Brookdale

Finding a safe place for our Mom to live when her dementia worsened was a daunting task. After meeting with the wonderful people at Grand Court Novi, we were comforted by their attention & support. The facility is homey, the people are friendly & the food is quite good too! The people that we've worked with at Grand Court over the past 1 1/2 years have been great. It takes special people to do the job they do and exceptional people to do it well! One of our favorites is Jill - she is truly exceptional! She is not only wonderful to our Mom, but also to us. :-)

Great staff, great facility, great activities, great clientele! My Mom went "kicking & screaming" (LOL). Three days later she couldn't wait to sell her house because she loved it at Wynwood! We are so happy for her & so grateful to have found such a loving place for our Mom.

The staff is very friendly and helpful in providing the care my mother requires. Nohl Ranch Inn has assigned the title ambassador to a select few of residences who are already living there. The ambassadors role is to show new residents how naviagate through the daily activties and most important make them feel welcome.

respond quickly to any questions, needs or concerns which is extremely important to a family member. The staff is involved and shows genuine interest and concern for those in the memory care unit.

I found "A Place For Mom" to be very helpful. I had no idea where to start looking for a facility for my mother. Mine was a sudden situation. I called told them my mother's specific needs and they came up with a short list of facilities near my home. They really gave direction while I was in the dark. Brookdale Carriage Club is a great fit for my mom because it is multi tiered. The staff is very helpful and is very friendly. I also find that the staff is professional and understand how to work with their clients. Wendy and the staff have gone over and beyond making sure that my mother is comfortable.

My family and I have been very favorably impressed with Emeritus at Brea. We have found the facility to be clean, well-organized, and the staff very, very nice to deal with. They have worked with us on room colors, adding cabinets, etc. We are still in the process of moving my mother in, and they have been nothing but helpful. And every time we are there, there are fun activities, to which we are invited. Our mother is excited about the move, a circumstance my family and I are both relieved and happy to see.

My father has only been at Woodland Place for a little more than a week. So far, he seems to really like it. The care givers, and all employees have been very nice. The transition to this new facility was virtually painless. He was a little confused the first day, but after that, he seemed to fit right in. Molly Bronsberg from A Place for Mom was a great help. We knew our dad was ready for the next step, but weren't sure where to start. Within two hours of speaking to her, I received several phone calls and emails from different memory care facilities (some called too many times). She is perfect for her job - and always answered my questions, and accepted my feedback, both good and bad from facilities that we visited.

All well done. Though money never entered into the transaction, it had no affect on the timely service I was provided. Thank you.

We are really happy with Emeritus. Medication administration, has been my only issue, I have had difficulty getting information on if she is taking them or refusing them. We have since straightened it out. She loves the variety of the food and the fact that they have options for meals. They have two selections on the menu for each meal.

We liked the staff a lot, and the facility itself too. They did their pricing a la carte, this was going to add up to be a lot for us. They also didn't have the availability we needed at the time. It was a really nice place though. We really liked it.

Things have gone well here so far. The staff have all been very friendly, and they do a great job taking care of my loved one. They're also very reasonably priced compared to others in the area (and compared to what they used to be)

The people Emeritus are extremely friendly and helpful. The building and surroundings are great. Rooms are quite spacious and bright. The landscaping has trees, shrubs, and great spaces for just sitting and relaxing. I've looked at other places but none was comparable in terms of ambiance, services and size of Emeritus. I would recommend this facility for anyone looking for a pleasant residence for a senior.

It's pretty darn clean. The staff is very helpful, they never give us any problems. It's the best value around. They respond almost immediately, if we need something. They have a lot of various activities going on. The food is really good. One of the things we liked is that, they allow pets. If they had a program for professional trainers to come in once in a while to help the staff with handling the dogs, as of now whoever is off duty for their chores gets to walk the dogs, they don't always know how to properly handle the leash.

I liked it. It was very nice. We went with a different community that was closer to my home, but this one was very nice. We might have chosen it if it was closer. It was clean and everyone was very nice.

