Senior Living Glossary
Terms Every Family Should Know
Where to Begin
If you have been researching senior living for a parent, you have probably noticed how quickly the vocabulary gets specialized. Terms come up in conversations with doctors, social workers, and community sales staff that no one uses in everyday life. It can start to feel like you need a translator just to compare your options.
This glossary is meant to slow that down. Every term below is defined in plain English, with a note on what it means in practice for your family, and where it matters, the Georgia-specific context you should know.
Table of Contents
Care Types
Independent Living
Independent Living is a type of senior housing designed for older adults who are still fully independent but ready to be done with the burden of home maintenance.
Independent Living communities offer private homes, usually apartments or cottages, with amenities like on-site dining, activities, transportation, and social programming built in. Residents drive their own cars, travel, manage their own finances, and set their own schedules. What they gain is a maintenance-free home and built-in community without the yard work, cooking every meal, or slow isolation that can come with staying in a big house alone.
Independent Living is different from Assisted Living in one important way: it does not include daily personal care. It is a lifestyle choice, not a care choice. Most families begin considering Independent Living when a parent is still healthy but has grown tired of the upkeep, or when a parent’s social life has narrowed and they are looking for more connection than a single-family home can provide.
In Georgia, Independent Living communities are typically not state-licensed as care facilities because no care is provided on-site. Monthly pricing generally runs $2,000 to $5,000 in most Georgia markets, with variation based on cottage size, amenities, and location.
Related terms: Assisted Living | Continuing Care Retirement Community | Aging in Place
Learn more: What Is Independent Living? A Complete Guide
Assisted Living
Assisted Living is a residential care option for adults who need help with day-to-day activities but do not need full-time medical care.
Residents in Assisted Living communities live in private apartments and receive personalized support with things like bathing, dressing, medication management, and moving safely around a home. The support scales up or down based on individual need. It is a middle ground between fully independent living and skilled nursing, designed for adults who want to keep as much independence as possible while still having help nearby.
Assisted Living is often confused with a nursing home. They are not the same thing. Nursing homes (formally called Skilled Nursing Facilities) provide 24-hour medical care under licensed nursing supervision. Assisted Living communities provide personal care and hospitality services with staff available around the clock, but not the same level of medical oversight.
In Georgia, Assisted Living communities are licensed by the Georgia Department of Community Health under separate regulations from Personal Care Homes. Communities licensed as Assisted Living Communities can serve 25 or more residents and offer additional services (like medication administration by certified staff) that smaller Personal Care Homes cannot.
Related terms: Personal Care Home | Memory Care | Skilled Nursing Facility | Activities of Daily Living
Learn more: What Is Assisted Living? A Complete Guide
Memory Care
Memory Care communities are built around dementia-friendly design and daily routine. Layouts are intentionally simple and easy to navigate, spaces are secure to prevent wandering, and staff receive specific training in dementia care techniques. Daily programming emphasizes activities that support cognitive function, familiar routines, and the reduction of the confusion and agitation that can come with progressing dementia.
Memory Care can be a standalone community or a dedicated neighborhood within a larger senior living community. The Landing communities in Bogart, Winder, and Monroe all offer Memory Care on the same campus as Independent Living and Assisted Living, which allows residents to move between care levels as their needs change without leaving the familiar staff and setting.
Most families begin exploring Memory Care after a formal dementia diagnosis and after a parent’s needs have grown beyond what family caregivers or an Assisted Living setting can safely provide. The Alzheimer’s Association Georgia Chapter offers free caregiver support and can help families think through timing before a move becomes urgent.
Related terms: Dementia | Alzheimer’s Disease | Sundowning | Assisted Living
Learn more: What Is Memory Care? A Complete Guide
Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF)
SNF care is different from Assisted Living or Memory Care in that it includes licensed nursing services, IV medications, wound care, respiratory therapy, and complex medical monitoring. Most SNF stays fall into one of two categories. Short-term rehabilitation stays follow a hospital discharge (often after a hip replacement, stroke, or major surgery) and are typically covered in part by Medicare. Long-term SNF stays are for residents whose ongoing medical needs cannot be managed in Assisted Living or at home.
Georgia has hundreds of licensed skilled nursing facilities, regulated by the Georgia Department of Community Health. The federal Care Compare tool from Medicare.gov lets families compare individual SNFs on staffing, quality measures, and inspection results.
The Landing communities in Bogart, Winder, and Monroe do not include SNF care on campus. When a resident needs skilled nursing (usually after a hospital stay), our team helps coordinate the transition and stays involved through recovery. Many residents return to Assisted Living or Memory Care after a short-term rehabilitation stay.
