• Adult Family Homes vs. Boarding Homes

    We are often asked the differences between Adult Family Homes and Boarding homes. One difference lies in the number of people that care services can be provided for.  An adult family home is licensed to provide care services for up to six adults in a regular house located in a residential neighborhood.  A boarding home is licensed to provide housing and care services to seven or more people in a home or facility located in a residential neighborhood. Adult family homes may be run by a family, single person or business partners. The adult family home may also hire other employees. Some adult family homes allow pets and in some homes, multiple languages are spoken. All adult family homes and boarding homes both provide housing and meals (room and board) and assume general responsibility for the safety and care of the resident. What additional services are offered will be different from home to home but may include: Varying levels of assistance with personal care. […]

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  • Adult Family Homes In Vancouver WA Make Longevity More Joyous

    Often our clients contact us because their loved one is having some challenges living alone. When we introduce them to adult family homes in Vancouver WA and the surrounding towns of Clark County, WA, we help families make choices that bring more joy to their loved ones as well as meet their basic needs. It is our experience that, though our body may put some restrictions on us,  getting older does not mean we can’t still have some fun! The right adult family homes in Vancouver WA provide the kind of support that helps each person live their life to full potential. Adult family homes should offer more than just meeting the basic needs of food and medical care. A good adult family home will provide a sense of family and community to each person that shares the living environment. This kind of community enhances our lives and helps keep the joy in our life!

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  • Assisted Living In Vancouver WA Could Actually Increase Your Independence

    People often associate the move to assisted living in Vancouver WA with giving up independence. Our relationships with seniors have taught us time and again that this is absolutely not the case. Choosing the right Vancouver WA assisted living facility means understanding your needs and analyzing the opportunities each assisted living facility may offer. Assisted living often  increases independence because the facility offers transportation as part of their services. For many people giving up their drivers license is equal to losing their independence. When we help families investigate assisted living options we talk with you about these very subtle needs in addition to the more obvious needs that may come up in the future. Many of our clients are very independent, even still driving,  but want the security of knowing assistance is nearby if they do need it. Another benefit of joining an assisted living community is the chance to connect with peers. Increasing social interaction helps to maintain a sense of independence because we realize others have similar […]

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  • Assisted Living In Vancouver WA – How To Start Your Search

    The nature of support we offer to families looking for assisted living in Vancouver WA has, by it’s nature, made it so that people in our community know they can turn to us for senior housing and related resources. Assisted living in Vancouver WA is a phrase often used to search for other types of solutions such as Memory Care, Senior Housing and Adult Family Homes. We feel it is important to remind our visitors that  “assisted living in Vancouver WA” is a phrase that may not actually bring the right resources to the forefront. Often this search is made during a highly emotional time. We would encourage you to start your assisted living search by leveraging a free service like we offer here at A Caring Heart. We can help you process your needs and determine the correct assisted living in Vancouver WA solution base on your unique needs. It is possible that an assisted living facility, in it’s truest definition, is […]

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  • Adult Family Home – Determine The Right Choice

    Talk About Life Changes: Everyone involved needs to overcome their reluctance to talk about changing needs. Set aside time to talk when everyone is rested and prepared. Do some homework and have some knowledge about adult family homes in your area. Involve the person that needs the additional care and support. Allow each person to talk without interruptions or criticism. Emotions will be a big part of this discussion. Be patient with each other. Don’t try to tackle too many issues in one meeting – take your time. It is normal to find change difficult, stay positive. Don’t make rash decisions. Allow everyone time to think about everything discussed. If helping a loved one, remember you are making recommendations not decisions. Review Needs Make a list of medical, physical and social needs. Does someone need to do laundry and cooking? Is help needed to get to the bathroom or to dress? Are regular medication reminders necessary? What type of help […]

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  • Assisted Living Providers May Want To Consider Chocolate On The Menu!

    A popular website for people involved in assisted living and care giving is called Care 2 Make a Difference (http://care2.com) where you can find some great information. In their “Green Living” section we ran across a great article titled “Chocoate Good for the Heart?”. Researchers from the UK and Colombia say their meta-analysis of seven studies focused on chocolate and a reduction in heart disease shows eating small amounts of chocolate could reduce the risk of heart disease by 37%, and the risk of stroke by 29%. “Although overconsumption can have harmful effects, the existing studies generally agree on a potential beneficial association of chocolate consumption with a lower risk of cardiometabolic disorders. Our findings confirm this, and we found that higher levels of chocolate consumption might be associated with a one-third reduction in the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

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  • New hope for Alzheimer’s Disease?

    Researchers have found a natural substance in a type of moss, Huperzia Serrata (also known as Chinese Club Moss) that could be a powerful treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease, and may potentially combat the effects of chemical warfare agents, too. Called Huperzine A, the compound is an enzyme inhibitor that has been used to treat Alzheimer’s disease in China since the late 1990s. It’s also sold in the U.S. as a dietary supplement to help maintain memory. Unfortunately, the moss is extremely rare and may be near extinction in its native China. But now there has been a major breakthrough – Yale scientists have come up with a practical way to synthesize huperzine A in just eight steps, producing a yield of 40 percent. Their research was just published in the journal Chemical Science. Plans are underway to further test the therapeutic potential of Huperzine A in clinical trials involving research subjects with several different neurological disorders. In addition, according to […]

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  • Where Did I Put It? Regaining Memory.

    Forgetting where you put your keys a lot lately? Leaving that shopping list at home all of the time? Having trouble remembering names for all of those faces? Menopausal women often complain of fuzzy thinking, forgetfulness, and difficulty concentrating; some even wonder if this is the beginning of dementia. You are most likely not losing your mind! Join the Red Hot Mamas for Menopause 101 to find out the causes of memory loss during menopause and what you can do to fight it. Presented by Anne Hamburg, MD, Southwest Medical Group Neurology Associates. Social time and refreshments at 6 p.m. The program begins at 6:30 p.m.  Click here to learn more and sign up! Although it is unlikely that a menopause related forgetfulness will cause enough problems to require an assisted living solution, memory problems can make it difficult for people to live alone. If you or someone you care about is in need of an assisted living solution in Vancouver, WA […]

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  • Memory care – does the Internet hurt or help?

    Memory care is not just something we should look into when we start having problems. We should work to maintain our memory before a problem occurs. There have been many studies that show using technology can help our memory but is that always true? A recent study indicates that the internet may actually hinder our memory skills – not because of the technology but because we feel there is no longer a need to remember things on our own when it is so easy to access information online. Betsy Sparrow, assistant professor in psychology at Columbia, analyzed the impact of the huge accessibility of data from the internet on memory skills. Dr. Sparrow and her collaborators, Daniel M. Wegner of Harvard and Jenny Liu of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, staged four different memory experiments. One was for participants to type snippets of knowledge into a computer. One group was told the data would be erased and another was told […]

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  • Assisted Living, Adult Family Homes And Memory Care Are Only A Part Of Aging Readiness

    The Clark County Aging Readiness Task Force is going to be at the Clark County Fair at Booth 93 in the Exhibition Hall. In addition to helping families seek the right assisted living, adult family home or memory care location for their loved ones, Kathy has been an active member of this task force. The Aging Readiness Task Force was convened to help address how Clark County can meet the needs of an aging population. Kathy will be at the booth Saturday, August 6th from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.and would love to have you stop by to say hello and gather information. See you at the FAIR!!!

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