Why Is It Ethical To Place An Elderly Parent Into An Assisted Living Home

An aging parent’s declining health may be hard to cope with due to the roles of parent and child being reversed. People want to ensure that their elderly parents will be comfortable and well cared for in the future, but the demands of acting as the primary caregiver may be too overwhelming. Families across America face the difficult dilemma of making the best choice of what to do with an aging parent about elderly care, assisted living or maybe even a nursing home. Their parents may disagree that now's not the time, or just simply may not ever want to go. Additionally, some elderly parents may no longer have the capacity to understand the issue. There may also be other family members that have different opinions; obviously, the topic can …show more content…
It is considered unethical to place an elderly parent into an assisted living facility simply out of spite, forcefully or if there are alternative means to help them age in place. However, it is not unethical to place an elderly parent into an assisted living facility if they have reached a point where they become dependent on a caregiver for daily tasks or unable to cope. Moreover, if an elderly parent is at risk in their own home and there are no other options available such as staying with adult children, then an assisted living facility or nursing home would be the best option. Assisted living facilities will provide the necessary services, infrastructure and professional knowledge to care for the elderly, so they are able to age successfully and maintain quality of life. Families should carefully choose a proper assisted facility that is well-equipped and has the best resources to care for their residents. Because it is unethical to place aging parents in a facility knowing the facility and services are of poor quality and the staff are poorly trained. This can put loved ones in an unsafe environment; therefore, the proper research and visitations should be performed prior to making