A Safer Assisted Living: Creating a Toolkit For Person and Family Engagement

Principal Investigator: Anna Beeber, PhD, RN, FAAN and Jennifer Leeman, DrPH, MPH, MDIV (site PI)
Funded by: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

Many aging individuals and their families choose assisted living communities for a variety of support services: round-the-clock supervision, meal preparation, assistance with personal care and medication management. Assisted living care can help individuals remain as independent as possible as they age and require more support. However, it is a common challenge for assisted living communities to support residents’ independence and equally maintain their safety. One way to achieve this balance is through encouraging engagement by the resident and family in their care.

The primary focus of the Engage study, developed and directed by Anna Beeber, is to create a toolkit that helps residents and families to get more involved in assisted living care. The study also explores how to make this toolkit usable by assisted living providers. The Engage toolkit is designed around person and family engagement (PFE), which enables assisted living communities to proactively partner with residents and their families to enhance the safety of their living environments.