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Find care details, insights, and insider perspectives gained from 20+ years of helping seniors and families.
What to know about this topic:
- What to expect in Alberta's supportive living retirement homes
- Added benefits of moving into supportive living
- Costs of supportive living in Alberta: a survey
- Moving to Alberta from out of the province
- Learning about retirement homes with your loved one
Every retirement home in Alberta offers different services and amenities, some focusing mainly on extended care, while assisted living care focuses on adults who want help with some basic daily needs. Find Alberta's best retirement communities with supportive living listed below.
IN-DEPTH REPORTSSupportive living in Alberta
The Manor Village at Fish Creek Park
Within walking distance of one of Calgary’s finest parks in SW Calgary, this unique all-inclusive community provide a wide range of services and amenities for every lifestyle choice.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
The Manor Villages StayWell Manor
Staywell Manor Village offers elegant retirement living in the heart of Calgary. Whether you are looking for independent living, assisted living or memory care, we have lifestyle options to meet your needs.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care, Long-term care
Chartwell Heritage Valley Retirement Residence
The lifestyle at Chartwell Heritage Valley is ideal for active & independent individuals. Spend your time exactly how you choose in an airy atmosphere with natural light. Flexible private support services also available.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
Garrison Green by United Active Living
At Garrison Green by United Active Living, we offer memory care, independent, and assisted living. Enjoy spacious suites, in-suite laundry, fitness studio, art studio, flexible dining, underground parking and much more!
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
Garneau Hall Seniors Community
Located in the heart of the Garneau district of Edmonton, Garneau Hall offers seniors a caring environment with the added comforts of home and the opportunity for an enriched new life.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
Lake Bonavista Village - Verve Senior Living
Lake Bonavista Village Retirement Residence is the perfect place for seniors to retire. You can choose from a variety of suite sizes in the main building or one of our unique cottages.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
The Wellington Retirement Residence
As a premier Park Place multi-level care residence, The Wellington provides Independent and Supportive Living options for seniors seeking to maintain your independence while enjoying access and services to amenities.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
Verve Aspen Woods
Located in one of Calgary’s most desirable neighbourhoods, with the Rocky Mountains outside and beautifully appointed amenities within, Verve Aspen Woods offers the perfect setting for your active enjoyment of life.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
Wild Rose
At Optima Living, we offer a tailored approach where the resident is the focus of all of our endeavours and we strive to fulfil all our residents’ needs so that they can live their best possible life!
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
Prince of Peace
Prince of Peace a variety of suites styles with kitchenettes and incredible mountain views. It's the perfect residence for seniors who are active, require some assistance, or have memory care needs.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
Trico LivingWell
Trico LivingWell is designed to empower older adults to live their best lives by facilitating inclusivity and togetherness through a holistic health, empathetic and personalized approach to aging.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
Trinity Lodge - Verve Senior Living
Trinity Lodge Retirement Residence combines the elegance & style of a fine traditional hotel, with the security & warmth associated with senior living. Homecare staff is available 24/7 to give you support when needed.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
Riverwalk Retirement Residence - Verve Senior Living
Riverwalk Retirement Residence is centrally located in the Cliff Bungalow-Mission community of Calgary. We offer a continuum of care including Independent Living, Assisted Living and Memory Care.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care
The Lodge at Valley Ridge - Verve Senior Living
At The Lodge at Valley Ridge, you'll enjoy spacious suites, impressive cuisine, and exceptional services. We have recently renovated. We welcome the opportunity to show you our great community.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
River Ridge Seniors Village
A premier Park Place residence in the heart of Medicine Hat offering independent living, supportive living, and long term care options. With spectacular views and services, River Ridge is a warm place to call home.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care, Long-term care
Dr. Hemstock Retirement Residence and Hearthstone Place Verve Senior Living
At Dr. Hemstock Residence & Hearthstone Place, our highly-skilled group of health care professionals and qualified staff are here to do whatever we can to ensure that all your needs are taken care of.
Lifestyle Options: Independent Living, Assisted Living
What to expect in Alberta's supportive living retirement homes
Supportive living (assisted living, as it is called elsewhere) is a specified level of care, distinct from others like independent living, on one hand, or memory care on another. In Alberta, communities like those above are licensed under Supportive Living Accommodation Licensing Act, and meet Supportive Living Accommodation Standards.
This level of seniors' care will include basic services such as communal dining, housekeeping of private suites or units and administration of medication. On top of that, though, there are specific care options available, often tailored to the needs of each senior in residence and provided under contract with Alberta Health Services.
Some typical care options offered in supportive living are as follows:
- Transfer assistance and mobility assistance. For seniors who may have some form of disability or other problems with mobility, assisted living facilities have trained staff to aid with movement including in-suite and out.
