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Consider these changes as LTC adapts to the next generation
We've heard the rumblings of the coming generation in the voices of our "young" residents in their 50s and 60s. It's the younger residents who most often chafe at the restrictions of nursing home ufe, such as being unable to leave the facility unsupervised, or being cautioned to sit when they'd prefer to walk and take the risk of felling. As the baby boomers enter long-term care in greater numbers, those rumblings will grow louder, necessitating changes in how we deliver care. We'll be more successful in making these changes if we anticipate the needs of the boomers, rather than merely reacting to their dissatisfaction.
Attending to their psychosocial needs will help your boomers find comfort, enjoyment and purpose in their later years, thereby creating vital, thriving organizations better able to adapt to changes in the long-term care landscape. Here's what to look out for, and what you can do to help your organization and your residents.
1. SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS
Internet access keeps boomer residents in touch with their social networks as well as the rest of the world. The next generation of residents will expect to be wired, so make your long-term care facility a hotspot now. To increase the value of this service, add adaptive equipment, along with training in how to use it, lockable laptop drawers, additional electrical outlets and policies on maintaining privacy in the nursing home.
2. SOCIAL DIFFERENTIATION
Say good-bye to "Goodnight, Irene" and hello to "You Can't Always Get What You Want", "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" and "Soldier Boy". The universal music of earlier...