Residents will begin moving into Elan Spanish Springs located on Alverez Avenue next week. This facility has 50 assisted living apartments and 36 memory care apartments. In addition to the wide array of services offered at Elan, residents will also have Villages amenities. Executive Chef Scott Wiley is on-site to manage the restaurant that includes three meals daily for residents.
In addition to the 24-hour nursing staff, Elan has offices for doctors to use so residents can have the convenience of seeing their doctor at Elan.
The assisted living apartments range from studio to two-bedroom. There are five large screened- in porches. Memory care residents can enjoy the outdoors in a secure courtyard.
Director of Health Care Services Kathy Nuccetelli explained their plan for memory care residents.
“There is not a cookie-cutter approach at Elan,” sahd said.
Staff spends time with a resident at their home before they move to Elan, learning their routine. They try as much as possible to replicate that routine when they move in.
“We are not concerned that everyone eats breakfast at the same time; we are on their schedule,” she said.
Nuccetelli has been in nursing for 28 years, specializing in memory care for the last 15.
Robin Brackeen, director of life enrichment, is excited about the Ambassador Program that will be implemented at Elan.
With so many people here having their family not in the area, explains Brackeen, Elan offers a program that will allow for trips one-on-one with the residents on a special occasion.
“A family member can make arrangements for a staff person to take a resident to a ball game, a concert or fishing, for example, for their birthday, when they can’t be here to take them themselves.”
Another way out-of-the-are family can be involved is Life Bio. Family pictures can be sent digitally and a scrapbook is kept for each resident.
“These pictures are great conversation starters for our memory care residents,” said Brackeen. She is actively seeking volunteers to supplement her program and encourages anyone interested to give her a call, (352) 300-1089.
