Assisted Living Facilities: Benefits, Challenges, and the Importance of Culture

In Pakistan, where I grew up, caring for aging parents or grandparents was seldom an issue. Family members either lived close by or had a big family house that accommodated at least two or three generations while allowing privacy. Interdependency and codependency were one of the norms for many families. Nowadays, this concept is fading away in Pakistan and other eastern societies, particularly as the nuclear family system becomes more common than a joint family system. This trend is being seen all over the world, diminishing on many levels the value of the interdependent extended family.