Services for the Aging

An integral part of our health and medical care infrastructure are legions of freestanding clinics and medical offices of all descriptions and sizes. Rehabilitation, surgery, urgent care, orthopedic and specialty centers, teen health, diagnostic clinics, infusion therapy, public health, dialysis, and imaging are among the many support services. And, supporting the support services is another industry – retail businesses including pharmacies, opticians, prosthetic devices, surgical garments, home medical supplies, and so forth.

Alternative and complementary health care is widely available in coastal communities. You’ll easily find chiropractors, massage therapists, herbalists, acupuncturists, and others who practice Naturopathic Medicine, Chinese Medicine and biofeedback. Many businesses in our area focus on natural remedies, nutrition, holistic health, wellness, organically produced foods and healthy lifestyles. Wilmington even offers holistic veterinary services, chiropractic care and acupuncture.

We’ve got some excellent retirement and progressive care communities which appeal to many of our seniors, plus assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care residences. In-home services, both medical and non-medical, are available in all counties, as is hospice care. Adult day care centers are located only in Wilmington, but they accept out-of-area participants.

Need For Physical Therapy Grows

The need for rehabilitative physical therapy expands as the aging population has hips, knees and other joints replaced. Just north of Wilmington is an outstanding service, Hampstead Physical Therapy, with facilities in Sneads Ferry as well as in Hampstead. The talented staff is gaining a reputation for getting their patients back to normal – or better – quickly.

Southeastern North Carolina has a full complement of support groups and civic health organizations, too; the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce lists 28, from AIDS/HIV to Unite for Sight. Each county has a governmental department that acts as a resource for seniors and can help locate needed services such as Meals on Wheels and transportation for medical appointments. They are: the New Hanover County Department of Aging, in Wilmington, Brunswick Senior Resources, Inc., in Bolivia, and Pender Adult Services in Burgaw.