Anyway, I would have thought when you lose your mental capabilities to a significant extent that you require care, the last of your concerns would be establishing networks and frendships in a care facility .
I think it should always be about what the elderly parent wants, rather than what makes us comfortable.
With respect, it is pretty obvious we went along for too long with what she wanted. We let her continue driving till she became a menace on the road, and she gave up her car only with the greatest reluctance. We let her stay at home, alone, for years, rapidly losing her sharpness due to lack of stimulation despite us visiting as often as we could. When she finally agreed to move to a village she socialised for about a year but she hadn't had the chance to form the friendships and the routines with enough depth and habit to persist as her acuity dropped. If you're familiar with senility, you'll know how important an established routine is as a coping strategy. Now she spends her days sitting in her room unable to remember anything or anyone and not wanting to venture outside despite the many and varied activities that are available. The sad thing is that she's as fit as a Mallee Bull and likely to get a telegram eight years from now.
If I ever become single at the age of 70-80 I know that I would want to be whacked on the head with a shovel or forced straight into an intensely social environment, not left to fester and wallow in my own home.