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Retirement facilities today address a wide variety of needs and wants of older adults. Perhaps the most encompassing definition of a retirement community is simply planned, age segregated housing for older adults. This housing can be apartment or condominium-type housing built solely for independent older adults; congregate housing, which includes dining facilities;
For the Aged and Elderly the freedom to create the lifestyle they always wanted is essential. Quiet, muted tones of solitude in spacious apartment, knowing friends and an attentive staff are close by are useful lifestyle characteristics. A variety of things to do right at their near environment can keep them active.
With an environment that is appealing, the negative stigma placed on retirement homes / communities or nursing homes can be removed. The idea of spending retirement in a nursing home is perceived in our society as the most undesirable of options. Studies have shown that many aged and elderly people suffer from depression.
There are many factors that could contribute to depression among the aging including illness, loss of close family members, or financial problems. Unfortunately these are problems that are uncontrollable. But there are things that we can control that may provide a more agreeable environment for those living in nursing homes or retirement communities. Perhaps if something more can be done to accommodate the aging with an environment that is aesthetically pleasing and functional through color change, lighting, and spatial arrangement, the number of depression diagnoses would decrease among the elderly residing in retirement homes.
Perhaps if it is possible to explore deeper into the perceptive side of the retirement home stigma, one might be able to help a greater portion of the aging in our community adapt to their new environment. With the percentage of people over 65 increasing every year and the life expectancy age increasing, more should be done to accommodate them and make their retirement more enjoyable. Retirement homes are to be made to appear appealing to the families of the potential resident in order to solicit the families' approval. But it is in this appeal that the problem lays. The arrangement of color and lighting in these communities does not take into consideration the effects aging has on the perceptual processes. To take into account these perceptual problems would diminish the appeal to the younger generations trying to provide what they think is the best and most comfortable environment for their loved ones. In order for changes to be made in these environments that would satisfy the needs of the elderly, the younger generations should be educated as to the effects of aging. This education might lead to the changes in nursing homes that are necessary to make the elderly more comfortable.
- Colour in retirement homes
- Lighting and Illumination
- Spatial Arrangements
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