Men are generally considered “tough customers,” and it’s a hard sell to get them into assisted living facilities, especially as those facilities are often female-oriented, says a recent Washington Post article.

Facilities need to find ways to cater to a wider variety of people, including males, if they want to attract more residents.

“We need to think harder about men’s needs as they age and their numbers increase,” says the article, going on to cite Census Bureau data that 22% of Americans are now 65 or older.

In the next several decades, the number of Americans older than 60 will increase by 70%, the National Forum on the Future of Aging said at a Aging in America Conference in April.

Barely more than a quarter of residents in assisted living facilities are male, at 26%, says the National Center for Assisted Living, and while this ratio may stay about the same, the numbers of older men are increasing in relation to the overall aging population.

Many of these men will need to be accommodated later in life; the Census Bureau finds that 6.5 million older people need assistance with daily living, and experts predict that figure will double by 2020.

Studies show that men benefit from the assisted living facility even more than women, as it enables them to be socially engaged rather than isolated and solitary.

However, since many males are resistant to the idea of assisted living, says the Washington Post, the physical environment needs to cater to what men find inviting, and facilities need to offer activities that are interesting and engaging to men.

Read the full article here.

Written by Alyssa Gerace