Vineyard Park at Mountlake Terrace

I am posting as someone who does not live here but as someone who visits a resident every 1 to 2 weeks. First let me say that there are some outstanding housekeepers and caregivers here and my experience has been good with those. My concern is around the food. Real -life examples: one day nachos were on the menu, however the only choice/condiment for salsa or nacho-type sauce was ketsup! Really? One could make an excuse that many of the residents can’t handle spicy food but really the truth is for those that don’t enjoy spicy food there is mango salsa and other types of non spicy supplements. One afternoon I went to lunch with a couple of the residents and they had a squash soup. It was simply water and ? I’m not sure because if you closed your eyes you couldn’t tell what it was. I could go on. I’m not a complainer, I’ve simply had members of my family as Food service managers for four different large assisted living facilities and each of them would be ashamed at some of the food that comes out of this kitchen. Call me harsh but if you really want to know, ask for the minutes from the resident counsel. My last comment regarding the food is I have gone down to the kitchen more than once to request a fruit, any type of fruit, to create an infused water for my friend to have in her refrigerator. Last time I asked for a cucumber … no they didn’t have one, a lemon or lime… no, an apple, no and so I went out and bought one. Is it really that big of a deal to give a resident (without medical or dietary restrictions) a piece of fruit to add to a picture of water?

I am posting as someone who does not live here but as someone who visits a resident every 1 to 2 weeks. First let me say that there are some outstanding housekeepers and caregivers here and my experience has been good with those. My concern is around the food. Real -life examples: one day nachos were on the menu, however the only choice/condiment for salsa or nacho-type sauce was ketsup! Really? One could make an excuse that many of the residents can’t handle spicy food but really the truth is for those that don’t enjoy spicy food there is mango salsa and other types of non spicy supplements. One afternoon I went to lunch with a couple of the residents and they had a squash soup. It was simply water and ? I’m not sure because if you closed your eyes you couldn’t tell what it was. I could go on. I’m not a complainer, I’ve simply had members of my family as Food service managers for four different large assisted living facilities and each of them would be ashamed at some of the food that comes out of this kitchen. Call me harsh but if you really want to know, ask for the minutes from the resident counsel. My last comment regarding the food is I have gone down to the kitchen more than once to request a fruit, any type of fruit, to create an infused water for my friend to have in her refrigerator. Last time I asked for a cucumber … no they didn’t have one, a lemon or lime… no, an apple, no and so I went out and bought one. Is it really that big of a deal to give a resident (without medical or dietary restrictions) a piece of fruit to add to a picture of water?

This is a review for the Bothell location, but they are owned by the same company and people interested in moving their loved ones should know what kind of business they run. They ONLY care about their profit, not their residents. Mismanaged my moms medications twice (yes, its documented in email). Constant staff turnover, including the lead nurse. The lead Nurse, Kate, at the time I moved my mom out was always on her cell phone and never engaged with residents. I watched a resident waste away because he couldnt cut up his food and none of the employees helped him. My mom would cut his food up and I did it when I was visiting. My mom pulled the emergency pull cord and it took over 30 minutes for someone to show up. Multiple times her doctor would write orders for them to assist with skin issues and they never consistently followed them. I moved my mom to a place that has attentive and caring staff and its a night and day difference. And now I'm being sent a bill for someone who switched over to Medicaid, aka there should be no bill, and it includes wrongful items.

This is a review for the Bothell location, but they are owned by the same company and people interested in moving their loved ones should know what kind of business they run. They ONLY care about their profit, not their residents. Mismanaged my moms medications twice (yes, its documented in email). Constant staff turnover, including the lead nurse. The lead Nurse, Kate, at the time I moved my mom out was always on her cell phone and never engaged with residents. I watched a resident waste away because he couldnt cut up his food and none of the employees helped him. My mom would cut his food up and I did it when I was visiting. My mom pulled the emergency pull cord and it took over 30 minutes for someone to show up. Multiple times her doctor would write orders for them to assist with skin issues and they never consistently followed them. I moved my mom to a place that has attentive and caring staff and its a night and day difference. And now I'm being sent a bill for someone who switched over to Medicaid, aka there should be no bill, and it includes wrongful items.

I would like to give the Vineyard at Mountlake Terrace assisted living facility in WA an A +. From the point of contact with the care partner for assessing appropriateness of the facility for my mom to moving her in, we have had positive experiences. Mom lives in an independent apartment with services like cleaning, laundry and medical medication management. All the caregivers that provide the services and meds are so very kind to her. She has made some good friends at her "round table dinner hour". The efforts and helpfulness of the staff, including the director of the Vineyard, finance manager to the front desk make a difficult time with the pandemic a little easier. My Mom feels grateful to the staff for their hard work and kindness too. She speaks to how nice everyone is to her often. We are grateful for her good care and appreciate we have her in a safe place.