AlfredHouse II

AlfredHouse has nine facilities, but my mom is going to be in a home with eight people as opposed to a big facility. This one is very nice, and just very perfect for her needs. Some people may need larger facilities with big TVs, big dining rooms, and things like that, but my mom has Alzheimer's, so I wasn't interested in paying all that money for the extra bells and whistles that she can't use. It's five minutes from my home, so that makes a big difference, because I visit a lot. The facility is small, it's not a big one, so the ratios are much better. It's like one person to four, and they only have eight people in the house. They have large homes, but I like that one because it is smaller, it's good one-on-one care. It's beautiful, it's a home that has a huge sunroom, it has a TV room, individual bedrooms, both single and double, and it's in a neighborhood. It's a cul-de-sac, and it's in the neighborhood, so you can go out walking and feel safe. It's a beautiful home. The staff is very friendly, and very caring to the patients that were there. Basically, it's a family-owned business, so a lot of the people who worked there were related to the owner, the original owner. I know that people come in and do exercise, music therapy, and memory therapy.

Last year I spent a year at Alfred House,an assisted living facility. The lack of structured activities caused many residents to become complacent. Therefore complacency can lead to a decrease in mental capacity or possible depression. The expression "if you don't use it you loose it" is often the case in a few assisted living homes. Medication often causes people to become drowsy if not exposed to some type of stimulation. Food with too much starch and excessive salt can in some cases causes obesity and hypertension. My firsthand experience has made me appreciate the need for volunteering,which is a plan for the future.