Tagged with senior care …

Building a Green House Home-The Inside: Part IV

If you are an adult child who’s spent even a little time searching for the right living arrangement for an elderly parent who needs a lot of extra care, it doesn’t take long to understand the terrain. You see lots of hallways, sometimes laid out in a hub, or in a square, or sometimes just … Continue reading →

Seattle Times Series — “Seniors for Sale”

For the past several days I’ve been excitedly writing posts about the Green House Homes initiative and specifically about how the continuing care retirement community where my parents live is planning to build these homes. The whole point of Green Houses is to make late life elder care safe, respectful, thoughtful, and homelike. The movement … Continue reading →

Nuts and Bolts of Green House Planning: Part III

“Whatever form they take, there should always be as little distinction as possible between a Green House and the other housing nearby.” What Are Old People For? How Elders Will Save the World by William H. Thomas, M.D. (page 233) The Green House vision projected by Dr. Thomas has become a small, growing movement with … Continue reading →

Replacing a Nursing Community with Green Houses: Part II

Ideas about changing the nursing care at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community (VMRC) began when carpets were replaced in one of the memory neighborhoods. For several days residents with memory disabilities spent their waking hours visiting a more home-like assisted living area. The caregivers immediately spotted a change — people from the memory neighborhood were more … Continue reading →