How to Choose the Right Level of Care for Your Aging Parent

How can I choose the best care for my aging parents?

When it comes to your parents, you may be noticing that they may need more support in their day-to-day lives than they used to. Or it may be the case that your parents are already living in an assisted living community, but you’ve realized their needs have outgrown the help available, and you want to know more about what options you have.

You care about your parents and want to ensure they receive the best care possible. You also want to ensure they have as much autonomy as possible, now and as their needs change. Your loved ones deserve a rich life, no matter their ability, with a community around them that helps them stay active and engaged. There are many options for assisted living communities in Palm Coast, and you want to make the right choice but may need help figuring out where to start.

What to know when choosing care for your aging parent or loved one

When choosing an assisted living community in Palm Coast, Florida, you’ll need to consider a few key points:

What do your parents or loved ones want and need from their living situation?
What assisted living or memory care communities are near you? Can you visit them and see what they have to offer?
Does the community you’re visiting offer a continuum of care to support your parents as their needs change?
Does the community provide the experiences your parents need to live a vibrant life?

It can be worth your time to sit down with your loved one and anyone else in your family who may be part of this decision, to write out your answers to these questions, and to write out any other questions you may have. You can bring these questions to any senior living community you visit, so you’ll leave the tour of the community knowing precisely what you need to know to support your parents in the decision on where they will live in the future.

There are typically two main categories of care in a residential community: assisted living and memory care. Each category provides specific services that aim to ensure your parents are safe and healthy while offering the enrichment and autonomy they need to feel satisfied in their daily lives. Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast offers a unique middle-ground with its Floreo neighborhood as a bridge between traditional memory care and assisted living. Perfect for aging parents who need extra support but do not require the full-on care that our Valeo™ Memory Care Neighborhood provides, the Floreo neighborhood is an excellent addition to Palm Coast’s senior living options.

What is Assisted Living?

When your parents could use extra support around their health and physical safety, but they’re still interested in living an active life, assisted living is an excellent choice. Assisted living provides staff to help with daily chores, transportation, and daily meals, making life easier and allowing your loved one to live comfortably where their needs can be met. Assisted living also includes medical support, with services tailored to each resident to ensure they receive the best care. Help with medication, bathing, dressing, and grooming are all possibilities, depending on specific needs.

Assisted living also places a high priority on “living”! Daily social activities and beautiful grounds for residents to enjoy are hallmarks of a quality assisted living program, such as Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast. Guided by our Salus™ Philosophy—”Salus” is Latin for “well-being”—we recognize that true health is achieved through balance in all aspects of life. For those who call Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast home, this includes four key components of wellness: physical fitness, mental stimulation, social engagement, and spiritual fulfillment.

Socializing is key to a life well-lived, and a quality assisted living program will provide multiple opportunities for your loved one to socialize with fellow residents. Delicious foods and communal dining help connect your parents to their community, ensuring they have plenty of daily social opportunities. Cultural connections and holiday celebrations are also a part of quality assisted living programs; traditions help make a community feel at home. High-quality assisted living programs in Palm Coast, FL, help residents stay active and engaged, boosting their well-being and ensuring a high quality of life.

What is Floreo?

As a program unique to Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast, Floreo offers all assisted living services plus additional care considerations. It is meant to act as a bridge between an assisted living program and the full support provided in memory care. Preserving independence safely, with medical care in place and social events set up to encourage continued connection to the community, allows your parents or loved ones to get the best care possible as their needs change.

Floreo tends to have increased staffing and assistance capacity for residents with physical impairments. There is staff to help with transfers to and from activities and meals and robust fall management programs for resident safety. Enhanced medical monitoring for insulin, skin conditions, weight, and more are all in place to catch minor concerns before they become more significant issues.

What is Valeo Memory Care?

Memory care is a specialized care for individuals with memory impairments. People with memory impairments have higher care needs, with supervision to ensure safety and special considerations for socializing and community. A high-quality memory care program such as our Valeo Memory Care Neighborhood will work hard to balance dignity and reasonable autonomy with safety and specific healthcare. Derived from a Latin word meaning “to thrive,” this philosophy is our guiding principle as we prioritize and provide opportunities for residents to flourish in every aspect of their lives.

In general, memory care has two major components: medical care and socialization. Alongside 24-hour nursing and increased staff ratios so residents are properly supervised, memory care includes daily care like regular housekeeping and laundry, grooming and bathing assistance, living quarters maintenance, and dining services with nutrition considered. Small touches that are evidence-based for improving memory care residents’ lives, like having them dine off red plates to encourage eating more or encouraging autonomy through making life skills practice and assistance part of the daily routine, should all be part of a memory care program.

A high-quality memory care program also needs to incorporate community and enrichment. Stimulation and engagement through activities considering your parent’s or loved one’s particular needs are key to ensuring they live a rich life. Contact with other community members helps keep their lives bright and vibrant. Music therapy, art therapy, fun group activities, intergenerational contact through bringing in children’s groups for visits, and more should all be part of a high-quality memory care program, like the Valeo™ Signature Programs offered at Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast, to stimulate residents’ minds and make their lives feel warm and safe. Our Valeo™ Signature Programs focus on engaging residents in each of the major domains of life—from crafting opportunities to community concerts to nutritious meals—providing benefits that enhance overall well-being.

We offer an assessment tool that can help you decide whether memory care is the best option for your loved one. This quick, four-minute assessment asks all the relevant questions about your parent’s abilities and needs. You can access the assessment here: Memory Care Assessment.

What is the cost of assisted living vs. memory care?

It’s always worth considering costs when weighing how you’d like to support your loved ones changing needs. As their needs increase with time, added support typically means an increase in price for care, with assisted living being the most affordable and memory care being the most costly. The prices can vary from community to community, so asking specific questions about costs and what care comes with those costs is worthwhile.

At Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast, we can help you work out a budget that considers what will help your parents or loved ones live the fullest lives they can and what will ensure their financial safety. We are invested in our community and can provide guidance to ensure your financial considerations are taken care of from the start.

Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast offers the care your parents need and the life they want

For most people, there’s a strong preference for aging in a place that feels like home. Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast offers the comforts of home with charming decor, comfortable suites, neighbors you’d want to live near, family visits welcomed at any time, and home-cooked dishes from our open Tuscan kitchen.

We work to create a living space for our residents that we would proudly provide for our own parents. Our team members are top-notch, and we treat residents like family. We offer Assisted Living, Floreo, and Memory Care, all with care programs designed to ensure our residents live full, safe, and happy lives.

If you would like to tour our community or speak with us about our options for different levels of care for your loved ones, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Schedule a personalized visit through our website or by calling 386-597-1588. We are here for you and your family, ready to welcome your parents or loved ones with open arms.

Established in 2011, Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast provides assisted living, Floreo, and memory care. It offers a vibrant lifestyle complete with Signature Dining, Signature Programs, and a Signature Experience grounded in celebrating family, culture, and heritage. Located in sunny Palm Coast, Tuscan Gardens of Palm Coast is a place your loved one can call home, with all of the comforts you would expect from a luxury senior living community in Florida.