What is the Role of Social Services at Sunset Senior Living?

The role of our Social Services staff at Sunset is an important one.

They support both our residents and their families. They are advocates and problem-solvers for our aging loved ones and their needs, especially when conflict, concerns, or issues arise.

We are so grateful for the hard work and compassion of our Social Services staff, and we want to highlight the beneficial role they play for everyone walking through the doors of Sunset.

They Protect Fundamental Rights

As people age, they may become unable to advocate for their own personal and fundamental rights. Our Social Services staff not only advocates for these rights, but also promotes the overall welfare of our residents.

Mental health, for example, can deteriorate with time. Depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues affect people of all ages, but these conditions can often go undiagnosed or untreated for the elderly due to lack of awareness or access to care.

Our Social Services staff are actively trained on helping to recognize signs of mental despair. Whether someone joins our home with ongoing mental health issues or develops them over time, Social Services can attend to those needs and effectively manage them. By communicating with our residents’ doctors and our own nursing staff, Social Services is able to ensure that the health , wellbeing, and quality of life for our residents are protected.

They Advocate For Residents

Social services staff play a vital role in advocating for nursing home residents.

They provide much-needed support to residents and their families by helping them navigate the system of long-term care. Our Social Services staff monitors medical treatments, helps ensure that each resident is receiving appropriate care, and addresses any issues that may arise. They are compassionate and unbiased at resolving concerns.

Additionally, social services staff strive to empower nursing home residents, so they can make informed decisions about their health and well-being while living in a safe environment.

At Sunset Senior Living, we are dedicated to the quality of care and the happiness of our residents, staff, and families that are connected to us through their loved ones; we value the work Social Services does to ensure our residents’ needs are being met.

The Provide Counseling and Support to Residents

Can you imagine the feelings that residents have when they move into the nursing home?

It can be a relief for many, but it can also come with fear, vulnerability, or at the very least, a big change to adjust to. Social Services helps with all those feelings and assists our residents in understanding how they can have a happy and fulfilling life at Sunset!

It is so very important to us that residents are as comfortable as possible. Social Services provides the compassionate care and support new and existing residents need for their highest quality of life.

Testimonial

The following story has been shared with permission.

Here at Sunset Senior Living, we have an elderly married couple who are both dealing with dementia, as well as other physical ailments. This couple has been married for over 70 years and most certainly have loved each other very much for every one of those years, but dementia can change how people behave.

The couple’s granddaughter recently came for a visit, during which her grandmother told her that her grandfather had slapped her when she couldn’t get into her wheelchair fast enough. The staff had noticed that the grandfather had recently been more agitated and excitable and was keeping a close eye on him. However, they were unaware of this specific incident.

The granddaughter was unsure if this incident really happened, but thought it was important to let the nurse know in case abuse was really going on. Within 10 minutes of telling the nurse, Jeni, one of our Social Services professionals, was in the room discussing the issue with the granddaughter and working with her to figure out the mental health issues that might be taking place and how to resolve them. Since then, there has been no more mention of possible abuse, and the aggression and agitation have been addressed with medication.

“It was a shock to hear from Grandma that Grandpa slapped her. It’s hard to know what to do because you wonder if it really happened. If so, how on earth should it be handled when they both are dealing with dementia? Jeni explained why Grandpa would be behaving this way and how it was related to his dementia and we had it resolved almost immediately. She was wonderful and supportive and just the help I needed at that moment.” – Jodie P.

In Conclusion – Thank You

Social Services is part of the loving heart at Sunset Senior Living, and we are so grateful for the services they provide in a caring and professional manner. We want to thank them and hope that this blog post has helped you understand the role they play, and how they can help you or your loved one staying with us.

If you would like to learn more about Sunset, contact us for a tour or to start the admission process.