VITALITY LIVING COLUMBIA

My sister and I enjoyed the steel drum band, the staff dancing for us and the drinks! Thanks so much!!

It’s taken a while to decide to write this. These people are aware of our concerns. Current Team: Jeff Gruber, Paula Rowe, Sherelle Gilchrist, Lisha Woods, & Robin Palazzo Previous staff: Diana Chavez, Wyonna Williams, & Ayu Douglas Many great things about Vitality (formerly Watercrest). But many serious, not so great concerning things too. For anyone comparing options for care, we are sharing what we have found in the 14 months, about this place that mom calls home. We recommend you consider wellness & a thriving individual care plan versus aesthetics & promises when making a decision to select Vitality for yourself or your loved one, especially if you are not able to spend time checking and double checking on the resident’s well-being. We are continuing to be present as always but many residents do not have that level of family presence. The transition/introduction meeting occurred 2 weeks after mom moved in to Assisted Living (AL). It included residents, staff, new owner, and a few of HQ staff. The intentions appeared honorable and fair. But since then, we’ve experienced first hand, most aspects of the facility. After a brief hospital stay we asked that mom move to Memory Care(MC) as her needs had changed. That was the worse decision ever! For some of the Great: 1. Great facility (clean common areas, ample space for the residents to relax and socialize outside of their apartments, beautiful fountain, nice decor top to bottom in AL); 2. Great coordinated pharmacy & Primary Care (nurse practitioner) contractor; and 3. Transportation to outside doctors appointments. For some of the Concerns: 1. Extremely high staff turnover at every level; 2. Inconsistent delivery on most important medical services (inaccurate over dosing/dispensing of meds & running out of meds); 3. All amenities (house keeping, laundry, regular appropriate activities, etc.) advertised & promised at contract signing, are hit or miss at best (mostly miss); 4. Resident safety while in their rooms (regarding other residents entering and available staff to attend to resident needs-memory care (MC)), as well as the comfort of knowing their home is secure, is non existent; 5. Professional staff in MC are severely under trained and overworked- while no one says they are understaffed, it is apparent that residents are suffering due to staff shortages. There are times when there has been only one Med-Tech on duty for both Assisted living and Memory Care and times when no one is available for help to residents’ needs; 6. Meetings with care team result in over promising and under delivering; 7. ………so much more. Happy to discuss further. We are continuing to monitor mom’s care (since we are able to visit frequently). Hope as you are making a decision, these truths will guide your questions and consideration.

My dad recently moved into Vitality Living. Alex was really great to work with, and help with every step of the process. When my dad first arrived, he got a very warm welcome from the entire staff, and other residents. The room is spacious and everything is new. The hallways are nice and wide, and everything is kept perfectly clean. I've eaten a few meals with my dad in the dining hall. The food was excellent, and the service was great. So far, I haven't found any faults with Vitality.

We looked at several facilities for my parents. We were impressed with the clean facility and the friendly staff. We were unaware of the high turnover of staff. The last nurse manager was excellent. She got to know the residents, came in early, stayed late and was very quick to respond and communicate. We felt she truly cared for the wellbeing of our parents. My parents love Laura and since they sold the company to a different management company, she is no longer there. Laura was very caring, knowledgeable and responsive for communication. I hate to see her leave. Caregivers, dining staff and front desk seems to have turnovers, too. Hopefully with new management, the turnover of staff will decrease.

I admitted my mom to Watercrest and it was pretty shaky on and off. Finally, the light was at the end of the tunnel. They hired an amazing nurse. That came early, stayed late, never greeted you with anything but a warm and sincere smile. Knowledge out the park. Communicated constantly. Now they are telling me she's leaving, she's the 5th nurse we've had since I had mom admitted. What is wrong with this picture? Everything just got better. Frustrating in the highest parameters.