Related terms: Assisted Living | Medicare | Medicaid | Respite Care
Personal Care Home
Personal Care Home is a category of senior care that exists specifically in Georgia’s licensing structure. It is different from an Assisted Living Community in both size and services allowed. Personal Care Homes serve 2 to 24 residents. Assisted Living Communities serve 25 or more. The service scope for Personal Care Homes is more limited (for example, only Assisted Living Communities can offer certified medication aide services, which allow staff to administer certain medications rather than only assist with them).
In everyday conversation, families sometimes use “personal care home” and “assisted living” interchangeably. In Georgia licensing terms, they are two different categories with different rules. If you are comparing options in Northeast Georgia, it is worth asking any community you tour which license they hold. Both categories are regulated by the Georgia Department of Community Health, Healthcare Facility Regulation Division.
Personal Care Homes tend to be smaller, more residential, and more intimate in feel than large Assisted Living Communities. Both can be excellent options depending on what a family is looking for.
Related terms: Assisted Living | Memory Care
Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC)
The CCRC model is designed to solve a real problem for older adults: the disruption of having to move to a new community every time care needs shift. Instead of moving from an Independent Living apartment to a different Assisted Living facility, then again to a Skilled Nursing Facility, residents can move within one campus. Staff, neighbors, and daily routines stay familiar.
Traditional CCRCs often require a substantial one-time entrance fee (sometimes $100,000 to $500,000 or more), plus monthly fees. The entrance fee typically covers the resident’s future care needs regardless of level. This model works well for adults who want long-term financial predictability and can afford the entrance fee.
Not all senior living communities that offer multiple care levels are technically CCRCs. The Landing communities in Bogart, Winder, and Monroe offer all three care levels on one campus (Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Memory Care) without requiring a traditional CCRC entrance fee, which some families find easier to plan for.
Related terms: Independent Living | Assisted Living | Memory Care | Community Fee
Respite Care
Respite Care can happen in an Assisted Living community, a Memory Care community, or at home. The purpose is the same either way: a family caregiver who has been managing a parent’s care full-time needs time off to travel, recover from illness, or catch up on rest. Respite Care provides professional care during that window.
For many families, Respite Care doubles as a soft introduction to a senior living community. A parent stays for a week or two, gets a real experience of the community, and often the family gets a much clearer sense of whether a permanent move might be a good fit down the road. Some parents who resisted the idea of a senior community initially warm up to it during a Respite stay.
The Landing communities offer Respite Care in all three care levels when space is available. Booking usually requires a health assessment and a short intake process. Contact the community directly to check current availability and pricing.
Related terms: Assisted Living | Memory Care | Hospice Care
Hospice Care
Hospice Care shifts the focus from curing an illness to managing symptoms and supporting the emotional, physical, and spiritual needs of the patient and their family. It is typically appropriate when a physician has estimated a life expectancy of six months or less if the illness runs its natural course, though patients can remain on hospice longer if their condition warrants it.
Hospice care can be provided at home, in a dedicated hospice facility, in a hospital, or within a senior living community. Most hospice care in the United States is covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and most private insurance plans. The Medicare Hospice Benefit covers most costs including medications, medical equipment, and nursing visits.
At The Landing communities, residents in Assisted Living or Memory Care who transition to hospice can typically remain in their apartment or cottage, with hospice services coming into the community. This allows residents to spend their final months in a familiar setting with familiar staff and neighbors.
Related terms: Respite Care | Assisted Living | Memory Care | Skilled Nursing Facility | Medicare
Health & Medical
Dementia
Dementia is not a specific disease. It is a general term describing a set of symptoms that can result from many different underlying causes, of which Alzheimer’s disease is by far the most common (accounting for 60 to 80% of cases according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Other causes include vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and mixed dementia (when someone has more than one type at once).
Early signs of dementia often include memory loss (especially recent memory), difficulty finding the right words, confusion about time or place, changes in mood or personality, and challenges with familiar tasks like cooking or managing finances. These symptoms tend to develop gradually and worsen over time.
For families in Northeast Georgia, the Alzheimer’s Association Georgia Chapter offers free educational programs, support groups, and a 24/7 helpline (800-272-3900) staffed by trained care specialists. If a family member is noticing changes in a parent, that helpline is often a good first call.
Related terms: Alzheimer’s Disease | Memory Care | Sundowning
Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer’s is a specific neurological disease. It involves changes in the brain, including the buildup of proteins called amyloid plaques and tau tangles, that gradually damage neurons and disrupt cognitive function. The disease progresses in stages, from mild memory lapses in the early stage to severe cognitive and physical decline in the late stage.