We chose Clare Bridge as the next home for our father who experienced accelerated dementia after he'd been put under anesthesia. He was in a skilled nursing facility and experienced Sundowning. This skilled nursing place didn't understand the disease at all. My father began involuntarily yelling out "Help me" day and night and often without even being aware he was doing it. We began to realize that the cocktail of drugs the nursing home was giving him was actually making it worse. He lost his ability to walk from the drugs. So we began to look at options. Memory care was our primary focus as we considered a new home. I fell in love with Claire Bridge from the moment I stepped into the door. It has more of a "homey" feel instead of a skilled nursing home. All they do are dementia and Alzheimer patients there. I quickly noticed their response to behavior was different. This is a horrible disease - the long goodbye. It manifests in ways I'm learning to understand every day. Not much surprises me anymore. But their calm and nurturing environment allows the residents to feel safe and much more secure. The order and consistency is there which is so important to those suffering with this disease. The staff on their worst day is better than the staff from his past home on their best. They hire kind and gentle folks who are compassionate and caring. It's mostly a thankless job and they do it with grace. The way they treat the residents takes skill and has a calming effect on the patient. They don't stuff drugs down their throat at the first sign of a behavior. They instead try to look at the bigger picture and find another solution first. If you are looking for a safe place for your beloved parent, I cannot say enough good things about Clare Bridge of Richland Hills. They have made my life easier. I feel like I can actually relax and not worry all the time, sleep at night and enjoy my husband, children and grandchildren more because I know they are caring so consistently for him.

Sterling House has been very helpful in getting a place for my mother-in-law. They were very patient and willing to assist in all areas so that we could make the move as enjoyable as possible. My mother-in-law really felt comfortable when visiting and said that everyone was very friendly. It is nice to know she feels comfortable with her surroundings.

It feels very expensive, but in comparison to other communities, I suppose it’s fine. Sometimes – on the weekends and evenings – it’s hard to get through on the phone. It seems like there are very organized and structured activities.

We have been pleased with the services and environment at Pine Park. The staff is awesome and Dad has settled in nicely. The community is friendly and supportive. Unfortunately, he has started falling again and fractured his shoulder, so we are not sure of the next step in his care. I wish we has moved him here years ago!

I dropped in just to get a brochure for my father and stepmother and was greeted by a very friendly front desk greeter/operations staff member, Melody, who met with me, took notes and gave me an impromptu tour which I found very transparent and encouraging. I noted that the "lobby" was decorated with antiques and had an air freshener going which I thought was very smart for a walk-in first impression. Also, there were pitchers of water and tea by the door - maybe even cucumber water- which I thought was very welcoming and a nice touch. I was given information on Veterans benefits - even meeting an advocate, which I appreciated, plus other info, like their Emeritus network's info sheets and offerings, like Omnicare onsite pharmacy services, wECare resident evaluation system for customization, and other comparable offerings and add-ons as other facilities. She very much emphasized they are a COMMUNITY, and they are probably one of the smallest in the area which can be a nice alternative. I would guess the majority of the residents I saw in the dining room were in their 80's+ so consider that, but a few I saw were younger. I was introduced to every passing staff member who stopped and looked me in the eye when we shook hands. I liked that it had an interior courtyard with a covered patio with many rocking chairs across from the rehab/exercise room, and a gazebo outside where a resident was smoking cigars. They even had a small raised kitchen garden, and I was told residents could put their own bird houses outside which I saw several. Melody knows all the residents, and they mix the Memory Care wing (locked down for Alzheimer's) residents with Assisted living residents in onsite activities and games like batting balloons with pool noodles, they have dancing "happy hours," shuttle for doctor's appointments and I think some offsite activities but probably special vs. weekly. There's the private family dining room (every facility probably has one), activity room, library, etc. Apartments are the same as others I've seen- small efficiency types, clean, efficient & customizable and most importantly, showers were walk-in with emergency pulls. Apts. have microwaves and mini fridges only, as all meals served restaurant style in dining room. I got a really good feel from the place, staff, and for the right time, right person I would consider it a #1 choice. I would guess the main attribute is the hands on, more personally engaged one-on-one care than larger facilities since it's a smaller community of residents. I think it's important to realize that as we age, our world closes in to a smaller, simpler one. So I suggest, as you tour facilities, be open and screen based on your parent's viewpoint, not necessarily your own. Download checklists from A Place for Mom and Caring.com and similar sites. Be open and "Trust, but Verify." Also, make sure you get HIPPA Authorization forms downloaded and signed/notarized so you can get more involved with your parent's care providers. Ensure they are referred to and evaluated by a Geriatrician (specializes in aging) who can give specific advice on the types of care communities, review all medications, mental, emotional and physical health status, including diet, lifestyle, etc. My stepbrother refers to the Geriatrician as "The Quarterback" calling the shots on his mother's care.

We've had a totally positive experience with Clare Bridge. The staff is kind, respectful and responsive. The first two weeks can be stressful for both family and the new resident, but they kept us informed and aware of how we could best facilitate Mom's transition. She's now involved in the numerous activities and is being lovingly and safely cared for.