San Antonio Senior Care Facility DESERVES a 2nd look. I was referred to them from VITAS Healthcare…read moreHospice.
My diabetic mom, with dementia, suffered multiple strokes that left her with 50% brain capacity. It was so confusing because she could talk, eat, and have slight movement in her upper body, but not her lower body. She could wiggle her toes, which confused me more because I always thought that strokes affected one side of the body, right or left. NOBODY at the hospital could explain this to me, but just like everything else in my mom's life, she was an anomaly.
Anyway, mom's care needs required hand feeding; with special dietary restrictions: mechanical soft (due to the stroke), low fat (due to cholesterol), low salt (due to high blood pressure), lactose intolerant, AND a low sugar diet (due to the diabetes); hence, a very limited diet. However, be rest assured, the San Antonio Senior Care Facility handled it without batting an eyelash. And in addition to mom's restricted dietary needs, she would be on a catheter for the rest of her life, and diapers to accommodate the other end.
These care takers are up for the task. They work hard!! They bathed my mom, dressed her, fed her, and did it all with the compassion and dignity she deserves. This was all I could ask for right?
I questioned that because I had to resign myself to "comfort care" until she passed because this facility did NOT have certified nurses that can legally administer insulin injections. So now, I'm struggling with the fact that I can't afford another care facility that has certified people to administer insulin injections. I was beating myself up over this because I felt like it was a case of involuntary manslaughter, on my part. However, this was NOT the case.
That is why I started this review with the comment; "this facility deserves a second look". When you get past the fact that it's a three-bedroom home that looks like your grandmother lived there, and smells like she cooks ethnic dishes, you start to see it differently.
Let me explain. Each bedroom has a sliding glass door with a beautiful view of a well-kept garden, and when you get past the aged décor, you look again and see an impeccably clean home. It may have mismatched tile in each room, but I searched the bathrooms, showers, toilets, beds, corners of rooms, under beds, and unbeknownst to them... I searched the refrigerator and cupboards. Yes, it was old, but it was clean. Then I thought about it, and thought, how do you remodel without disrupting the patients and their way of life?
Then I analyzed the fact that there are only 6 patients total in the household, and 3 caretakers. That's a ratio of 2-1. That is BETTER than a "skilled nursing facility" that has the certified people to administer insulin.
Finally, it is my intention to write this review to give credit where credit is due, and comfort to those who are in my situation. My mom only lived there for the final 24 hours of her life, but it was a BLESSING because she didn't have the chaos noise of the hospital, and she had people who mourned her loss when she died. These people didn't even have the time to establish a bond with my mom, but they seemed like they mourned her loss with me. They are NOT indifferent to the passing of another's loved ones.
In conclusion, there is one final note any reader may desire to know. When I signed the contract and made the payment, they only collect 1 month's payment at a time, NOT first and last like EVERYONE else. Also, they prorate the days in the month, and as I learned when I signed the contract papers, other facilities charge additional monies for what I THINK should be included. Eric (the owner) and his team agree with us. They do NOT charge additional monies for things like: bathing, furniture, laundry, phone service, special food, etc. So again, I implore you, (God forbid you are in my situation GIVE THIS PLACE A TRY.
