The Significance Of The Quality Of Indoor Air For Senior Residents

Assisted Living Facilities

There has been much focus on the quality of indoor air in assisted living facilities over the last few years. Even in the pre-pandemic period, people who owned and operated assisted living residences noticed the effects that indoor air quality could have on seniors.

IAQ impacts every person, but research demonstrates that older people are more vulnerable to bad air quality-related health risks for their diminishing ability to make up for the impacts of environmental issues. Air pollution can worsen chronic health issues common among older adults, such as lung disease, diabetes, heart disease and asthma, besides negatively impacting cognition. Ventilation also positively impacts the quality of sleep.

Before the epidemic, senior assisted living facility owners were starting to act against bad indoor air, albeit prospective residents did not prioritize it. However, the epidemic dramatically increased awareness on the significance of air quality indoors for older adults and other at-risk populations.

Coronavirus disease badly impacted senior living facilities with residents who are at risk because of age-related immune function changes. The transmission of coronavirus is mainly airborne. A recent Delos survey supports increased awareness of the public. The survey team polled 983 older adults and their relatives and discovered that about 60% of them feared for the safety and health of seniors in assisted living residences due to the epidemic.

By 2050, up to 27 million Americans are expected to go to nursing homes. With that possibility in mind, 60% is a large number of prospective residents with negative feelings about occupying senior living locations in the coronavirus pandemic period.

When it comes to IAQ, 62% of survey respondents stated that coronavirus increased their awareness on the significance of good filtration and ventilation indoors. The survey demonstrated that prospective assisted living residents are likely to consider the IAQ migration measures when deciding on their future living locations.

A survey respondent regarded air quality as a significant aspect of living, particularly for the immunocompromised and elderly population. Any assisted living service business that is ready to prioritize its air quality and filtration, will have the consideration and respect of prospective respondents.

We can surmise from the survey that IAQ is a more powerful consideration for potential residents as compared to the past. It is the most important concern for the senior participants in the survey after safety as well as the quality of senior care.