SOLON — According to ConsumerAffairs.com 3,139,508, or 16.7% of Iowans, are over the age of 65. While some seniors are able to live healthy and independent lives, others need varying degrees of assistance while some ultimately end up in long term care.
Since 1973 the Solon Retirement Village has served residents of Solon and the surrounding area starting with the Solon Nursing and Rehab nursing home and expanding to a campus with independent living (Terrace Lane and Terrace Lane Glen Condos), assisted living (Solon Assisted Living Village), a skilled care unit, and a memory care unit. “This campus has the entire continuum of care,” said Tyler Branscomb, Assisted Living Director. “You can start out independently and if you need a higher level of care, you would come into assisted living or long term care, or memory care.”
Branscomb has been on the campus for 12 years and was formerly the Director of Nutritional and Recreational Services. Assisted living, he said, is “An interim between independent living and long term care,” with medication assistance, limited bathing assistance, and other care options offered essentially on an a’ la carte basis in an 18-unit complex with studio and one bedroom apartments.
The decision to move to assisted living often involves a client’s physician and family. Generally, he said, and a recommendation (for assisted living) is made to the client. “If you go to a physician and they recommend looking into a higher level of care, we’re always here to tour and accommodate what we can.” It’s a very individualized determination, Branscomb said, and is based on the level of care the client is looking for. “We do an all-inclusive for assisted living. We do all meals in-house (featuring local suppliers such as Ruzicka’s as much as possible). We do all the communication between the physician and the pharmacy.”
It can be difficult and even painful for a potential client and their family to contemplate moving out of what may have been the family home for several decades and moving into an assisted living facility.
“Some people at home, maybe their family just feels maybe they’re not safe, they’re not eating well, they’re not taking their medications correctly,” he said. The bottom line though, he said, is “…how secure you are in your home. Of course, you want to stay in your home as long as you can but being somewhere where you have 24-hour assistance (may be a better option).”
Sometimes the need isn’t physical, but emotional and psychological. As Administrator and Chief Operating Officer Melissa Reed pointed out, they’re just lonely. “They come here because maybe they’ve lost their spouse and they just need the interaction to stay busy, and to thrive instead of staying in their home and not doing so well,” Branscomb said.
In addition to the physical care provided, Solon Assisted Living also provides a social component ranging from on-site activities to frequent outings in the surrounding area including trips to local restaurants. “We’ll go up to Big Grove or The Brass Fountain,” he said. “Sutliff is always a big one.”
For all the benefits, coming to terms with the new reality that assisted living is your new home, and that you won’t be going back to your home of many years, can be a very difficult transition. “It can take awhile for people to get acclimated to a setting like this,” he said. “We like to do lots of tours. We like to invite people in for activities. We want to involve them in meals. It is a long process. You’ve been in your home for so long, it really is a difficult transition, but once you get into the setting, it is amazing how much you see people thrive. It really is. They’re well-fed, they’re getting their medications accurately, and with all of the activities, most people ask why they didn’t do it sooner.”
The medication assistance program, he explained, takes the guess work and uncertainty out of taking meds, particularly when a resident has multiple prescriptions. Trained staff help with administration of the medications, document it, and are able to act as a go-between with the resident’s physician (or physicians) and the pharmacy to ensure they don’t run out.
The apartments are unfurnished and that allows residents to bring furniture and other items they recognize and cherish for sentimental reasons. “We want it to look homelike, because it is their home,” he said. Pets are also welcome as long as they’re trained and have vaccination records.
Solon Assisted Living held an open house event Friday, Sept. 2 to introduce the community to the concept of assisted living, and the services and amenities located here in Solon.
“We maintain a pretty high occupancy, so getting the community in to see and understand what we do is really important,” said Branscomb, who noted Assisted Living Week starts Sunday, Sept. 11 with a brunch for Grandparents Day, a Family Night barbecue Wednesday, Sept. 13, and a couple of music events. “It’s really going to be a fun week,” he said.
For more information or to schedule a tour call 319-624-3492 or email [email protected] or [email protected]. Additional information including floorplans is available online at https://www.solonretirementvillage.com/services/assisted-living.

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Melissa Reed