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Aging at home
Home Sweet Home
Staying in your home, with right supports as you age, is one of the fastest growing senior living choices in Canada today.
In fact, it is the preferred choice for 93% of Canadian seniors, and has become an increasingly important option as people are discharged from hospitals more quickly than ever before, and the shortage of assisted living units and long term care beds in BC and across Canada increases. In this article I'll give you some Canadian background on this senior living choice, known as Aging at Home, introduce you to the value and cost of this option, and tell you how you can decide if it's right for you.
Background
Staying in your home, with right supports as you age, is one of the fastest growing senior living choices in Canada today.
Over the last 15 - 20 years a lot of research has taken place in Canada and around the world regarding aging, but the common understanding still seems to be that we will all eventually move out of our homes as we become older. However, a 2012 analysis by Stats Can reports that most of us live at home lifelong, and recent research tells us that those of us who do live at home enjoy the highest quality of life, independence, and self-efficacy of all aging Canadians.
From a provincial health care policy perspective by the year 2038, only 21 years from now, about the time I will need to implement my own Aging at Home Plan, CMHC projects there will be over 5000 too few assisted living units and residential care beds in BC. Policy makers across Canada are saying we have to develop alternatives, and they've also told us that, while increasing the number of units and beds is important, Aging at Home is the most preferred living option by aging Canadians.
Benefits of Aging at Home
Did you know that 1 in 5 seniors in Canada move into residential settings before they need to? A search of medical records determined, in 2013, that these seniors would likely have experienced less depression, received fewer medications leading to fewer falls, and cost the health care system far less, had Aging at Home services been provided. Other research has found that Aging at Home safely helps slow physical and cognitive decline, reduces the likelihood of depression and mood disorders, and extends retirement savings, so the benefits of Aging at Home are apparent: it keeps us healthier, it keeps us happier, and it costs less than other options, because we can customize supports as we need to. Aging at Home Specialists focus on helping you maximize your quality of life while minimizing changes to your lifestyle. Let’s look at this in more detail.