If you’re not already familiar with adult day care, you may wonder what it is, how it works, and whether or not the senior loved one in your life needs it. Here are some details.
What Is Adult Day Care?
Adult day care is an option to provide care for older or disabled adults during the day. This may be a good option if a caregiver (be it you or someone else) needs some additional help or relief from caregiving duties. Some centers are able to provide care after hours as well.
There are more than 4,200 adult day care centers around the U.S. with more than 250,000 users, according to AARP. More than 50% of adult day care centers are nonprofits, run by governments, hospitals, and universities. The rest are for profit.
Adult day care may focus on one or more aspects of care:
- Providing social interaction
- Providing medical care
- Specializing in those with memory loss/Alzheimer's disease
An estimated 50% of those using adult day care have cognitive impairment; more than 50% need help with at least two activities of daily living, the National Caregivers Library reports.
Adult day care centers often offer a mix of health monitoring and activities. For instance, staff members may be able to help your loved one take medications or receive physical/occupational therapy. At the same time, they also may provide enrichment activities, such as arts and crafts, music therapy, and games and field trips. It’s important to find out in advance what a prospective day care offers and doesn’t offer.
Does My Older Loved One Need Adult Day Care?
There are a couple of reasons you may choose adult day care for your loved one:
- You’re able to provide care most of the time but have another job or responsibility.
- You need a break from your caregiving role.
- You think that your older loved one needs more structure or social interaction in their day.
One consideration with adult day care is cost. It is not typically covered by Medicare, but there may be financial aid for you through Medicaid, the VA, and other programs. The median cost of adult day care is $78 a day or $1,690 a month.
Here is a link from the AARP to more guidance on choosing an adult day care center for your older loved one. Secure Aging can also help inform you about adult day care options in the Bradenton and Sarasota area and help you choose one that fits your loved one’s needs.
Call Secure Aging to Find Out How We Can Help Seniors With Care Management
At Secure Aging in Bradenton, we transform the weight of the world into a sigh of relief for our senior clients and their concerned family members. The mission of Secure Aging is to protect and preserve our client’s independence and dignity through careful and thoughtful financial and care management. As our clients age, it is their desire to remain independent and age with dignity. Our services protect our clients from talented con artists looking to exploit and deplete the financial resources of our vulnerable seniors. Secure Aging helps families in Manatee County and Sarasota County and in and around the communities of Anna Maria, Bradenton, Bradenton Beach, Ellenton, Holmes Beach, Lakewood Ranch, Longboat Key, Myakka City, Palmetto, Parrish, and Sarasota. Call us at 941-761-9338, or visit us online at www.secureaging.com.
