[Fastskiguy]

Originally Posted by Arbud

Hello.
Just found out last night that a neighbor is going to look into an assissted living place in the near future.
It must be in the Villages and have the amenities. Maybe even the ability to get around in her golf cart.
Any suggestions? Thanks. Bud

My inlaws have been in assisted living at Watercrest Spanish Springs for about 6 months and it's been good. Staff is excellent, food is good, and the facility is beautiful. They don't do many activities so can't really comment on that. We're there nearly every day and see the leadership team all of the time, out and about, being available. We've toured 12 different facilities and feel this is the best assisted care option in TV.

Joe

[Singerlady]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

Another choice is Sumter Senior Living on Rt 466A. Note that there is a huge difference between independent living and assisted living. With assisted living, you do not get your own apartment, and you pay by the month based on the level of care that you need. With independent living, you don't get any medical care. Of the 4 facilities mentioned, Freedom Pointe is the best, and the most expensive.

A relative of mine lives in Sumter Senior and YES, she has her own apartment! There are 7 care levels determined by points…every task they perform has a point/points assigned to it. When she first moved in to AL, she was paying LESS than IL because they had a DEAL on rent. After 3 1/2 years in AL, she has now caught up to her previous rent in Indepedent Living.

[Angelhug52]

Originally Posted by ElDiabloJoe

Due to the massive concentration of a senior citizen demographic, I'm always surprised it is not the epicenter of American gerontology. I figured every doctor specializing in such, and every service geared toward the populace (like assisted living!) would be in abundance here. I find it shocking the opposite is true.

The Villages has always been depicted as Healthy, getting old ignored. Only recently do you see lifts for disabled by the pools. Back in 2004 to get a house built with wider doors, ramping, lower sinks etc to meet ADA regulations was a battle. Developer didn't want challenged seniors here. Many if the doctors are proficient in aging. It's just not openly advertised. After all must keep up the image of active seniors.

[bumpa]

Up here in the cold north, -4F this morning, Assisted living is quite expensive. We just moved my MIL, aged 97, into a nearby facility. With level 1 care her total monthly cost will be a little over $9000.

[ElDiabloJoe]

Originally Posted by Angelhug52

The Villages has always been depicted as Healthy, getting old ignored. Only recently do you see lifts for disabled by the pools. Back in 2004 to get a house built with wider doors, ramping, lower sinks etc to meet ADA regulations was a battle. Developer didn't want challenged seniors here. Many if the doctors are proficient in aging. It's just not openly advertised. After all must keep up the image of active seniors.

You make good points. Your input is appreciated, thank you.

[Marmaduke]

Originally Posted by ElDiabloJoe

Due to the massive concentration of a senior citizen demographic, I'm always surprised it is not the epicenter of American gerontology. I figured every doctor specializing in such, and every service geared toward the populace (like assisted living!) would be in abundance here. I find it shocking the opposite is true.

I concur, but as a clinical gerontologist, you may want to consider the demographics of states like Pennsylvania where the graying of America has been occuring on a much larger scale than TV, for quite a long time.
Pay scale with all the bells and whistles in the Northeast & Mid-West vs. The Villages is quite frankly why I could retire early.
However, while I see your point, there are not enough Geritricians or Gerontologists to go around. It's a very specialized field not of interest to the 'modern' student, sadly.

When we asked Graduate Students, they confirmed the college students mentality-
Nobody wants to work with "OLD PEOPLE"

It could be their distress over the pictures of parking fopaws.
They were offered a quiet room. lol

[Holpat39]

Assisted living gets your own apartment but are assisted with personal care. Assisted living receives assistance with meds or medical problems and you do not have a full-size kitchen. You have a refrigerator and microwave, and units are usually smaller than independent living. Independent living means you have a full-size kitchen and do not require any assistance with personal care. Independent unites are usually larger than the assisted living units. It's a step-down system. Independent down to assisted down to skilled nursing. Skilled nursing is the most expensive. Next step up is assisted living a little less expensive. Then Independent is the least costly since you don't require any hands-on help.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by Holpat39

Assisted living gets your own apartment but are assisted with personal care. Assisted living receives assistance with meds or medical problems and you do not have a full-size kitchen. You have a refrigerator and microwave, and units are usually smaller than independent living. Independent living means you have a full-size kitchen and do not require any assistance with personal care. Independent unites are usually larger than the assisted living units. It's a step-down system. Independent down to assisted down to skilled nursing. Skilled nursing is the most expensive. Next step up is assisted living a little less expensive. Then Independent is the least costly since you don't require any hands-on help.

I didn't mean to imply that you had to share an apartment in assisted living facilities, although some facilities do have shared apartments. But, the leasing or ownership arrangement is different from independent living. Independent living is mostly geared to renting or owning an apartment, where assisting living is geared to providing and paying for a certain level of care.