Putting an Aging Parent on a Senior Living Waitlist Avoids Crisis Decision-Making

People concerned about putting an aging parent on a senior home waitlist should be made aware of several facts, reports the Cincinnati Business Courier . Getting on a waitlist early ensures seniors have options, while offering their children peace of mind. Argentum Chief Operating Officer Maribeth Bersani warned this is not the case for families who wait too long, and make "crisis-driven" choices. The first thing to note is that seniors who continue living at home after they are no longer safely able to do so by themselves are at an elevated risk of problems ranging from malnutrition to falls to social isolation. "There's a huge, scary disparity between the types of homes growing numbers of older Americans will need over the next 20 years and their availability and affordability," adds Next Avenue's Richard Eisenberg. Children who delay their aging parents' addition to waitlists may lower their chances of finding a spot for them in a senior living community if such a move becomes unavoidable. Encouraging aging parents to get on a waitlist while they can still be involved in the decision-making process is actually empowering in many cases, not least because many senior living communities let people on their waitlists reserve their preferred accommodations.