Little Rock Senior AdvisorWhat is memory care in Arkansas?
Memory care in Arkansas is usually an Alzheimer's special care unit, a separate and distinct unit inside an assisted living facility or nursing home with its own disclosure, assessment, staffing and training requirements.
Nursing homes also care for many residents with dementia, often on secured halls, under their own license and federal rules.
Which Little Rock-area buildings focus on memory care?
In the state's bed records for the six counties, 2 licensed assisted living facilities carry dementia care in the name or history: Chapters Living of Little Rock, Ginny & Bob Shell Alzheimer's Center. Many other buildings run special care units without saying so in their licensed name, so the written disclosure statement is the document that matters.
Ask every building you tour whether it runs a special care unit and for the written disclosure statement.
What does memory care cost around Little Rock?
No memory care median is published for Arkansas; expect a premium over the $4,562 assisted living median and compare written price sheets.
Living Choices can help with care services in participating Level II buildings, including those with memory care units, for eligible residents.
What should we look for in a memory care unit?
Look for staff who know each resident's history, structured activities through the afternoon and evening, secure outdoor space, unit-specific staffing overnight, and clear criteria for when a resident must move.
Visit at 4 p.m. as well as 10 a.m.; late afternoon is when good units show it.
How do we know when memory care is needed?
When safety depends on supervision around the clock, when wandering or night-time confusion has started, or when the family caregiver can no longer keep up.
Is memory care in a nursing home different?
Yes: a nursing home adds 24-hour licensed nursing, CMS oversight and public star ratings, which suits people with dementia who also have significant medical needs or need two-person help.
Ask a nursing home whether it has a secured dementia hall, how many residents with dementia it serves, and how its activity staff work with them.
How much training do memory care staff have in Arkansas?
Special care unit staff complete dementia training within five months of hire, at least eight hours a month, then two hours of in-service every quarter and two more dementia-specific hours a year.
Ask to see the training log for night staff.
Side by side
| Memory care is | Memory care is not | |
|---|---|---|
| Setting | A special care unit with written disclosure | A separate license |
| Staff | Dementia-trained unit staff | Any aide on any shift |
Sources: Arkansas Office of Long Term Care assisted living rules, the Health Services Permit Agency's Bed Need Book, Arkansas DHS waiver and PACE fact sheets, CMS, CareScout and VA rate tables, each cited in the text. Our editorial standards explain how we check them.
