Why is social engagement good for our health? Paula Sikes at Cogir Senior Living joins Suzanne to talk about the benefits of community for seniors. Social wellness is a focus in this summer’s Vitality Revolution podcast series.
Paula says, “We find that social engagement is so important and makes a difference in the residents’ life, not just in their social aspect, but even in their health. I’ve heard statistics, they’ve done studies that residents who isolate themselves in their rooms or maybe you’re living in your own home and you’re not having that social outlet with other people, it’s like smoking two packs of cigarettes a day. That’s how much it affects your health.”
“We find it so important for our residents to not just live in our communities, but actually get out of their apartments, get out of the rooms, and come out and socialize and engage with others. We feel it’s so important… our calendars should reflect having one social opportunity per day. And I don’t like to say social activity, it’s an opportunity. And I really view it as an opportunity for our residents to get out of their rooms, get out of isolation, and come out and engage with other residents, with our staff members, our employees that are working in our communities. And then just get out of that environment of being alone, and seeing others, and engaging with others. So that is our standard. Our standard is that all of our calendar should reflect some sort of community or social activity that happens um every single day, that’s how important it is to us.”
- Cogir’s website
- More Cogir podcasts
- More Cadence podcasts
- Vitality Revolution podcast series
- More Social Wellness podcasts
- Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks
