Choosing a Facility

The first question is level of care: assisted living for people who need some help but are largely independent, residential (long-term) care for those needing 24-hour professional support, and specialized memory care for advanced dementia. Choosing for where your parent is heading, not just where they are today, avoids a second disruptive move.

Visit more than once, including unannounced and at mealtime. Watch how staff speak to residents — with warmth and patience, or rushed and impersonal. Notice smell, cleanliness, whether residents are engaged or parked in front of a TV, and the staff-to-resident ratio, especially in the evening and overnight when many places run lean.

Ask about staff turnover, how they handle a medical change or a fall, how care plans are updated, and how they communicate with families. Red flags: reluctance to let you visit freely, high staff turnover, vague answers about ratios, unaddressed odours, and residents who seem over-sedated. Trust what you see over what the brochure says.

Publicly subsidized residential care in BC is income-tested and often has a waitlist, while private options cost more but may be available sooner. Understanding how the Health Authority assessment and placement process works — and getting on lists early — prevents a rushed decision in a crisis. We map the process and the costs.