National Assisted Living Week Encourages Residents and Communities to Keep Connected

HARRISBURG — Beginning yesterday and continuing through Saturday, Sept. 17, thousands of America’s assisted living residences and personal care homes and their staff, residents, families, volunteers and local members of their community will celebrate National Assisted Living Week® (NALW). The national observance – which begins each year on Grandparent’s Day – honors the individuals served as well as the individuals who serve in assisted living, personal care and residential care communities across the nation with special activities and events.

The annual observance was created by the National Center for Assisted Living in 1995. This year’s NALW theme is “Keep Connected,” which acknowledges the myriad ways assisted living staff and supporting business partners are revolutionizing the care provided in these communities through innovations in technology. Conversely, residents – with the support of loved ones – are supported with opportunities to use the latest communication tools to engage with the world around them.

“I’m inspired by the amazing work provided every day in assisted living residences and personal care homes across Pennsylvania,” said W. Russell McDaid, President and CEO of the Pennsylvania Health Care Association. “Hundreds of thousands of caregivers are committed to delivering high-quality, person-centered care to each individual resident. We hope members of the public will take the opportunity of National Assisted Living Week to visit an assisted living residence or personal care home and witness this devotion first-hand.”

Pennsylvania Assisted Living Residence and Personal Care Home Facts and Figures:

• Currently, more than 46,000 individuals live in more than 1,200 assisted living residences or personal care homes across Pennsylvania.
• The average assisted living residence or personal care home has 53 beds; the average number of persons served is 38.
• Assisted living companies and communities employ more than 400,000 individuals.
• More than 88 percent of residents are 60 years of age or older.
• Nearly 11.5 percent of residents are living with some form of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Source: 2014 Annual Report: Bureau of Human Services Licensing. A Report on Licensed Personal Care Homes.