Avamere at Mountaint Ridge, located in the heart of South Ogden, Utah, is nestled against the Wasatch Front on the west flank of the Rocky Mountains.
With the holidays fast approaching, families around the country are making plans for the festive season. Due to unique events of this past year and the COVID-19 outbreak, sadly, a greater percentage of these plans are being made for virtual gatherings.
Within the assisted living communities with Avamere at Mountain Ridge, we’ve been taking great care to prevent disease spread and related risks since the very beginning of the outbreak, and continue to do so with the health of all our guests in mind. In many cases, while we know this is not ideal, we’ve recommended virtual holiday party themes and tips to our residents and their families to promote safety. Here’s a primer on why we’re making this recommendation and how you and your loved ones can safely plan a holiday gathering that’s still a great occasion for the entire family.
As we noted above, the primary impetus for more virtual events this holiday season is the COVID-19 outbreak. And when it comes to senior living communities like ours, vigilance has to be particularly high.
This is because, as numerous areas of research have shown, older adults are at by far the greatest overall risk of hospitalization or death from this respiratory illness. Due to immune system issues and others that relate to aging, seniors who catch COVID-19 are at particularly high risk of serious concerns. This makes it especially important that seniors and their families plan for safe holiday events, which in most cases simply means planning a virtual celebration this year.
If you’ve decided to go forward with a virtual event, the biggest hurdle for many families here is setting your senior loved one up with the proper technology, usually a chat service like Zoom, FaceTime or Skype. Some seniors have never used a video chat service before or are beginners with these platforms, and they’ll need a patient introduction to the basics of how to utilize them. Our staff members are happy to help here wherever possible.
There are numerous themes out there when it comes to throwing a virtual holiday party. Here are a few that are particularly ideal for such gatherings involving a senior loved one:
For more on how to attain a virtual holiday party to keep seniors and others safe and healthy this year, or to learn about any of our assisted living community services, speak to the staff with Avamere at Mountain Ridge today.
Avamere at Mountaint Ridge, located in the heart of South Ogden, Utah, is nestled against the Wasatch Front on the west flank of the Rocky Mountains.