Clare Bridge of Goodlettsville

I had just started my search for dementia care for my mother when I was referred to Clare Bridge. I had the pleasure of meeting Kelly who took the time to listen to what my mothers needs were as well as what our families needs were. She then came and met mother and helped ease our minds on the hardest decision we had to make. She made is feel like we were making the best possible decision for Mom. I am so grateful that we found Clare Bridge and Kelly who made our lives much easier.

I visited Clare Bridge of Goodlettsville which is just a couple of miles from my house. I liked it very much but they didn't have an opening at that time. From what I could see from the visit, it looked like a pretty neat place. Everything was neat and clean. They had a lot of little stations where residents could go. They had one that had yarn while one had sewing and another scrapbooking. For my mom at this point, she was too far along to enjoy that but some of the other patients could have. That was really nice and they seemed like they had a lot of activities planned.

My mom has Alzheimer's. I visited many facilities in the Nashville area. I always left crying. When I visited Clare Bridge, I knew this was where she belonged. The staff treats her like she is their own grandmother. The food is not only nutritious, but also delicious. There is a registered nurse there full time. I visit often, several times a week. Mom is always clean. She is well cared for. She is now under hospice care there, and the hospice staff says this is the most attentive facility they visit. Mom has been there for over three years, in a wheelchair. She cannot turn herself when in bed. She has had no skin breakdowns. They even turn her and change her during the night!

I had to rate this facility before my comment would be excepted. The lowest rating I could give was one star. However, based on my experience when my mother was at Clare Bridge I believe a one star is too high. I believe this facility is terrible. I moved mother into Clare Bridge on November 11, 2010 at the urging of Wanda, the campus director. I had visited Clare Bridge and received the "horse and pony" show although at the time I believed what I was seeing. On Christmas Eve, 2010 mother was admitted to the hospital. She was dehydrated. She spent 24 hours in the hospital so they could hydrate her. In Feb, 2011 I walked into Clare Bridge at 10AM to find most of the residents in the dining area with no staff attending them because they were ALL in a staff meeting. Mother had her head down on the table in vomit where she had lost some of her breakfast. My reaction at that time was to get her out of that place. However, Wanda convinced me that this had never happened before and assured me that she would see that in the future there was always staff with the residents. On Sunday April 10, 2011 I received a phone call from the nurse at Clare Bridge who informed me that mother's arm was broken. While pushing her in her wheelchair they had managed to break her upper arm (the Humerus) completely in half. Mother spent 3 days in the hospital then was moved to Vanco Manor where she received wonderful care until her death on June 10, 2011. I have no idea how the staff person at Clare Bridge managed to break mother's arm while pushing her in her wheelchair and try as I did I could get no information from Wanda or anyone else at Clare Bridge. The most we got was a statement from Wanda which was "we didn't kill her, we just broke her arm". I will never know what they actually did to my mother. I do know that the last 2 months of mother's life was filled with terrible pain. As for Wanda and the staff at Clare Bridge there was complete APATHY for mother with the only exception being one of the part-time workers. PLEASE, if you are considering placing a loved one at this facility think long and hard.

My comment would not be accepted with a rate. However, I believe this facility is less than terrible and deserves NO STAR at all. My mother was there for 5 months and I was there almost everyday and I wouldn't advise anyone to leave a loved one at this facility.

This is a loving, caring environment that really goes above and beyond to make sure the Memory and Dementia residents are safe and secure. The staff is gentle and compassionate and truly enjoys their work here. This is wonderful comfort to a family that worries about them. Knowing they are well cared for is a blessing. The facility is clean and well maintained. The rooms are beautifully decorated. The staff is attentive and engaging, they spend time really talking to them and engaging them in activities. Memory exercises are used daily. It was refreshing to see such tender love caring for each resident as if they were their own loved ones. I would place my loved one here. This was beautiful to see this dedication to their residents and their professions.

The care my aunt receives is genuine and loving. In a home where all the patients have some type of dementia, it would be easy to ignore them or just do the basic stuff. They caregivers reach out to the patients and engage them. That is rare to find.