While Alzheimer’s cannot yet be cured or reversed, early diagnosis matters. Some medications can slow progression in certain patients, and early diagnosis gives families more time to plan legally, financially, and practically. It also gives the person diagnosed more opportunity to participate in decisions about their own care.
Approximately 190,000 Georgians age 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s according to the Alzheimer’s Association 2024 Facts and Figures report. Most families who navigate an Alzheimer’s diagnosis do so with the help of a neurologist, primary care physician, and often a Memory Care community when the level of support needed exceeds what family caregivers can safely provide.
Related terms: Dementia | Memory Care | Sundowning
Learn more: Mom Was Just Diagnosed With Dementia: What Now?
Sundowning
Sundowning affects roughly 20% of people with Alzheimer’s disease and can also occur with other forms of dementia. Symptoms often include increased confusion, mood swings, agitation, pacing, wandering, or difficulty sleeping. The cause is not fully understood, but researchers believe it may be related to disruptions in the body’s internal clock, fatigue from the day, changes in lighting, or the accumulated stress of processing a full day of stimulation.
For families caring for a parent with dementia at home, sundowning often becomes one of the most difficult daily challenges to manage. It can also be one of the first triggers for families to begin researching Memory Care, because trained staff can implement environmental and routine changes (consistent lighting, calming evening activities, gentle redirection) that reduce sundowning episodes.
The National Institute on Aging publishes practical caregiver guidance on managing sundowning at home, including environmental adjustments and routine techniques.
Related terms: Dementia | Alzheimer’s Disease | Memory Care
Learn more: Sundowning Explained: What It Is and How Memory Care Helps
Activities of Daily Living (ADLS)
ADLs are typically grouped into six core activities: bathing, dressing, eating, transferring (moving from a bed to a chair, for example), using the toilet, and continence. When an older adult begins struggling with one or more ADLs, it is often the earliest signal that some level of care support may be needed. Assisted Living communities and home care providers typically use ADLs as a framework for assessing how much help a resident needs.
A related term is Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, or IADLs. These are the more complex tasks required for independent living: managing finances, taking medications correctly, cooking, cleaning, shopping, using the phone, and driving or arranging transportation. Difficulty with IADLs often shows up earlier than difficulty with basic ADLs.
Most Assisted Living communities in Georgia use an ADL and IADL assessment during the intake process to determine care level and monthly pricing. Different residents pay different rates based on the level of ADL support they need.
Related terms: Assisted Living | Memory Care | Aging in Place
Aging in Place
For many older adults, aging in place is the first-choice preference. Home is familiar, holds memories, and represents independence. With the right support (home modifications for safety, in-home care services, meal delivery, medical alert systems, family caregiving), many older adults can safely age in place for years.
Aging in place is not always the right answer, though. As care needs grow or as isolation deepens, staying home can sometimes become harder on the family than moving to a community would be. Signs that aging in place may no longer be safe include frequent falls, missed medications, malnutrition, cognitive decline, and family caregivers approaching burnout.
For families in Northeast Georgia considering aging-in-place support, the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission Area Agency on Aging offers care assessments, benefits counseling, and referrals to home care providers at no cost. It is often a helpful first step before making bigger decisions about a possible move.
Related terms: Independent Living | Activities of Daily Living
Financial
Medicare
Medicare has four parts. Part A covers hospital care and skilled nursing facility stays (up to 100 days per benefit period following a qualifying hospital stay). Part B covers doctor visits, outpatient care, and preventive services. Part C, also called Medicare Advantage, is an alternative to traditional Medicare offered by private insurance companies. Part D covers prescription drugs.
An important point for senior living families: Medicare does not cover long-term custodial care in Assisted Living or Memory Care. Medicare will cover short-term skilled nursing after a qualifying hospital stay (typically 20 days fully covered, 21 to 100 days with a copay), and it covers hospice care for patients with a terminal diagnosis, but it does not cover the room-and-board costs of ongoing residence in a senior living community.
Full details on what Medicare does and does not cover are published at Medicare.gov. For personalized help with a specific parent’s Medicare situation, families can also call 1-800-MEDICARE or reach out to Georgia’s State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) through the GeorgiaCares helpline.
