Table of Contents
In the not-so-recent past, offering residents WiFi positioned senior living communities at the forefront of the digital transformation.
Today is a different story. Today’s residents arrive with expectations shaped by decades of fast home internet access, streaming services, and connected devices. They expect every digital interaction to be instant, intuitive, and reliable. Dedicated connectivity is now directly tied to quality of life, resident happiness, and family satisfaction, and forward-thinking communities understand that connectivity supports engagement, independence, and higher levels of patient education and satisfaction. Reliable internet isn’t just a utility anymore; it’s a foundation of modern resident experience.
As the Internet has increased, communities have experienced issues like:
- Spotty connections – some people can’t get on it all
- Long buffering times
- Limited connections (e.g., residents can only connect one or two devices)
- Limitations on hours or types of services accessible
- Printing only in public areas
- Data security breaches
Communities that used the same Internet connection to manage the business felt the strain as well. Not to mention, it put their communities at risk for potential HIPAA violations.
How can you provide residents with dependable, high-speed access to the internet-based services they use daily, including streaming, communication, telehealth, and personal services?
The answer is a dedicated resident Internet solution designed specifically for senior living environments. Offering reliable, private internet for senior living residents directly impacts not only connectivity and independence, but also patient education and satisfaction, digital engagement, and quality of life.
Why WiFi is Not Enough
Your networks are already strained. WiFi was designed for temporary guest use, not for the ongoing, high-bandwidth digital lifestyle of today’s residents. Internet usage will only continue to increase as the senior living demographic shifts to high-consumption users.
Tech-enabled baby boomers and rapidly advancing digital tools are accelerating usage. With the current tools in circulation and those emerging, it’s safe to assume your residents will require these services and more.
Your network infrastructure must support both today’s technologies and tomorrow’s IoT ecosystem.
Unlike dedicated wired connections, shared WiFi bandwidth is divided among every active user and device on the network. In a community with hundreds of residents, coverage can vary dramatically depending on distance from access points, building architecture, and competing device activity. When streaming, telehealth, smart thermostats, wearables, and personal tablets all hit the same network simultaneously, residents experience latency, buffering, dropped calls, and inconsistent quality, none of which support patient education and satisfaction or positive digital engagement.
A specially designed dedicated internet for senior living residents gives individuals the ability to:
- Stream entertainment without interruption
- Maintain communication with family
- Access online services
- Engage with enrichment apps
- Participate in virtual programs and community life
According to HealthTech Magazine:
“Growth of technology adoption among seniors has prompted senior living communities to implement new technologies designed to combat isolation and to keep residents’ minds and bodies active. Wearables and other mobile devices are also helping facilitate timely, targeted care. Data analytics is playing an integral role too. A modern senior living community is a robust tech ecosystem with interconnected devices aimed at improving quality of life.”
To adopt these innovations, a scalable IT framework with dedicated resident bandwidth is essential.
With dependable connectivity, a senior living resident can access a range of services that support independence, learning, communication, and well-being.
Traditional shared WiFi simply isn’t designed for today’s demands, including:
- Video conversations with family and friends
- Live-streamed spiritual content
- Fitness and wellness programs
- Online learning
- Personal content streaming
- Telehealth and remote care
All of these services support engagement and improved digital well-being and directly influence patient education and satisfaction.
Supporting Digital Health, Communication, and Independence
Even when in-person visits are available, many residents prefer digital communication options for convenience and accessibility.
Residents now regularly use technology to:
- Stay emotionally connected to family and friends
- Participate in body-strengthening fitness
- Stream faith services
- Access mental health content
- Engage in online learning
- Participate in cognitive enrichment activities
These activities foster connection, confidence, and emotional resilience.
In many cases, residents using technology report greater independence and a stronger sense of agency in managing their health and lifestyle. They can coordinate appointments, manage financial responsibilities, pursue hobbies, and maintain relationships from the comfort of their living space. Dedicated internet ensures they do so without frustration or interruption, supporting a modern model of senior living that emphasizes dignity, personalization, and ongoing engagement in purposeful digital experiences.
Telehealth is now a core part of modern healthcare access. It allows residents to consult with physicians and specialists securely from their living space, without transportation or scheduling complications.
Similarly, residents rely on secure personal access for:
- Banking
- Online shopping
- Medication management
- Food delivery
- Personal account management
If they use a public or shared WiFi network, their personal data may be at risk.
On their own, each of these services can strain bandwidth when hundreds of residents access them simultaneously, shared networks struggle or fail entirely.
Additional Bandwidth Is Not Just a Resident Perk, It’s a Prerequisite
Reliable internet access is now a core infrastructure requirement, not optional, not supplemental, and not a luxury amenity.
There are two options senior living communities can consider:
- Stronger WiFi connectivity across the entire community
- Wired high-speed Internet connections to each resident’s room
Option one is challenging and not future-proof. WiFi speeds degrade with every additional user and device.
Option two, providing each resident with a dedicated high-speed connection, ensures everyone has the secure, uninterrupted access they need for daily activities, communication, and entertainment.
Signs Your WiFi Capability is Lacking
So, how do you know when WiFi isn’t meeting your community’s needs? Ask if your residents are experiencing any of the following issues:
- Slow speeds when conducting a speed test?
- Varying coverage availability?
- Inability to run applications that require higher speeds (e.g., Netflix)?
- Slow open rates on internet pages (i.e., does it take more than one second)?
- Buffering?
If your WiFi has these limitations and doesn’t provide adequate bandwidth, it may be time to consider a new fix.
Making it Affordable with Sentrics
Increasing internet bandwidth sounds expensive, right?
It doesn’t have to be.
Many senior living communities have saved money by bundling their TV, internet, and phone services into one product. The result? Upgraded services, at better speeds, at a fraction of the cost of each one individually.
With Sentrics’ managed service and support, you don’t have to divert staff time to troubleshooting, provisioning, or technical administration.
This allows teams to stay focused on care, hospitality, and service, not network maintenance.
Sentrics provides the infrastructure, monitoring, and management that ensures reliable high-speed resident connectivity.
Our service model includes proactive monitoring and performance optimization, ensuring that resident internet runs smoothly even during peak usage times. Sentrics can analyze network demand, predict bandwidth requirements, and scale performance as your community grows. This avoids reactive troubleshooting and instead provides a stable, secure environment from day one. With enhanced digital reliability, residents enjoy improved access, families feel confident in communication continuity, and staff benefit from fewer operational disruptions, all of which support higher levels of patient education and satisfaction.
Entertain delivers a modern, customizable infotainment solution that includes TV, high-speed Internet, and voice, all designed for today’s senior living technology ecosystem.
Take the Next Step
If you’re ready to improve connectivity, empower resident independence, and enhance patient education and satisfaction, contact Sentrics to determine the best dedicated internet strategy for your community.