Understanding the difference between assisted living and memory care is important when it comes to making decisions about your loved one’s future, especially the types of senior living options that are available, such as communities offering a continuum of care. Both aspects of care are tailored to help individuals who need assistance with daily activities, while memory care specializes in helping those struggling with dementia-related diseases.
What Is Assisted Living?
Assisted living is designed to encourage as much independence as possible for aging seniors while providing housing, services, and care for individuals who need assistance with daily activities, such as dressing, grooming, cooking, medication management, etc. Aging adults who also enjoy a maintenance-free lifestyle and engaging social activities benefit from amenities and services that support a thriving lifestyle — all with access to routine assistance and care as needed for daily living.
What Is Memory Care?
Essentially, memory care is a more extensive, comprehensive aspect of assisted living, but one entirely geared around meeting the very specific needs of individuals struggling with various types of dementia (Alzheimer’s being the most prevalent). This high-level care approach is designed to provide a safe and structured environment for seniors with enriching activities, support and supervision, events, and therapies that stimulate memory, enhance cognitive function, and create opportunities to engage and stay active.
What Is a Continuum of Care?
A continuum of care is the benefit and convenience of living in one place that provides access to levels of care needed for various health and lifestyle needs. Also known as a Life Plan Community, residents are afforded a continuum of care and comfort knowing that if their health needs ever change, services are available to accommodate levels of care all within one community — independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing and rehabilitation, and memory care.
The BRH Difference
With a 70-year legacy of providing dedicated and dignified care to aging seniors, Baptist Retirement Homes is considered to be in the top tier of best retirement communities in North Carolina. BRH is comprised of two Life Plan Communities offering the full continuum of care (Brookridge and Taylor Glen), one community offering memory care and skilled nursing (Western North Carolina), and a free-standing assisted living community (Taylor House).
Our faith-based, not-for-profit organization offers a second-to-none senior living experience rooted in our core values — honesty, fairness, compassion, cooperation, dependability, humor, kindness, loyalty, patience, and conscientiousness.
As part of the BRH family, one of the major benefits of calling one of our communities home is the security of lifetime care, including the promise that if a resident’s life expectancy outdistances their financial resources, we will continue to care for them for the remainder of their lives. Quality care and meaningful living is an opportunity every one of our residents deserves.
Have questions? We’d love to talk and help you however we can. Contact us today!