Retirement homes embody the somewhat more luxurious concept of living in old age. The hotel-like supervised residential complex combines everything under one roof: from the hairdresser to the pharmacy to its own supermarket. The retirement home gives the impression of a city within a city. Source: From www.augustinum.de, photo: © Augustinum
1. How would you describe the living concept of a retirement home?
A good retirement home combines the home of a contemporary apartment with the infrastructure of an upscale hotel (an attractive lobby, a well-run restaurant, a swimming pool and much more), with a comprehensive range of services and with reliable and qualified care in the case of care.
2. How does a retirement home differ from a classic retirement home?
The classic retirement home is almost non-existent in Germany. Most offers today are inpatient nursing homes. They are a solution for people with an acute need for intensive care that they can no longer afford anywhere else. Accordingly, according to various statistics, the length of stay in a nursing home is less than nine months. The retirement home is completely different. The residents live here for around ten years on average, and therefore every house offers the framework for using this time. The equipment in a retirement home is much more extensive, there are no rooms, but apartments, and a variety of facilities, some of which I have already mentioned, including a library, a separate theater or fitness and wellness facilities are standard.
3. For which people is a retirement home suitable?
The senior citizens’ residence is primarily aimed at people who want to actively shape their old age as a phase of life and who do not have an acute need for care when they move in, but who want to make optimal provision for a possible later need for care in a pleasant atmosphere. If you want to free yourself from everyday obligations in old age, if you value the privacy of your own home and at the same time are looking for stimulation and exchange in a large house, a retirement home is a good choice for you.
The important thing is: Before you make a decision, you should definitely stay for a few days or longer to try it out; then you can evaluate the quality of a house and what it has to offer, as well as the community of residents and the atmosphere in the house. The employees as well, because the decision for a retirement home is a matter of trust.
4. What are the monthly costs for the residents of a retirement home?
More than 7,400 residents are at home in the Augustinum throughout Germany.
It depends on the location and, above all, on the size of the apartment. In the Augustinum you live in a rural location in a smaller apartment for less than 1,100 euros a month (in addition to the rent and ancillary costs, the daily lunch menu in the restaurant, weekly cleaning of the apartment, window cleaning, care in the event of a temporary illness, an extensive cultural program and a lot more included). Of course, there are also larger apartments and other locations that cost 2,000, 3,000 Euros or more.
Care is always extra if you are not just ill for a short time, this is required by law. Although we have a solution here at Augustinum: with a solidarity fund that (for a small monthly contribution) limits the personal contribution that you pay yourself after billing the care insurance to a maximum amount.
5. What do residents say about your living concept?
We regularly have scientifically supported surveys of our residents carried out and we keep getting reports of a very, very high level of satisfaction. Of course there are some details that we can improve, that’s exactly what we ask, but overall the residents of the Augustinum really feel at home, and that’s our goal.
“If I made a mistake, it was that I should have moved in earlier.” That’s what I hear time and time again from residents, and it tells me that someone is confident in their decision to go to the Augustinum. The freedom to lead a self-determined life in old age, and at the same time the security of being well cared for if necessary, is what the ladies and gentlemen at Augustinum appreciate.
6. What are the biggest advantages of a retirement home?
– Self-determination: I have many offers and events in a retirement home – but I always have the freedom to choose what I perceive and what not. I choose where I live, and if I need help, I will not be placed in an institution by others.
– Relief and security: no more gardening, no more daily cooking, I can save myself a lot of duties. And when I need personal support or care, then a good residence is the right place for me.
– Freedom for new things: This much freedom makes many new things possible even in old age. A new hobby, traveling together – or a new partner. We’ve had one or two weddings in Augustinum!
7. What do you see as the disadvantages of a retirement home?
I don’t see a real disadvantage. This is of course my very personal point of view, and a retirement home is not necessarily for everyone. You have to want it: deal with aging in good time, think about how you want to live your old age. Of course, if you decide to move in, you have to give up one or the other thing, a lot of space in the big house, the familiar surroundings. But it’s worth comparing: how will I feel when I’m 10 or 15 years older and stayed where I live today? Don’t I make my life a lot easier if I move into a residence today, enjoy the good years and have already made provisions for others who may not be so good?
8. Three reasons why you personally support this type of housing for the elderly.
I have my privacy and at the same time I always meet interesting people. I get any support I might need and have everything covered. And in a good house I have the confidence that I will be well cared for in the end until I die. I can’t imagine it any better for my age.