Before deciding on your retirement home, consider these assisted living facilities health hazards!

Have you noticed puzzling bruising on your senior loved one or observed them clambering around their home, unable to perform basic chores? If so, let’s discuss their surroundings.

Before you haul your elderly parent or loved one to the nearest center, you should do some research on the safety concerns that come along with institutional care.

Sadly, senior living facilities come with some unique health risks, from low lighting to neglectful staff to medication screw-ups. The bad news is that there’s an unrecognized epidemic of nursing home abuse, resulting in many assisted living facilities health hazards.

That said, you can dodge some potential disasters by bypassing facility care altogether by enlisting an at-home caregiver or comparing different centers and selecting a top-rated institution.

When you choose a caregiving service like 24-Hour Home Care, you can keep health risks at bay without sacrificing an elderly loved one’s comfort. And suppose you’re an older adult.

In that case, you should know that the in-house staff offers seniors compassionate, personalized, hands-on care in the safety of their own homes, allowing them more independence.

But, depending on your condition and disabilities, you may need more round-the-clock services provided by a facility.

So, if you or your elderly loved one are considering an assisted living center, read on for 9 assisted living facilities health hazards to watch out for before entering an insufficient, ill-staffed home.

Miscalculations regarding medicine

For aging adults who rely on numerous medications to keep disruptive and painful health complications at bay, administering the proper amount is vital to avoid an assisted living facilities health hazard.

While top-rated assisted living facilities should have organized, well-oiled techniques of tracking and administration, poorly-equipped centers frequently find pills slipping through the cracks.

So, you should take special care when choosing a facility that cross-references medications and keeps tabs on daily doses to avoid harmful side effects or dangerous overtreatment.

Abuse and other staff misconduct

The sad truth is that there’s a long history of misconduct and neglect among caregiving staff in these types of facilities, resulting in physically and mentally dangerous situations for seniors.

Even though some respected centers feature a zero-tolerance policy for abuse and have implemented more strict, intensive background checks, others are lax in this category, causing a dip in personalized, compassionate care.

So before you choose a facility, look very closely for a history of complaints and read reviews to ensure you or your loved one receives humane care from experts, avoiding any assisted living facilities health hazards.

Lighting

Another assisted living facilities health hazard many overlook when admitting themselves or their senior parent into a facility is low or too bright lighting.

Even though this might not seem like an important detail, harsh or dim lighting can easily disorient senior citizens, causing dangerous falls and trips.

To bypass unnecessary threats, elderly centers should include additional lighting via lamps, well-lit common areas, and easily accessible switches to ensure senior safety. But many don’t. So remember to check for this when viewing a facility.

Inaccessible walkways

When looking for a living facility for you or your senior loved one, make sure you visit each place you’re considering to check for uneven, inaccessible walkways that can increase the risk of slipping and falling.

Even though we obviously expect senior centers to feature clutter-free pathways and spacious hallways, some older, poorly-equipped facilities can be unkempt and cramped.

If you or your loved one relies on a wheelchair, walker, or cane to navigate their space, walkway obstacles can make it impossible to move around safely. This is the last assisted living facilities health hazard you want to worry about!

Contagious infections

Living in a space with immuno-compromized seniors can make it nearly impossible to avoid viruses or infections entirely.

That said, when choosing a facility for you or your senior loved one, ensure that the staff is well-equipped to handle outbreaks with antibiotics and other medications required to curb the infection curve.

Without any proper safeguards in place, diseases, and infectious germs can spread like wildfire, wreaking havoc on all the residents’ health. This is one assisted living facilities health hazard you can’t afford to ignore!

Sub-par alert system

Even though assisted living facilities might offer more comprehensive, continuous care to you or your loved one, keeping a constant eye on EVERY patient at all times is practically impossible.

So to fight the specific periods where elders are unsupervised and avoid any assisted living facilities health hazards, reputable care centers should have security equipment installed that can alert staff of unpredictable accidents.

A proper medical alert system can do a lot to protect you. Sadly, many elderly living institutions refrain from investing in the proper safety systems, resulting in health complications and harmful situations for your loved one.

So, ultimately, it would be smart to avoid facilities that are missing essential emergency reachable call buttons, pull chains, and personal alarm devices.

Chairs without armrests

Many seniors have a hard time getting up from a seated position. So, keeping this assisted living facilities health hazard in mind, chairs that don’t have armrests present a severe risk of falls.

When visiting a facility, look around and ensure that the chairs in the dining, living, and other common areas have arms.

If you or your senior loved one is on the shorter side, also pay close attention to seat heights. You might want to speak to a facility manager about getting smaller chairs they can quickly get in and out of.

Unmaintained flooring

Old, run-down assisted living facilities frequently feature poorly maintained flooring that can potentially be dangerous for older adults who are simply walking to and from their rooms.

Between uneven hardwood panels, germ-infested, grimy carpet, and rug-happy walkways, you don’t want to live somewhere that has poorly maintained flooring.

Avoid this assisted living facilities health hazard at all costs to ensure that you and your loved ones can navigate spaces freely.

Missing railings

A vital element of any high-quality care facility is sturdy, accessible handrails and grab bars that keep unsteady older adults from slipping to the ground when staggering throughout their space.

But sadly, many assisted living organizations have impaired railings, resulting in dangerous conditions for those prone to dizzy spells or unbalanced individuals.

And besides ramps or staircases, handrails should be installed beside each beside toilet, bed, and down hallways to ensure elderly individuals can utilize the facility in its entirety.

Also, all chairs should have solid armrests that can bear the weight when leaned against for support. Remember to check for these assisted living facilities health hazards when looking for your next home.

Bonus: Checklist to discover the best assisted living options for you

To help you out, we’ve created an assisted living facilities health hazard checklist that can help you break down the process to ensure you’re not leaving any questions unanswered or leaving anything to chance.

Here’s what you should consider when reviewing your options:

-Consider your finances. Grab a budget planner and write everything down.
-Consider all of your different senior care needs.
-Consider your preferences.
-Consider your healthcare needs.
-Research facilities that match your needs, preferences, and budget.
-Dig deep into fees and costs.
-Learn about how a facility prioritizes safety.
-Take an extensive tour of your favorite options.
-Ask about transportation.
-Explore the types of units available.
-Get to know the staff.
-Ask about the facility’s emergency protocols.
-Learn about specialized therapies and activities.
-Explore spiritual offerings.

The bottom line

Even though it might seem like a safer option to move or send your senior loved one to an assisted living facility, there are many significant assisted living facilities health hazards to evaluate before you make a decision that can negatively affect their physical and mental health.

Should you overlook the benefits of aging in place, try to avoid centers with inaccessible walkways, ineffective security systems, and loads of client complaints to ensure your senior family member is well-taken care of and comfortable in their new home.

Have you considered these assisted living facilities health hazards? Please feel free to share your thoughts with Retired In USA in the comments section below.

And if you found this article helpful, we also recommend reading: 8 Genius Energy-Boosting Tips for Seniors Who Are Over 60