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Very warm 2024 greetings to you all from Gateway Gardens Assisted Living and Memory Care in Winder, GA! To start off the new year, we’re going to author a short series of posts here on our Gateway Gardens Assisted Living and Memory Care blog to address the numerous differences between the two in the attempt to answer common questions. We hope to walk away with a better understanding of the support and services offered in each, as well as providing tips on how to choose the right option for yourself or a family member.

Assisted living and memory care provide similar levels of support by helping residents with daily tasks like getting dressed and eating. However, memory care is different from assisted living because it provides specialized support for individuals with memory impairments such as Alzheimer’s disease.

So, let’s start the new year off with a tutorial summary of the basics: Assisted Living vs Memory Care.

Assisted Living: The Basics

Individuals within our Gateway Gardens assisted living community are largely independent but want or need some help in certain areas of their lives. They are generally healthy and active. Our assisted living service is a strategic comprehensive assortment of long-term wellness programs that include:

• Housing


• Meals


• Daily health support (such as medication management)


• Personal care services, including help with daily living activities

The most important aspect of assisted living is the help it provides with daily tasks. That might include helping move from one place to another or helping to get dressed in the morning. Assisted living helps in these areas so residents can spend less time on these tasks and instead focus on enjoying their freedom.

Depending on the needs of each resident, our assisted living community provide additional services, such as “housekeeping” support, transportation services, 24-hour safety and security, recreational activities, and other things that make life easier and more rewarding.

Memory Care: The Basics

The biggest difference between our assisted living and our Gateway Gardens memory care community is the people we support. Unlike the residents within assisted living, those within our memory care community have long-term health needs, specifically memory impairments such as dementia, that are best met by a specially trained staff.

To provide adults with the support they need to live full lives, our memory care service strategy encompasses the same base services and amenities as our sister assisted living community. However, memory care services and amenities are tailored to meet the needs of individuals with memory impairments.

For example, our memory care community offers similar housing accommodations to that which our assisted living residents enjoy, however, our memory care resident’s accommodations incorporate additional safety measures to ensure that those prone to wandering are safe and happy. Our memory care residents benefit from a more structured lifestyle designed to facilitate a stress-free lifestyle.

Our memory care residents enjoy specialized programs that are designed to improve cognitive skills and slow the progression of memory loss. These programs, along with access to 24-hour medical care, make for a safe, fun, and interactive living environment.

Up next:

How to know if you or a loved one needs assisted living or memory care. Until then, feel free to contact us anytime here at Gateway Gardens Assisted Living and Memory Care in Winder, GA.