Seeking advice - rural retirement but not far from hospitals?

[Anonymous]

I'm wondering if anyone here has any suggestions for me. Im planning forward toward retirement. I find myself thinking of a rural environment, 10 acres or so, peaceful etc. But I very much recognize the need for proximity to hospitals and good healthcare having seen my own parents age. Does what I seek even exist? I look in rural VA, and its 60+ miles to a hospital in many cases, and the best bet locally is an urgent care that you still have to drive 30 min to. Does anyone know of any places that offer rural environs but are not too far from (good) hospital care?

[Anonymous]

Your best bet is near a university medical center like Charlottesville VA, Hershey PA, or Morgantown WV.

[Anonymous]

Seems like an oxymoron.

[Anonymous]

The rural areas around Pinehurst, NC. You can still get acreage; there's a local hospital and you're within an hour to Duke or UNC.

[Anonymous]

Skip the largest cities and you can easily find your version of “rural” within a reasonable distance of a medical center. Think Richmond or Harrisburg or Greenville or Tallahassee, etc.

[Anonymous]

Upper Valley. You have Dartmouth Hitchcock hospital right there and actual retirement communities, but can live just 10 minutes away and in the middle of nowhere. It’s also easy to pick a tax/property situation that suits your needs because it’s right on the VT/NH border.

[Anonymous]

Charlotesville. Rural beauty. Great medical system & educated population.

[Anonymous]

I live on 12 acres outside Santa Fe. Two hospitals and multiple urgent cares are a minute drive. Emergency services typically respond in under 7 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Look near Roanoke, VA. Carillion Clinic and Hospital there is good.

[Anonymous]

Greater Pittsburgh

[Anonymous]

It gets very rural very fast outside of Iowa City.

[Anonymous]

I live in upper NE MoCo on about three acres. Hospital and doctors are fifteen minutes away in Olney. Also plenty of grocery options. Thought of moving but being in my late 60's I love being so close to doctors. I really hate to drive these days.

[Anonymous]

My parents retired to Winston-Salem, NC, which has 2 large medical centers--Wake Forest and Novant Forsyth. You don't have to travel far in any direction to find cheap land. Even people living in Danville, VA use the health care in W-S.

[Anonymous]

Emergency healthcare poster here. OP you want to be not just near a hospital. The goal for the retirement years is a cath lab and a certified stroke center within 20 minutes in all weather.

Any hospital can stabilize a broken wrist, and something like oncology can easily be a planned, regularly scheduled drive. But it’s those level I stroke and cardiac response facilities that make me difference between many more quality years vs. a handful debilitated years in rehab+nursing home then the end.

Side note: don’t count on mediVac. Especially in snowy (NH) and snowy mountainous (WV, NM) climates. They won’t risk the flight staff’s life for a stroke response (but might for a catastrophic pediatric trauma)

[Anonymous]

We have lived in Charlottesville and decided to remain here in retirement, too. We chose to move to a new home in the urban ring within a mile of where we raised our daughters for 40 years because of close proximity to all services including medical. Besides UVA , there is also a strong community hospital system Sentara Martha Jefferson. In terms of transportation for the elderly is you reach the point you can't drive, there is a paratransit door-to-door service currently for $1.50 each way. This our youngest daughter who lives with us and has a disability uses to get to her job. Given that we also drive her to a lot of local activities, that is another reason we are staying close in.

I will say that services in the rural areas of Albemarle County in areas such as Crozet and in Fluvanna Zion Cross Roads are really growing in terms of medical services from UVA going out there so your first visit could be within their service system, but not having to trek all the way into Charlottesville. There is also increased shopping options for food, pharmacy etc. The closer to the City, the more costly the land prices and/or housing. We have found it a good location to getting up to DC to see other daughters and also to Richmond. You really can choose to fly out of here to connections or driving up to Dulles for international as we do usually the night before or others say there are great deals out of Richmond.

There are many things to do with university and community activities. There is a brand new senior center called The Center at Belvedere, which we are in walking distance, too, which will bring even more great programming as well a several athletic centers in more normal times of ACAC and the new YMCA. Ollie in terms of lifelong learning has a very active program of short term seminar classes for a good price. And there are so many opportunities to do just about any kind of volunteer work.

Looking ahead in terms of aging, there are also a number of different kinds of tiered services with the full range, to assisted/memory, to memory alone and price ranges that could provide a further transition later in life. Jefferson Area Board for Aging - JABA also has a day activity program for seniors and can be a resource for various sorts of information. There is always a cost benefits ratio of privacy and rural life versus meeting daily needs and in time finding support services. And when you are sick or dealing with a continuing illness how far do you want to drive etc. We feel that Charlottesville has offered us a good balance of lifestyle for at least while we are active.