Related terms: Medicare | Skilled Nursing Facility | Long-Term Care Insurance
Long-Term Care Insurance
Long-Term Care Insurance policies can pay for care in Assisted Living, Memory Care, home care, adult day care, and skilled nursing, depending on the policy. Benefits typically become available after the policyholder is unable to perform two or more Activities of Daily Living, or has a diagnosed cognitive impairment.
Long-Term Care Insurance is most affordable when purchased in one’s 50s or early 60s, before health issues affect eligibility. Once a person is already showing signs of cognitive decline or physical limitations, most insurers will decline coverage. This is why the window to buy meaningful coverage is often closed by the time a family starts seriously researching senior living.
Families with a parent who already has a Long-Term Care Insurance policy should review the policy carefully before making a senior living decision. Policies vary widely on what they cover, waiting periods before benefits begin, daily benefit limits, and total lifetime benefit caps. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners publishes a plain-language consumer guide.
Related terms: Medicare | Medicaid | Assisted Living
VA Aid & Attendance Benefit
VA Aid and Attendance is a benefit from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that provides additional monthly income to eligible veterans and surviving spouses who need help with daily activities.
Aid and Attendance is a tax-free supplement to the standard VA pension. It is available to wartime veterans (and their surviving spouses) who meet income and asset requirements and who need help with Activities of Daily Living, are bedridden, live in a nursing home due to mental or physical incapacity, or have limited eyesight.
Current maximum monthly benefit amounts vary by household composition and are updated annually. For 2025, the maximum monthly Aid and Attendance benefit is approximately $2,795 for a single veteran and higher for married couples. Current rates are published at VA.gov.
Applying for Aid and Attendance can take several months. Many veterans work with a Veterans Service Officer (VSO) or an accredited attorney to navigate the paperwork. The Georgia Department of Veterans Service has offices across the state that offer free help with applications.
Related terms: Medicare]() | Medicaid | Long-Term Care Insurance | Activities of Daily Living
Community Fee
A Community Fee is a one-time upfront fee charged by many senior living communities at move-in, separate from the ongoing monthly rent or service fee.
Community Fees are common across Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Memory Care communities. The fee typically covers move-in coordination, apartment preparation, initial care assessments, and administrative setup. Amounts vary widely by community and market, often ranging from around $1,000 to $5,000 or more.
Community Fees are generally non-refundable, though some communities offer partial refunds if a resident moves out within a defined window (30 to 90 days is common). Before signing a residency agreement, families should always ask specifically what the Community Fee covers, whether any portion is refundable, and whether there are any additional one-time fees (deposits, care assessments, pet fees).
The Landing communities in Bogart, Winder, and Monroe include Community Fee information in the pricing sheets shared during the tour and inquiry process. Ask directly for a written breakdown of all one-time and recurring costs before making a decision.
Related terms: Independent Living | Assisted Living | Memory Care | Aging in Place | Continuing Care Retirement Community
Legal
Power of Attorney (POA)
There are several types of Power of Attorney relevant to senior planning. A financial or general POA authorizes the named agent to make financial decisions and handle transactions. A healthcare POA (sometimes called a medical POA or healthcare proxy) authorizes the agent to make medical decisions if the principal is unable to. A durable POA remains in effect even if the principal becomes incapacitated, which makes it especially important for aging planning.
In Georgia, POA documents are governed by the Georgia Uniform Power of Attorney Act. Most families work with an elder law attorney or estate planning attorney to draft POAs that reflect the specific wishes of the older adult and comply with Georgia law.
Ideally, POAs are drafted before they are needed, while the older adult is still fully cognitively capable of making decisions about their own future. Waiting until after a dementia diagnosis or major cognitive decline can complicate the legal process significantly, sometimes requiring court-ordered guardianship instead.
Related terms: Advance Directive | Dementia
Advance Directive
Georgia recognizes a single combined document called the Georgia Advance Directive for Health Care. It combines what other states might split into a living will (written instructions about end-of-life care) and a healthcare power of attorney (naming someone to make medical decisions on your behalf). The form is available for free from the Georgia Division of Aging Services.
Having a completed Advance Directive on file dramatically reduces the burden on family members during a medical crisis. Rather than trying to guess what a parent would want in a difficult moment, the family and the medical team have clear written instructions to follow.
Most senior living communities, including The Landing, ask for a copy of the resident’s Advance Directive during the intake process. If a parent does not yet have one, an elder law attorney or the community’s own resource team can help walk through the process.
Related terms: Power of Attorney | Hospice Care
Becoming a Resident at The Landing
Our team is here to make the transition into Independent Living feel clear and comfortable. From the first conversation to move-in day, we take a thoughtful, guided approach to help residents and families feel confident in their decision.