Questions To Ask When Touring a Memory Care Facility

A loved one’s journey with dementia changes everything: the daily routine, the long-term plan, and the weight of every decision that follows. This is a challenging time, and families researching memory care for the first time rarely know what to look for or what to ask. That’s why so many of them complete tours but still don’t have any direction.

Having a list of the right questions and noting the answers before, during, and after tours will keep you organized and give you clarity. And our Avail Senior Living has fielded most every inquiry imaginable; we’ve organized the most common ones into a list to get you started.

Here Are Questions To Ask When Touring a Memory Care Community

A memory care community tour reveals far more than a brochure or website can, and we suggest comparing apples to apples. That means having the same list of questions for every community, so that you can assess each on equal footing.

Start with these questions about staffing, care, and daily life:

• What is the caregiver-to-resident ratio during the day and overnight?
• How are team members trained specifically in dementia care, and how often is that training updated?
• Do the same caregivers work with residents consistently?
• How does the community handle behavioral changes such as agitation, wandering, or sundowning?
• Is there a secured outdoor space that residents can access?
• How are meals served, and do residents who need feeding assistance receive it?
• How are activities structured, and are they adapted for different stages of cognitive decline?
• What happens when a resident’s condition progresses and a higher level of care becomes necessary?
• What is included in the monthly fee, and what services cost extra?

Family involvement matters just as much as daily care, so have these questions to ask about dementia care communication ready:

• How are families updated on changes in a resident’s condition?
• Is there a care conference process?
• Do you have support groups for loved ones?
• What communication channels does the community use to keep families informed?

Your loved one’s physician can fill in the medical picture, giving you even more confidence throughout the decision-making process.

Questions To Ask Your Doctor About Dementia

Before or after a tour, a conversation with your loved one’s physician or neurologist gives you critical medical context. Answers to these questions will help you make a more informed placement:

• What type of dementia has been diagnosed, and what stage is it currently?
• Which daily tasks can my loved one no longer perform independently?
• Do the current medications affect behavior, sleep, or appetite, and are any adjustments recommended?
• What level of care is medically appropriate right now?
• At what point might that recommendation change?
• What documentation can you provide to share with a memory care community during the assessment process?

Questions to ask a neurologist about dementia may go deeper into diagnosis and treatment:

• How quickly is my loved one’s dementia likely to progress based on current imaging and testing?
• Are there treatments or interventions that could improve quality of life at this stage?
• What other specialists should be involved in my loved one’s care plan going forward?

Frequently Asked Questions