For most families, the first time you hear the words Dementia or Alzheimer’s is when your doctor first informs you that your most dear loved one has been diagnosed with these conditions. After all, no-one plans for such news.

Looking for a caring place for your loved one to call home can be overwhelming. So how do you navigate the confusing world of Long Term Care now that you’re faced with the task of finding a community that specializes in Dementia and Alzheimer’s Care within a relatively short period of time?

Touring different communities can be confusing. You get all the information from their marketing people and in some cases you do not know what questions to ask.

To help you navigate the waters, we’ve compiled a list of questions we’re most frequently asked at Evergreen Cottages and a few more that we feel are important for you to have answers to in order to make the right decision.

When touring a community here are a few ideas of questions to ask in order to make a clear comparison of the offerings:

1. Are you a State Licensed Community?
2. How many Beds are you licensed for?
3. Do all residents have their own Private Bathrooms and Showers?
4. Are you a secure community?
5. Do you have a nurse on staff?
6. Does your community have an Executive Director? What is their training?
7. What is the staff to resident ratio for day and night?
8. Do you have staff overnight & are they awake?
9. What kind of experience and training does the staff possess and how often do they receive training?
10. What is your Staff Turnover?
11. What kind of activities program is provided?
12. How do you communicate with a resident’s family?
13. What medical services are available?
14. How is your menu planned?
15. What is the cost? Is it all inclusive or do you charge more for different levels of care?

We’ll discuss these questions in detail in our future posts to help you ask the right questions and know the difference between answers you get and what the different words that are used by different communities mean. The answers could make a world of difference between what you expect and what you really get. Stay Tuned!

By: Vanessa Trautwein RN is the operations manager at Evergreen Cottages. She is an expert in the field of Senior Care and can be reached by email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.