- Incontinence care is dedicated care that deals intelligently and thoroughly with this often-embarrassing issue. Residents are treated with the utmost dignity by professional care staff who are trained to be both caring and objective.
- Bathing and dressing assistance may be separately costed out by homes in some cases, but both of these aspects are handled with understanding.
Help with bathing or showering, dressing, walking, going to the bathroom, eating, or leaving the home is perhaps really the heart of what is offered in assistance living homes. This is the kind of round-the-clock care that simply cannot be given on a consistent basis by family members or even hired-in home care or personal service workers. These care requirements are very difficult for many people to admit, especially those who have grown up and lived all their lives valuing independence and self-reliance. The delicacy with which homes deal with this issue is one of the great benefits of opting into an assisted living residence.
Retirement homes fees and services might also include:
- Three daily meals that are served in a common dining room
- Housekeeping
- Arranged or scheduled transportation
- Personal laundry
- Recreational activities, like shuffleboard or bingo
- Brain fitness games to keep your mind healthy and active
- Emergency call bell or phone systems, as well as twenty-four hour security
Added benefits of moving into supportive living
- Companionship — While you could choose to live quietly and privately at an assisted living home, you may also surround yourself with other people. Meals and activities are a great opportunity to engage with other residents and make friends. You need not be lonely at an assisted living facility.
- Keeping busy — Unlike your own home, an assisted living home offers plenty of planned programs and amenities, like wellness centers that help seniors stay mentally and physically active.
- Safety and Security — On-site staff are a well equipped to promptly deal with emergencies at all hours of the day and night. Though residents live independently when they choose to, they also have peace of mind, as they know that someone will always be around to help them if something goes wrong. Moreover, unlike one’s own home, assisted living facilities have round the clock security, so residents should feel safe.
- You need not maintain your own home anymore! Is one of your lamps malfunctioning? Do not worry. You can call maintenance personnel in your assisted living home and they will take care of it. Indeed, life here is a lot less stressful than it would be in your own home.
- Many assisted living homes allow pets.
Costs of supportive living in Alberta: a survey
Private retirement residences in Alberta's major cities, Calgary and Edmonton, offer high quality service and care. Some government-funded care homes may be cheaper, but the care offered in private homes entails a higher resident-to-staff ratio (as low as 5 to 1 in some residences) and much more accountability. Here is an overview of the cost range you may face in paying for private senior assistance homes:
City |
Cost range |
What's included |
Calgary, AB |
$4500- $4800 |
All care options, including bathing, dressing, incontinence and others |
We offer a more detailed look at this under supportive living costs in Alberta.
Moving to Alberta from out of the province
Simply put, Alberta is an ideal province for any type of retirement living. Here, you may choose to live in the midst of nature, as the Rocky Mountains, luscious forests, beautiful lakes, and breathtaking parks are ubiquitous. You may find such an environment both soothing and relaxing. Alberta also contains plenty of lively cities and North America’s largest shopping mall — the West Edmonton Mall. The lifestyle choices that you have in Alberta will ensure that your outings outside of your assisted living home are enjoyable.
Alberta's use of the distinct term 'supportive living' refers to the same essential care level described as assisted living in many other parts of North America. Alberta's vulnerable seniors are covered under the Protection for Persons in Care Act. You can read more from the government of Alberta.
Alberta also offers the more closely pertinent Supportive Living Accommodation Licensing Act (enforced in April 2010). This is a comprehensive act that offers specific prescriptions governing care homes licensing, inspections and much more. Inspectors can check the accounts of the home, test food, take photographs and much more. Residents can register complaints and have these followed up under provisions of the Act, and allows for the possibility of revoking the license, as well as fines up to $100,000. Learn more at Acts S23P5.
Learning about retirement homes with your loved one
Many people of a certain age and generation are very proud of their self-reliance and independence and may "never want to move into one of those homes." However, there may come a time when your loved one requires the kind of help available only in an assisted living home. Peer acceptance is one of the best ways to convince older adults that moving into a senior care home is not as bad as they might think. Over the years, Comfort Life has profiled many seniors who were surprised at what they could afford, surprised at how much they enjoyed life inside a retirement residence, learned new things they never thought they would and maybe even found new love.
Take a longer look at:
- How families negotiate the decision to join a retirement community
- How to talk to elder loved ones about the need for senior care
Homes listed here offer exceptional care and delightful environments that routinely change seniors' minds about what a retirement home is like and what it is like to live in seniors care. Assisted living homes can come with a wide variety of excellent features that both surprise and delight residents. Today's senior homes can include lounges, cafes, pubs, libraries, general stores, exercise areas and the list goes on. Seniors in these homes are vibrant and active with a healthy attitude toward life and living. We urge you to go out and see the homes with your loved one to see firsthand how great "retirement community" really can be.