CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

                              (CCRC)
                       ADVANTAGES

Several weeks ago at our Sunday afternoon worship service I happened to be seated with Rodney on my left in his special wheelchair adjusted to accommodate his tall, lanky frame and infirmities and Clara seated in her wheelchair on my right. I sat in between them with my rollator in front of me.  As I contemplated our circumstances I thought to myself that they clearly illustrated the advantages of having chosen a CCRC for our retirement home.   

Rodney signed up to come to Kendal at Granville as a founder fully expecting to move into a cottage upon his arrival.  But as in the words of Bobbie Burns, “The best-laid schemes of mice and men gang aft agley,” Rodney’s plans went astray.  Instead of moving into his cottage he entered Kendal via the health Center due to an unfortunate accident which caused injuries necessitating an extended period of rehabilitation.   After months of perseverance he was able to move to his cottage and join in community activities as he had anticipated.  Before long he became a familiar figure zooming around our campus on his bicycle.  With the passage of time changes in his life led him to move to an apartment in the community building where access to all community facilities and activities was easier for him. More recently increasing health issues have resulted in his transfer to the Health Center.

Clara came to our community in 2008.  In spite of eyesight problems she was able to live alone in a cottage for several years.  She took an active part in a variety of community activities.  Then she, like Rodney decided it would be to her advantage to move into an apartment in our community building.  So it was she became my next door neighbor. But alas and alack not too long ago she suffered a fall leaving her with injuries resulting in her transfer to our Health Center.

When I moved to Kendal I chose an apartment because I wanted no more of going out in all kinds of weather to get to community activities and frequently used services.  In 2007 following two weeks in the hospital for emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix I needed a few days in assisted living when I was discharged to help me make the transition back to independent living.  Then in 2009 following open chest surgery to remove a large substernal goiter I needed skilled nursing care and physical therapy during my recovery.  So I was admitted to the Health Center where I spent approximately one month. 

Fortunately all of these moves were relatively simple for all three of us because we lived in a CCRC where movement between levels of care is done with comparative ease.  Had we been living in a community without these component parts we would have had to make arrangements to enter a facility that has them – all of this at a time when due to our situation we would not have been at our best.

People comparing retirement communities often fail to see the differences between those limited to independent living and those with more comprehensive programs i.e.  physical therapy, assisted living, hospice, and skilled nursing (services commonly needed as we grow older).  For example I have a friend who now lives in an assisted living community.  If/when the time comes when she needs skilled nursing or hospice care, she and/or her family will have to go through the process of locating another facility that will accept her and make arrangements for her to be admitted there.  Not knowing in advance when this time will come and what the exact circumstances will be at that time, they cannot make advance arrangements.  Thus they are likely to find themselves with limited time to carry out the search for a suitable facility.  How much easier it would be if she lived in a CCRC where the philosophy of health care incorporates a continuum which includes a wellness program, assisted living, and a health center which provides skilled nursing.

This I do know my son and daughter-in-law have often told me how relieved they are that  I chose a CCRC.  They know that they won’t get a call someday telling them that something has happened to me necessitating my leaving Kendal and moving somewhere else to spend my last days.  Also it is comforting for me to know that they don’t have to worry about finding another place for me.