Aging in place

Aging in place is growing older without having to move. from your current place of living (your home) to a retirement home or some other place as you get older.

According to the Journal of Housing for the Elderly, aging in place is not having to move from one's present residence in order to secure necessary support services in response to changing needs. Aging in Place has grown in popularity and celebrated by the National Aging in Place Week and the National Aging in Place Council that promotes the positive outcomes of seniors having a choice in their care and living arrangements.

There are now Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) specialists to fill the growing need in this service model for seniors. Communities are now fully engaged and committed to exploring ways to better serve seniors by developing action plans that address the future needs and ensure that the services are in place for seniors.

Within gerontology, sociology and anthropology, aging-in-place is a construct described as "a complex set of processes that is part of the universal and ongoing emergence of the person–place whole, and the creative social effort to reintegrate the whole in a meaningful way when problems arise, compounded by an older adult’s evolving situation." (Cutchin 2003)

Aging in Place Initiative offers a multi-level of services within one campus/senior community.
 * Independent Living
 * Assisted living
 * Alzheimer's care
 * Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) /Nursing home

The main focus is not having to move from place to place, and being familiar with the community, allowing the individual to "age in place". All the housing levels are fitted with all the ADA requirements, call buttons and high speed cable.

Aging in Place should reduce forced relocation to a different living arrangement (and sometimes, transfer trauma also known as relocation stress syndrome ) and produce more favorable outcomes.

In Canada
In Ontario, Canada, Aging in Place is known as Aging at Home, and has received considerable financial support from the Ministry of Heath and Long Term Care.

Books

 * Robin Means, Sally Richards and Randall Smith (2008) Community Care: Policy and Practice , Palgrave MacMillan. ISBN 0230006744

Research

 * The Development of Welfare Services for Elderly People 1971 - 1993 - University of the West of England