Maine Memory Care Facilities

The cost of living in Maine may be higher than the national average, but memory care homes in Maine are some of the most affordable you can find in the Northeast.

The Northeast is renowned for being one of the most expensive and most densely populated regions in the country. Despite Maine ranking within the Top 15 of most expensive for senior housing in the Northeast, the state still offers a wide selection of memory care homes and assisted living communities with friendlier rates without neglecting care quality and proper compensation to caregivers. It is still much more affordable than New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania. In fact, the only state with cheaper monthly costs in the Northeast than Maine's memory care facilities is Vermont, just a couple of spots below Maine in the national rankings.

Yes, dementia care facilities in Maine are pricier compared to the national average. But considering its location, the average cost of living, the high-quality of care they provide, and the presence of happy and well-compensated care professionals, Maine memory care homes are definitely worth it.

Cost Breakdown for Memory Care Facilities in Maine

Overall, dementia care homes in the state of Maine rank 14th in the nation in terms of being the most expensive. The median average, however, is not outrageously more than the national average. The median for daily rates in Maine is $167, and almost $5,000 for a month. Compared to the national average of $160 per day, Alzheimer's care facilities in the state are not remarkably much higher.

Location is a major factor in the cost of memory care. For example, some of the cheapest dementia care homes in Maine only cost between $2,900 and $3,400 per month. Yet the top ten percent of the most expensive are priced between $8,200 and $8,700 per month. It's a significant gap between the most expensive and affordable Alzheimer's care homes.

A great aspect of Maine's memory care communities is they do not face stiff competition. While situated in the highly prized, sought after New England part of the United States, some seniors avoid Maine due to the longer, colder winters and more rural territory compared to New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania or New Jersey. Fittingly, you can expect to find very few to no waiting lists, no pressure to sign off on a room immediately, and thus an easier time finding the ideal memory care home in Maine.

Maine is tiny compared to the rest of the U.S. states. The north easternmost part of the country only inhabits 1.3 million residents, with no cities being larger than 37,000 people. The biggest communities are Lewiston (population 36,500), Bangor (population 33,000) and South Portland (population 25,000).

Affording a Maine Dementia Care Facility

Maine dementia care homes may be more reasonably priced than the rest of the region, but it will take up a good portion of your finances, especially if you are considering it for the long-term. However, some programs may help you in that aspect.

Elderly and Adults with Disabilities Waiver

Eligibility: Any Maine Care-eligible residents who are over 65 or are diagnosed with a disability are eligible for this program. The Department of Health and Human Services will assess and verify further eligibility.

Affordable Assisted Living Program

Eligibility: Seniors and people with special needs who are living in Maine and require a higher level of care are eligible. However, they must pass the financial and functional assessments as well as the Maine Care eligibility check.

State Supplement Payment

Eligibility: Supplemental security Income Program-eligible Maine residents who are over 65 or have a diagnosed disability are automatically eligible for this program. Special considerations may be given to those with citizenship or income-eligibility issues on a case to case basis.

You may also consider life insurance, long-term care insurance, veteran’s benefits, and reverse mortgages to further support your family member through memory care.

Relocating to a Dementia Care Home in Maine

5.8 million-- that is the number that the Alzheimer's Association published as the total number of people living with Alzheimer's disease in the US alone.

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disease that causes a disruption in daily life due to loss of memory, language, problem-solving ability, and other thinking capacities. As the disease flows through the three stages (preclinical, mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's and dementia due to Alzheimer's), people slowly lose their mobility and independence.

Alzheimer's is often referred to as a senior's disease because the average onset is detected at 65 to 74 years old. However, 200,000 out of the total 5.8 million total number of Alzheimer's cases are people who are under 65. In the United Kingdom, a 23-year-old, a ten-year-old, and a six-year-old were found to be some of the youngest dementia and Alzheimer's patients.

Although a large portion of people with Alzheimer's choose to live independently or with family members, the progressive nature of the disease, the availability of improved memory care communities, the advancements of dementia care, and the availability of financial aids paved the way for more people to enter memory care facilities in Maine and other states.

Deciding to relocate to a dementia care home in Maine is a task that can take a toll on you emotionally and financially. But before you waive the idea of relocation all together, you may want to consider a few things.

During the early and moderate stages of Alzheimer's, a loved one diagnosed with it may only experience slight inconveniences like losing keys and forgetting where they left their phone. But as the disease progresses, these minor inconveniences can be sources of frustration. Alzheimer's gradually makes people forget about tasks associated with daily living. Something simple like making coffee in the morning, practicing personal hygiene, and even tying shoelaces can be a challenge if you forget how to do them. When piled up, these little frustrations can cause even the calmest of people to eventually lash out.

In addition to these behavioral changes, a person with Alzheimer's is putting their safety at risk as dementia starts to worsen. They may decide to do a grocery-run for a few supplies and come back hours later not because they had too much to buy, but because it took that much time to remember where they were, where they are going, and how they can go back home. This confusion and disorientation may also cause a traffic accident as they forget how to drive in the middle of a highway or that they were not supposed to cross a busy street when the crossing light is still red.

Forgetting what they do on a regular basis may also affect their health. They may forget how to cook, how to reheat food, or even eat on time. They may also forget to take the medication that they need to regulate their blood sugar, cholesterol, or blood pressure levels. These little forgotten tasks may seem innocent, but they can cause a loved one's health to go south.

