Matching Items (2)
Description
The United States elderly population is becoming increasingly larger, there is a need for a more adequate housing type to accommodate this population. It is estimated that by 2020, there will be a need for approximately 1.6 to 2.9 million units of affordable Assisted Living (Blake, 2005). With limited income and higher health bills, adequate housing becomes a low priority. It is estimated that 7.1 million elderly households have serious housing problems. (Blake, 2005) The scope of this research will look at literature, case studies, and interviews to begin to create and understand the necessary design aspects of Assisted Living and Affordable Housing to better create a housing typology that includes both low income residents and Assisted Living needs. This research hopes to have an outcome of Design Recommendations that can be utilized by designers when designing for an Affordable Assisted Living typology.
ContributorsRothner, Colleen (Author) / Bender, Diane (Thesis advisor) / Shraiky, James (Committee member) / Stapp, Mark (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
ABSTRACT The massive number of baby boomers approaching retirement age has been termed the `gray tsunami.' As America's gray tsunami approaches, healthcare workers and social workers will become overwhelmed with requests for services and supports (St. Luke's Health Initiative, 2001; Bekemeier, 2009). This impact can be ameliorated by assisting aging individuals in maintaining or in some cases regaining independence. Individuals who live in assisted living facilities (AFLs) come from diverse backgrounds. Many of these individuals have lived in paternalistic environments such as prisons and mental health institutions. As a consequence of these disempowering conditions, residents of ALFs may experience increased depression, decreased self-esteem, and decreased locus of control (R. Hess, personal communication, September 30, 2010). These disabling conditions can severely limit residents' choice-making opportunities and control over their own lives. If programs can be created to provide empowering experiences and to teach self-advocacy skills, I hypothesize that residents will report an improved quality of life and display fewer depressive symptoms, increased self-esteem, and increased locus of control. Helping these individuals to maintain or regain independence will not only reduce the workload for care workers, it will enhance the lives of residents. The only hypothesis that was supported by the study was an improvement in residents' quality of life, and that hypothesis was only partially supported. Two of the five domains in the Residents' Quality of life questionnaire indicated an increase in quality of life. ii The Activities subscale of the Ferrans & Powers Quality also indicated that there was an increase in quality of life.
ContributorsHedgpeth, Jay (Author) / Napoli, Maria (Thesis advisor) / Gerdes, Karen (Committee member) / Bonifas, Robin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012