Aging in style: St Albans Arvida

Studies show that by 2051 there will be 1.18million people aged 65 and over in New Zealand, an increase of 165 percent since 1999. It’s an unchangeable fact that we are all going to age, so why not do so in style? Metropol caught up with Arvida St Albans facility manager Symone Bruhns to hear how the aging experience is being transformed.

How does someone know if it might be time to look at retirement village options?
“We all want to stay as healthy and well, both mentally and physically, for as long as we possibly can. As the natural process of aging occurs, people start to evaluate their quality of life and to assess if they need assistance with their day-to-day living.
“Living independently at home may start to feel challenging. A retirement village, or community as we prefer to call them, provides a good option for when factors like maintaining the family home, security concerns, companionship, access to services, day to day living and health issues become a challenge. St Albans Retirement Village offers a continuum of care from independent living options right through to palliative care.”

Tell us a bit about Arvida’s values. How do you want residents to feel in the community?
“Our vision is to improve the lives and wellbeing of our residents by transforming the aging experience. We do this though our attitude of living well pillars which are: Eating well, moving well, thinking well, resting well and engaging well. Quality of life is important for all of us and at Arvida our attitude of living well is revolutionary in aged care.”

What’s on the cards for Arvida St Albans in 2021?
“St Albans will have completely finished its construction in 2021 involving the opening of the new wings in March with serviced apartments including spacious north and west facing two-bedroom apartments, and an expansion of new care rooms for people looking for rest home and hospital level care. St Albans prides itself on continually working to better resident’s day to day living and so in 2021 we also have a gym for independent residents and a new communal area in the Totara Living Well Apartments scheduled for completion.”