ll also keep in mind to share our mother’s background in the chosen facility.
Thanks for the reminder that interior design is a huge thing to consider as well when preparing a room for dementia memory care. I think that will be something to look into in the future because my grandmother is experiencing a lot of memory lapses lately. I do hope that there are effective ways to slow down the deterioration of her memories.