After living at Oaktree/Brookdale for three+ years, my father's health deteriorated after a two month hospitalization. This started with me going to pick my Dad up for breakfast. He usually waits for me at the front door and walks out to my car. He wasn't there. I get out, walk in and ask the receptionist if she knows where my Dad is. I'm told he's in his room waiting for the nurse because he thinks he had a stroke during the night. WHAT? I wasn't called! And now he's sitting in his room, alone, waiting for a nurse? Ever heard of 911?
I went to management to give a thirty day notice to move him to a smaller facility where he would get more personalized care. I was assured by the Executive Director, the Marketing Director and the Head Caregiver that there was no need to move my Dad, that Brookdale could provide all of the care he needed. And, because we had moved in three years prior, our service rates were capped. After discussing this with my Dad, he decided to stay at Brookdale because he knew the people and he had friends there.
Little did I know this was the beginning of a huge nightmare! There were times my Dad called me because he had been waiting 45 minutes for someone to take him to the bathroom, or times he would want to go to bed but there would be no Brookdale caregiver available to put him to bed. Then we were told that because he was having too many "accidents", we were going to be charged for extra laundry each week. When my Dad became frightened to be alone at night, rather than just check on him, I was required to hire a nighttime caregiver. This cost me $1400 a week, in addition to the amount I was paying Brookdale monthly! When the personal caregiver would call the front desk for transfer help, she would also have to wait up to 40 minutes for a Brookdale caregiver to show up. My Dad was told more than once there was no Brookdale staff to put him to bed at 8:30 pm and he would need to wait until his caregiver came at 10 pm. Shortly after hiring the nighttime caregiver, I was told I would need to hire a day time caregiver. At this point, I decided to move my Dad!
I went to the Executive Director and told her I was moving my Dad because they could not provide the care Brookdale had said they could. She said the place I was moving Dad to had the same license and could not provide any different care than they do. She could not have been more wrong! The staff is very attentive, their response time is usually under a minute, and my Dad is always treated with kindness and respect. My only regret is not moving him sooner.
Brookdale is in need of a major overhaul. Everything you have read in the other reviews is real. The problems do exist. Family members - talk to people who live there, talk to the newly formed Family Council, go to the Scotts Valley Police Department and ask to see the logs from the past few years. Know the facts before you move your family member in. Don't be fooled by the fluff.
It may not be happening to every family, but the fact that it happens at all is not OK. read more
