HarborChase of Germantown

It was a traumatic time…mom’s dementia started to progress rapidly, forcing us to make the most difficult decision. For safety reasons, we felt it would be better for her to be at a facility that specialized in dementia care. Harbor Chase certainly seemed to be that place. Management was very nice, made lots of promises regarding her care. Room was nice. We spent days getting it ready, trying to make it as much like home as we could. The gut punch of leaving her there was almost unbearable. But then the nightmare really began…after being told MULTIPLE times prior to her arrival that we could call any time, day or night to see how she was, it was impossible to get a person on the phone to get an update on mom. Even after multiple texts/phone calls, and eventually a meeting with the management staff to express my frustration at not being able to check on mom, nothing changed. Anytime mom got aggressive or exit seeking, we’d get a call- either come up there and deal with her or they would send her to a psych facility. She had multiple large bruises, apparently from falls we were never told about. Items missing from her room within days of her arrival- iPad, new makeup still in box, a treasured birdhouse handmade by her stepson, and her wedding ring. Literally within days. But what I want people to be most aware of….we decided this just wasn’t a good place for her to be. My stepfather took mom home early on a Monday evening, around 7pm. (She’d been there appr 6 wks) The next morning around 9am, I went to get some of her clothes. The aide that frequently helped mom, that I really did trust, said to me as I walked by her to Mom’s room- “ morning miss Lisa. She’s still in bed”. She didn’t even know she had left. So no one had even peeked in on her thru the night, no one had checked to see if she needed help getting ready for bed, and breakfast was over with, so apparently no one went to get her for breakfast. I wonder how many meals she missed because no one bothered to go and get her. Talk about adding insult to injury. Fortunately, we found 2 lovely and caring women who, along with family members, are able to provide 24/7 assistance and ensure her safety. Something I thought we had paid a huge amount of money for the staff at Harbor Chase to do. I can’t speak to the assisted living section of the facility, but if you’re in search of memory care for your loved one, I’d look somewhere else. Harbor Chase took what was already a traumatic time for our family, and turned it into nightmare.

HarborChase of Germantown was wonderful and the staff was very approachable. I'm mainly thinking of the young woman that was in charge of the memory care. Marcia, the head of memory care, was very helpful, very patient, and very approachable when I had a concern. They communicated, she would text to let me know about stuff and I could communicate with her. The people that are the hands-on workers, they call them, care partners, they were very kind. The rooms were very nice. My husband was in a small room but it was pretty big for what he needed. It was very modern, very up to date, the price was apt and the facility was gorgeous. It looks like a high-end hotel and sort of a mid-century modern kind of place. We didn't do a lot of the activities and things because my husband was still trying to get adjusted, but they had a lot of activities. There were more on the assisted living side than there were on the memory care side because they have to have an escort or a nurse that would take them. They have a beautiful dining area, they have a whole floor of games, a pool table, all kinds of stuff that you could play with your family or young people. The workers were very friendly and most of the people living there were pleasant. I would sometimes go and have lunch with him and the food was excellent. The memory care had its own little dining area, which was smaller, but you could go over the bigger side any time you wanted to. The food was always well-balanced and attractive, so they'd want to eat it. It was usually a little cup of soup for lunch along with something like a potato salad and a sandwich. The desserts looked like something you'd buy at a fancy restaurant. They had had regular exercises in memory care, and we could go to the assisted living side if we wanted to. They had a program director that did all these fun stuff and exercises with them, his name was Tony, and he planned a lot of activities. They have art classes and they have Bible studies, and they just plan special activities for the season. When I went that day there, they decorated for Christmas and they had a sleigh with horses. The horses were waiting patiently and the people were lined up in entry, or they were sitting down on benches and things waiting their turn. And they would take about three or four at a time and give them a sleigh ride. They were so patient unloading these fragile people getting in the big sleigh, and a driver dressed up all Christmas-y. It was so cool. We had one nurse that was there most of the time during the day, who was so attentive. You could call them when you had a concern or just go down to her office and try to catch her and they would contact the doctor. We use the in-house doctor and it made it so easy because he would come there once a week. They have a place to do their hair, they have a podiatrist that would come in once a month and you could schedule for a trim in the toenails or have the feet looked at regularly. That cost extra but that was fine. They have live entertainment every Friday night, somebody would come to play the grand piano and sing, and everybody enjoyed it. They were so good to my husband and me. When he was about to leave this world, I just slept on the floor next to them and they never said anything. I was there for almost a week and they were just so kind. They would bring me food, they would just bring me lunch and they never asked a question. That's why I feel so warmly about this place. They were so wonderful. When he passed, they were so kind to me and took care of everything.