8 Best Assisted Living Facilities in Columbus, MS

Columbus, Mississippi

Assisted Living

Assisted living communities provide a sense of community as well as individual care. The services provided often include help with activities of daily living. Occupants may be kept under observation and evaluation. In some cases, communities may offer continuing care, hospice, or respite. In Mississippi, the annual median cost for an assisted living community is around $42,291 . The state of Mississippi maintains a number of stipulations related to this type of community. The Mississippi Department of Health, Health communities Licensure and Certification regulates this type of community. This type of community is required to offer a number of services. These include social activities , referral to social services as needed, assistance with activities of daily living, and laundry. Before a resident is accepted, they must go through a service plan screening to assure their needs are going to be met. This screening includes a number of areas of interest such as A re-examination by a physician and/or nurse practitioner or physician assistant is required annually and Prospective residents must be given a thorough examination by a licensed physician or certified nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. This community type has a number of provisions pertaining to medication assistance. These provisions include physical act of handing liquids to resident to assist the resident in swallowing, medication administration, and physical act of handing an oral prescription medication to the resident. This community has a number of provisions concerning food and diet which include communities must provide at least three daily meals, meals must meet the nutritional, social, emotional, and therapeutic needs of residents, all special diets must be planned by a licensed dietician who visits the community at least once every 30 days, and meals must meet current recommended dietary allowances. Staff are required to receive training in a variety of subjects. These areas include direct care staff must receive appropriate training on topics related to the care of the population being served and new operators must spend 2 concurrent days with the licensing agency for training and mentoring. Public assistance is available through Medicaid 1915(c) Assisted Living Waiver program. There must be one bath or shower for every 1 residents and one toilet for every 1 residents. This type of community is required to have a staff member on duty 24 hours a day.

Cost of Living

The overall cost of care for a community is affected by the neighborhood in which it is located. The rent burden for Columbus is about 17.1% of the average person’s monthly income. Monthly, the median cost of rent in Columbus is around $707 and the median home value in Columbus is $109,464.

Demographics and Values

In Columbus, 10.8% consider themselves widows, 17.4% have some form of disability, 17.5% do not have health insurance, and 56.9% participate in the labor force. Of the population of Columbus 9.1% have a graduate degree, 29.8% have a high-school diploma, and 21.7% have a college degree. Racially, the population of Columbus is 0.1% other or not specified, 62.6% black, 1.1% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, 1.4% Hispanic, 0.9% mixed race, 0.2% Native American, and 35.0% white. Columbus has a population density of 370 people per square mile. Based on gender, 54.2% are female and 45.8% are male. The median age of Columbus is 38 years old. In Columbus, 10.6% of the population are veterans of the United States armed forces.

State Information

An overview of Mississippi

Out of a national average of 100, Mississippi has a cost of living index rating of 86, a grocery index rating of 92, and a housing index rating of 70. Mississippi is ranked 48th in quality of life and 50th in healthcare. The natural beauty of Mississippi is ranked 11th in the nation. There are 105 general hospitals and 247 health centers that provide care for 2,983,400 Mississippi residents. Baptist Memorial Hospital Union County, Beacham Memorial Hospital, and Ochsner Medical Center-hancock are among the top three highest ranked hospitals in the state.

Social demographics of the state

In terms of diversity, Mississippi ranks 30th in the nation. The median age in the state is 38, and 29% of the population is over the age of 55. In terms of religion, 49% of Mississippi residents attend religious services among the 6,765 different congregations that are available in the state. The top three Christian denominations in the state are Evangelical Protestant-41%, Mainline Protestant-12%, and Historically Black Protestant-24%. The top three non-Christian denominations in the state are Jewish-<1%, Muslim-<1%, and Buddhist-<1%. In Mississippi there are 604 masonic lodges. In the most recent presidential election, 58% of Mississippi residents voted Republican and 40% voted Democrat.

State-wide weather information

The average humidity across the state is 74%. The highest monthly average humidity rating is 76% in the month of July. During the summer, the average temperature in Mississippi is around 80F. The average high summer temperature is around 94F in the month of July. The average low summer temperature is around 63F in the month of June. The average temperature in the winter falls to around 46F. During the winter, the average high temperature peaks at around 67F during the month of February. In the winter months, the average low temperature falls to around 27F during the month of January. On average, the state receives 4.85 inches of precipitation a month. The average amount of precipitation peaks during the month of July at around 7.60 inches. The average air quality index rating in Mississippi is 39.2 AQI. The highest seasonal air quality index rating occurs in the month of May with a rating of 49.3 AQI. While residents of Mississippi mostly enjoy pleasant conditions, it’s important to be aware of inclement weather as well, which in Mississippi can include hurricanes, tornadoes, and and earthquakes (moderate).

Wildlife to be found in Mississippi

The state of Mississippi has a diverse array of plant and animal life. Local plant life can consist of Skunk Cabbage, Bloodroot, Eastern Cottonwood, and Staghorn Sumac. While venturing throughout the state, you might see animals such as the Crow, the Dove, the Mountain Lions, or the Cormorant. The state animal of Mississippi is the White-tailed Deer.