Visiting people in long-term care is critical for the residents’ mental and physical health. There is a long list of advantages for the residents who receive regular visitors, and in today’s blog, we are going to talk about what those advantages are.

Feeling Better

Residents in long-term care feel better when they have visitors. They look better, feel better, eat better, and are more alert and engaged. As social animals, we all yearn for connections with others. Make your visits to friends and family in long-term care regular ones that residents can count on. The effects of isolation and loneliness in humans is well documented.

Better Health

Long-term care residents with regular visitors are healthier as mentioned above. In addition, they live longer, and they maintain an improved mental status for longer than those persons without visitors. A healthier individual has a better quality of life.

Advantages to the Visitor

What is less commonly discussed are the advantages felt by the visitor. Visitors to those in long-term care are doing a good deed, and feel a sense of purpose. Doing for others is one of the key ingredients to feeling better about yourself and is often prescribed in the treatment of anxiety or depression. Not only does the resident benefit, but the visitor benefits, too.

Even if it not obvious to you how much your visits count to those in long-term care, go anyway. We promise you that visits are extremely important, and we cannot stress that enough. When you visit someone in long-term care, if that person is not communicative, then just talk to them. Read to them. Sing to them, or play the guitar. The visit is very important to them and to us.

H&H Total Care Services is a privately held company based in Surrey, BC, that is a leader in providing senior and young adult residential care services. With communities in both British Columbia and Alberta, H&H Total Care Services offers a wide range of compassionate care services from independent living to long-term complex care.