Savannah Grand of Amelia Island

Wanda Braddock

I would never tell anyone to move a family member or a beloved friend into this institution. I talked to the director there on April 25th of 2024 about placing my 83 year old friend with them . He had been diagnosed with early dementia. She told me a room would be available for him May 1st. I wrote the facility a check for $12,495.00 understanding that it was for his first months rent ( for May ) plus a $5,000.00 placement or admittance fee . The room she assigned to my friend wasn’t available for occupancy until May 1st . She allowed me to move his belongings into the room on the 29th of April . The room was spacious enough for his needs, but still needed to be cleaned. The shower floor had dried feces in it . The toilet and the bathroom floor needed to be cleaned . I cleaned the toilet and the sink and when I brought the shower floor to the attention of the assistant director, she got a mop and bucket and cleaned that immediately. While I was putting linens on the bed I noticed that my shoes were trying to stick to the bedroom floor. So I told myself it would be cleaned before he was actually brought there from the hospital the next day . WRONG ! From that day forward I could never kick my shoes off in there . When I complained about it to someone on staff there I was told they only have housekeeping on Fridays. My friend was placed in that facility on full assist . He was sometimes incontinent with his bladder and his bowels . Almost every day when I went to visit him his bathroom floor was afloat in urine . Many times I would find him in bed asleep mid-morning with just a shirt on , his bed urine and feces messed , dried feces on his body . I tried to talk to the director about the problems but to no avail . My friend was in the memory care wing . All the patients in that wing had complete access to all the patients rooms , therefore , many of my friends personal items frequently went missing. Some never to be returned. My biggest complaint, after him not getting the care he was entitled to for $7,495.00 a month is this ; After they were paid the admittance fee and the first months rent they had the audacity to charge my friend with a $1,499.00 reservation or rental fee for his room from the very first day I talked to the director about placing him there .When she was informed by his POA , by text , on the 23rd of August that he would be leaving there Sept. 1st , as she required 30 days notice of his leaving . She still charged a full month of September rent even though the 30 days notice is up Sept.22nd. So I believe Savannah Grand owes my friend a refund of eight days to the tune of $250.00 a day , which is what they charged him for me “reserving “ his room in April even though he couldn’t occupy physically until May 1st. Also be aware , if you place a loved one there you will constantly have to replace bed and bath linens , clothes and shoes , remote controls for their television, whatever else can be picked up and walked off with .

Provider Response

Connie

I like the openness of Savannah Grand of Amelia Island. The staff was very friendly. The people living there would smile and seemed content and happy. The room needed refreshing, but the staff said they were in the process of renovating. The dining area looked nice, pleasant, and friendly like somebody would enjoy eating there. The staff who gave the tour did a great job.

Provider Response

Janet

Savannah Grand of Amelia Island is an older location, but they seemed to have a caring staff. The staff were very nice and very thorough with what was going to be needed going forward, and other coordination that might need to be done because of my dad's other additional medical needs. So far, we're familiar with their shared rooms. But there's only one main area in Savannah Grand that I was aware of for memory care.

Provider Response

Gen

I visited Savannah Grand of Amelia Island for my mother. It was a very nice, pleasant place, and they had very nice conditions. They have a beauty parlor and a restaurant. I saw a small kitchenette, a nice-sized bathroom, and a bedroom with a sitting area. As I understand it, you bring your own furniture. It had a nice, park-like area. The staff was very nice, very knowledgeable, and very helpful.

children of resident

Sure, there were hiccups with initial paperwork , but the genuine care shown by all staff and admin is palpable. When I visit my mom, a few times a week, I am always warmly greeted and informed. Their calendar is full of events to entertain and appropriately challenge the residents. Mom loves the music, the art classes, and especially enjoys using her Savannah Grand dollars to competitively bid on items. Mom is thriving at Savannah Grand. My out-of-state siblings comment on how happy she sounds on the phone. Her room is large enough to comfortably accommodate a full size bed with bedside tables, she had two recliners, a larger dresser and a smaller kitchen table and chair in her room with a kitchen sink, counter, refrigerator, cabinets, and a large en-suite bathroom. She enjoys and outside patio, too. I am very satisfied Mom's activities, accommodations, and care at Savannah Grand on Amelia Island.

Isabella H

My grandmother moved into Savannah Grand about six months ago and had a truly terrible experience. The food was lacking in nutritional value and consisted largely of canned soups and fried chicken or fish. The administrative staff informed my family that the meals would return to their previous, higher standards as soon as a new chef was hired; however, the meals continued to be subpar for weeks. Individual loads of laundry for each resident were advertised by Savannah Grand and included as a service in the $5,000 monthly rental fee my grandmother paid while living there. However, shortly after my grandmother moved out (after two months of living at Savannah Grand) I noticed her room number had been written in permanent sharpie marker on one of her pillow cases and on numerous clothing tags. This nearly brought me to tears, as clearly there would be no need for the laundry personnel to write her room number on her clothing and bedding if they were truly doing individual loads of laundry for each resident. It hurts my heart to think that the residents there are being falsely advertised to, and that, in cases such as my grandmother, reduced to being identified by their room number solely for the convenience of the staff members working there. Every resident there should be treated with respect and made to feel appreciated and valued, and that is not the kind of treatment I observed during the two months my grandmother lived there before we moved her to another assisted living facility.