A Checklist Instrument: Sensory Cues Within Assisted Living Facilities - A Checklist Instrument: Sensory Cues Within Assisted Living Facilities - Open Access Pub

As people age, environments supporting changing needs can potentially impact their quality of life. The purpose of this exploratory study was to develop and assess the validity of a checklist instrument used to evaluate senior-supportive environmental risk factors within assisted living facilities (ALFs). Aging often leads to a decrease in the ability of a person to interpret sensory cues within his or her environment. This checklist instrument examined the relationship between sensory cue frequency and the influence on fall incidence within ALFs to maximize safety and quality of life. Observers visited 140 ALFs, utilizing the checklist instrument to document the presence or non-presence of 110 sensory cues. Contrary to the original hypothesis, a positive correlation was found between sensory cues and reported falls in each space. As the number of cues increased, the number of falls also increased. Additionally, the frequency of sensory cues within each room increased as facility size increased. Lastly, data revealed that more sensory cues were present in ALFs designed or renovated by design professionals. Although the results were contrary to expectations, the checklist instrument demonstrated face and predictive validity as a future research tool. DOI 10.14302/issn.2474-3585.jpmc-16-1213 Today’s U.S. older adults have increasing longevity, are better off economically as a whole, and are living healthier longer as compared with any previous generation1. In 2005, approximately 5% of the Medicare population over age 65 resided in LTC facilities, and increased to 17% for those aged 85+ years2, 3. It is anticipated that this growing need for external housing options will continue, with one of those being assisted living facilities (ALFs). The average age of a resident entering an ALF is 83, with the duration of stay being a little over two years (28.3 months)4. ALFs strive to provide a more residential environment5 while providing necessary support services and assistance with ADLs6, 7. More age-related physical, emotional, and mental decline is occurring into later years, largely due to the normative aging process, which is often accompanied by a decreasing ability of the senses to function well8. This is an issue for older adults because it can result in an increased difficulty to live independently. Decline in hearing and vision can affect depth perception judgments or make it difficult to acclimate to unfamiliar or dangerous places8, 9. There is also evidence that balance control is increasingly dependent on visual and touch receptors in the