Posted on 02/24/2014 6:08:59 AM PST by Makana
Centuries after Shakespeare wrote about King Lear's symptoms, there's still no perfect way to care for sufferers of dementia and Alzheimer's. In the Netherlands, however, a radical idea is being tested: Self-contained "villages" where people with dementia shop, cook, and live together—safely.
We, as a population, are aging rapidly. According to the Alzheimer's Association, one in three seniors today dies with dementia. The process of finding—and paying for—long-term care can be very confusing, unfortunately, and difficult for both loved ones and patients. Most caretakers are underpaid, overworked, and must drive far distances to their jobs—giving away some 17 billion unpaid hours of care a year. And it's just going to get worse: Alzheimer's has increased by an incredible 68 percent since 2000, and the cost of caring for sufferers will increase from $203 billion last year to $1.2 trillion by 2050.
(Excerpt) Read more at gizmodo.com ...
"Must be Washington, DC", or Sun City ,etc.
It does remind me of a story that I heard re: Alzheimer's facility. It seems they had a problem with patients walking away.
So the facility had a faux bus stop installed on the street in front of the building.
Yes, you guessed it. The employee van would pick them up and return them after a brief tour of the neighborhood.
Winter Haven, Fl?
CC
So does “The Village” have a place for these residents to go for final exit when their suffering is too great to bear?
It sounds like a Twilight Zone episode.
I’d urge people to read the whole article. This sounds like a really good idea. The million dollar question is what does it cost? But if its equivalent or less than a nursing home, it sounds like a wonderful way to deal with dementia.
How appropriate your post was “Number 6”.
People are still aging at one year every 365 days. The pace hasn't picked up recently. A "population" aging means one of two things: old people aren't dying "soon enough" for those who believe they should decide such things, or there aren't enough births to increase the young end of the population.
Who is number 1?
You are number 6!
I am not a number, I am a free man!
All such places I’ve visited have keypads to go in our out. If you don’t know the code, you don’t go through the door.
Best show, ever.
our=or
LOL - also sounds like a great Twilight Zone science-fiction type horror story...
Agreed, Have all seasons on DVD, about time to watch them again.
Concur. Except for the last episode which was extremely weird.
A friend just settled out of court for $500K. His MIL had alzheimers and escaped the facility last winter - froze to death on the front lawn overnight. Very sad. The facility wasn’t even censured or anything; their insurance company made it all go away...
Eeeek! Don’t get old and crazy.
Dementia is a nasty. I had the misfortune of visiting an older woman in what is regarded as one of the better care facilities for diminished mental faculties. An entire corridor of women in wheelchairs either staring at the painted block wall in front of them, or sleeping.
I’m not surprised that many of the more functional elderly are choosing to go on perpetual ocean cruises, literally, in that they cost about the same as a nursing home, and with much better amenities. Realizing the value of this, the cruise companies have upgraded their medical care as well.
A good alternative for the rest are the retirement communities in Mexico. All gated, and with good security, often they are attached to the resort areas, so are away from any violence or chaos. And they are very inexpensive, for those with fixed incomes. As far as quality goes, they vie for AARP and AAA ratings, so it is pretty good.
Many Americans are incredulous at the very idea, so I suggest a quick Google search for retirement communities in Mexico.
She was lucky.
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