Dementia due to Alzheimer's is not a simple matter. It's not just about forgetting tasks anymore; it is the disease slowly taking away a person's ability to move, their long-term memories, and their freedom. As a loved one lives through these stages, they are usually unable to care for themselves. They are also unable to control bodily functions as well. These are the stages where people will experience incontinence, require almost round-the-clock monitoring, and have a drastic increase in care.

Lastly, it is important to reassess how caring for a loved one with dementia has affected your life as the primary caregiver. Ask yourself these questions:

• Are you able to fulfill your responsibilities as a caregiver as well as other duties and responsibilities?
• Do you still feel connected with other family members and friends?
• Can you say that you are as healthy as you were before caring for your loved one?
• Do you remain a patient and calm caregiver?
• Can you still keep up with your loved one's care needs?

Narrating these instances is not intended to scare you or question your devotion to your loved one. These are realities that you must face as a primary caregiver and considerations you have to make moving forward. Scientists are yet to find the cure for Alzheimer's, but it doesn't mean that your loved one or yourself cannot have comfortable lives through the course of the disease. If you feel like you are no longer able to meet your loved one's care needs, maybe it is time for you to get in touch with a Maine memory care home.

Maine Memory Care Communities vs. Assisted Living Facilities

Assisted living homes and memory care homes in Maine are both able to provide living spaces, meals, support services, and ancillary services to seniors and people with physical and developmental disabilities. However, they differ in their ability to care for people living with dementia and Alzheimer's.

Although assisted living homes can provide some of the basic residential care services, they may or may not have a special memory care unit with trained staff members to provide memory care or have the amenities that these people need. In addition to this, the federal government does not regulate these facilities and that can leave gaps in the quality of care, amenities and staff availability, building maintenance, and community management.

Memory care communities in the state of Maine, on the other hand, specialize in caring for those with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. They also have specially trained staff that can provide directed care, supervisory care, behavioral health services, memory care-specific treatment administration, and individual and group therapies supervision.

The regulation and monitoring of Maine memory care homes fall into the hands of Maine's Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Licensing and Certification. They are also the ones responsible for responding to complaints and ensuring that memory care residents receive high-quality personalized care through announced and unannounced surveys.

Maine Memory Care Facility Requirements for Admission

Maine Alzheimer's care may be on the more affordable side but it has a few requirements before admitting a person with Alzheimer's into the community. Each facility must state their admission requirements to give people an overview of the services and kind of care that they can give.

Maine residents diagnosed with Alzheimer's and other dementia types are eligible to enter a memory care facility in Maine as long as the establishment can meet their care demands. But in the case that a resident requires constant medical care, pose as a threat to the community's safety, and intentionally harm people and property, then they are deemed ineligible for admission.

If these requirements are too broad for you to determine if your family member is eligible, you might want to speak with the memory care home's management or schedule a facility tour.

Questions to Ask During a Maine Dementia Care Community Tour

A tour and speaking with the people who manage the community and provide care for the residents are great ways to assess the kind of care that your loved one will get in a specific memory care facility. It can also help you visualize the experiences they may have and determine if this is the right place for them today and in the future.

During the tour, you will also get a chance to inquire. Topics you may want to bring up during a memory care facility tour in Maine include:

• Can you participate in the care planning and actual care of your loved one?
• Who will inform you should there be deviations from the care plan and changes in your loved one's condition?
• Who can you contact for updates and inquiries?
• Do they have the memory care services that your loved one needs?
• Do they have a medical team, or when do physicians and registered nurses visit?
• Do they have qualified staff members who can memory care?
• What happens if a resident needs to go to the hospital or emergency room?
• How many residents does a member of the care staff look after at one time?
• Are the living areas, bathrooms, and communal areas spacious?
• What are the things that a resident can bring from their homes?
• Are the areas in the community easy to navigate, accessible, and age-appropriate?
• Do they have enough indoor and outdoor spaces?
• What are the activities that residents do to pass the time?
• When and how can you visit a loved one living in the community?
• How do they plan their meals, and can they meet your loved one's dietary needs and restrictions?
• What are the discharge policies and procedures?
• Is continuing care and aging in place allowed?

Maine Memory Care Home Amenities

There are two ways to house a loved one at Alzheimer's care homes in Maine. The first is to contact assisted living centers or nursing homes that may also feature units dedicated to dementia and Alzheimer's service. The other method is to find dementia care communities that are 100 percent exclusive and dedicated to dementia or Alzheimer's. There really isn't a better option, as both have their pros and cons, and it may simply depend on what facility is closer to friends and family so they can often visit, as well as what facility is within your budget.

Regardless, memory care communities in Maine provide a nice mixture of traditional senior amenities like food prep and serving, housekeeping, daily activities, visitation hours, indoor and outdoor private seating and more.

Specialized care for Alzheimer's and dementia care in Maine is also enabled by well trained, skilled nursing staff equipped to help those who are suffering from dementia.

Helpful Resources for Maine Residents with Dementia:

Should you want to learn more about Alzheimer's and dementia as a recently diagnosed or a primary caregiver, you may find the following sources helpful.

• Alzheimer's Association Maine Chapter
• Maine Low Cost Drugs for the Elderly or Disabled Program
• Maine Legal Services for the Elderly