Sunflower Care Homes Treats Your Loved Ones Like Family With Long-Term and Memory Care

Families in Emporia, Kansas, can choose a local assisted living facility for their loved ones who need long-term care, memory care, or respite services. Sunflower Care Homes has room for 12 residents and ensures that at least two employees are on site at all times.

“I am very proud of the fact that my administration are all nurses,” says Lori Owen, RN, Executive Director at Sunflower Care Homes. “If we are short-staffed, our administrators work the floor.”

This facility provides a homelike experience for residents so they feel comfortable and safe. Learn more about Sunflower Care Homes and how it improves the lives of Emporia residents of all ages. 

Sunflower Care Homes Goes the Extra Mile for Residents

The first thing you notice when you walk into Sunflower Care Homes is that it doesn’t feel like an assisted living facility. It is a small establishment where you can hear people laughing through the halls, enjoy the smell of meals cooking on the stove, and catch residents baking their favorite treats.  

“You don’t know what you’ll walk into, just like any home,” says Owen.

All of the food is made from scratch with ingredients purchased from local grocery stores. Sunflower Care Homes does not work with a commercial food provider, so it can prepare delicious meals that residents love. The staff eat with residents (one of the perks of the job), so they want to prepare delicious meals. Employees share tasks throughout the day, navigating between cooking, doing laundry, and offering medical care to residents.

Owen emphasizes that the same team members work at Sunflower Care Homes each day, and the organization does not contract medical care providers. This means the residents can get to know and feel comfortable around the staff, and there is less overstimulation for people who live with dementia or similar memory care disabilities.   

Families and Friends Don’t Have to Drive Far to Visit Loved Ones

There are several benefits of having an assisted living facility like Sunflower Care Homes in Emporia. First, the residents can stay connected with family and friends as they transition to this new home. This can reduce stress as residents grow accustomed to their new environment.

“If you had family dinners every Sunday, you can still do that without planning an hour drive to Topeka,” says Owen.  

Families also benefit from keeping their loved ones nearby. They will spend less time driving to see their relatives and instead can spend more time with them. Because the drive to

Sunflower Care Homes isn’t far, families can also visit frequently.

“Transitioning to our home feels like less of a big change for families,” says Own. “Grandma’s house is still down the road, and you can visit her as often as you like.”

Sunflower Care Homes also has a child daycare located in the building, so residents can greet the young kids when they arrive each day. The retired teachers especially love maintaining a connection with children. The daycare can currently accommodate 12 kids. 

Sunflower Care Homes Meets Residents Where They Are

Working with memory care patients isn’t easy, and Owen says patience is an essential skill for her team. “I wish more people understood that we work on their time, they don’t work on ours. Memory care means we have to go into their world,” she says. The facility staff can have a list of tasks they want to accomplish during the day, but if residents have other needs, they come first.

New employees at Sunflower Care Homes also spend a lot of time getting to know the residents and what they like. For example, if a resident is used to being called “Mom,” new team members will use that moniker to make them feel comfortable. Owen says anyone can learn where the cleaning supplies are, but developing relationships takes longer and is a more important part of working at the facility.

There is currently a waitlist for Sunflower Care Homes and the daycare attached to it. The home is lobbying to increase its capacity to 16 residents to accommodate more Emporia families. Since the Sunflower Care Homes opened its Emporia location in 2019, families have wanted their loved ones to receive care and enjoy their days there. 

Senior Care is an Essential Part of Economic Development

For countless Americans, family comes first, which is why the Emporia Regional Development Association (RDA) supports efforts to improve childcare, education, and senior care in Lyon County. Your family deserves care at all stages of their lives, whether they are just learning to talk or entering their later years.

Keep up with the RDA and discover why so many people choose to live and work in Emporia. The quality of life in this corner of Kansas cannot be beat.