One of the most difficult conversations to have with aging parents comes at the point when it becomes evident they can no longer live on their own. Parents may not yet be ready to consider leaving their homes and may not recognize their deficiencies. Making elder law decisions in Bergen County along with elderly parents can prove challenging.
A new model for long term residential home care, called "The Green House" concept is becoming more widely available and may be an alternative to a traditional nursing home. The new approach offers smaller houses for elderly residents, which feel more like homes with living room and dining room spaces.
The Green House Model Provides the Elderly More Choice
There are 117 of these Green Houses across the U.S., which offer a new model for elder care. Each house generally has two certified nursing assistants who perform a variety of jobs for fewer residents. The daily schedule is also more relaxed than a traditional nursing home and can accommodate individual preferences.
Toni Davis, the director of the Green Hill Retirement Community, an assisted living and nursing home in West Orange, New Jersey, had been looking for ways to make her facility feel like more of a home. Davis, who is the daughter of a nursing home director, spent much of her childhood wandering the halls of a nursing home. Even today she remembers residents asking her why she could not take them home for dinner and why they could not leave.
Some of Davis' initial changes included adding birdcages and fish tanks, putting carpeting in the halls and even bringing in dogs to help morale. Yet Green Hill still has the appearance of a nursing home. "No matter what you do, you can't get that homelike feeling in an institution because it's too big," she said.
As a result, Davis joined with others around the nation to try the new Green House approach. In 2011, Davis opened several Green Houses and shifted the focus to life and relationships. Green Houses differ in size, staff patterns, inner design and ways to deliver skilled services. A main purpose of this model is to give assistance without that assistance turning into the focal point.
If an Elder Relative is Unable to Make Decisions
In the event that a parent or elderly relative is no longer able to make financial or health decisions or otherwise to safely take care of themselves (including falling prey to aggressive or predatory practices by others - which may include family), it could be time to obtain petition the Court for a guardianship. A guardianship petition asks the Court to appoint someone - usually a family member - to see to the healthcare and daily life and/or financial and legal matters of the incapacitated person.
If you recognize that your elder loved one may no longer be able to live independently, the expertise of an experienced probate law attorney may ease the transition. If your loved one can no longer make competent decisions, a probate attorney can provide advice and assist in setting up an appropriate guardianship.
From our law offices in Hackensack and Manhattan, Kirsch Gartenberg Howard LLP has served individuals and businesses across northern New Jersey, including Bergen County, Essex County, Union County, Middlesex County and Passaic County, and the five boroughs of New York City since 1984.
