Merrill Gardens

We moved my 90 year old mother in law to Merrill Gardens in August 2014. It's a lovely place. Lots of activities. They do pay attention if people do not show up. The food and food service staff is excellent as is the resident handyman. Early steps of moving in were smooth and supported by staff. There appears to be problems at the management level. Whoever is on main front desk person needs to be better trained to be more helpful and informed. The fact the paid for TV service went out in August and three weeks later is still out, with continually changing timelines for restoration and no explanation for what is happening is frustrating at best. Points to a lack of foresight /organizational planning at higher levels and suggests a lack of concern for resident's experience as a prime priority. I have had family in other similar facilities in the area as well as out of state. Merrill Gardens would still be my first choice. This is clearly a bottom line focused business first and senior residence second: occasional cracks in the facade of outstanding service can be seen. I worry about the future of the place, as I have seen a constant flow of managers in all previous places we have experience with. On balance, many in house staff do go the extra mile to make sure residents are respected and treated with kindness and personal attention. It always helps to have an outside family member paying attention and keeping track of things.

This is a great place if you can afford it-however, during the first month, there was a tremendous amount of staff changes. The food was excellent when we went to look at the Bedford, but they are now on their 3rd chef and the quality of food has gone WAY down. Also, my mother was NOT given her tour of the place after she moved in, her name tag and also STILL does not have a key that works her patio door! She moved in 6/21/14! Seems a little long to wait considering the price they charge!

I stayed here a year and returned to my home. It was a good place to stay but with every year 5% rent increases it gets expensive. I wanted to get a bigger place as all I had was a single room but the prices quoted were terrible and the rooms didn't have any more sq. footage than what I had. Food was good, activities were enough, and the servers were courteous w/ housecleaning done efficiently. A good place to stay if you can afford it.

The staff at Merrill Gardens in Willow Glen are extremely helpful and cooperative. The facility is clean and well maintained. The menu in the dining room varies but is limited. The lunch and dinner menus are the same, but sandwiches, hamburger and hot dogs are always available. Some items are quite tasty and high quality, but overall the quality varies from mediocre to good. Little attention is given to the presentation of the food, which makes it less appetizing. There are activities and entertainment, but there is little to do in the evenings.

Only concern is disorganized nursing services.

Overall the staff is very focused on making the residents feel welcomed and cared for. Horoko, the fitness instructor and Charlie, the event coordinator, are both exceptional!! However, the Maintenance dept is inept as it takes forever to get ANYTHING done. Even the smallest of tasks take forever! Whoever runs it should be replaced by someone who actually knows how to run a maintenance dept.

Although the staff is very nice to deal with, my mother-in-law had four assessments since [date removed] to get it right! Lots of inconsistencies and errors in the assessment. Paid more than I had to the first month [Amount removed] which they never credited for our care level, went from a 5 to 3 then back to 4. They ordered medication when they didn't need to which resulted in insurance not paying because it was ordered to early. The staff seems to call in sick frequently, so all staff on hand at meal time. We are actually contemplating moving her to another facility

The caregivers are really nice. But every time we went to see our mom, her room was dirty. Her bed was dirty. Her level of care was changed and therefore her cost to live there went up. Nothing was explained to us that she was going to be charged an astronomical amount to stay there. Where we could have found somewhere else for her to go before she got too far in debt. Now they are going to put a lien on her home til everything is paid in full. My advice. Don't get caught up in something that you may not be able to afford. I told them to begin with what she could afford. We were guaranteed it would never go over that amount. It actually tripled. And now she may lose everything.

Overall the common area was always clean. There was always some staff turnover which is common in such facilities. The staff seemed courteous enough but I didnt see much interaction between the staff and residents. There were a few items sitting on tables for residents to do - puzzles, color sheets, baby laundry to fold , games but unless staff tried to engage the residents they weren't interested in participating . On occasion there was live music which put many smiles on the faces of all who were in attendance , some hand clapping and toe tapping. Mom had a studio apt which housed a double bed , dresser, night stand , tv and recliner. The closets were built in. There was a private full bathroom. This room provided ample space for my mother Mom had monthly visits with the staff doctor but I was never informed about them nor the results. If I wanted to know info I had to find the proper person to ask or sign up for a portal. Additional services were available such as hair and nails. Mom did get a haircut one time. I had asked for her to be put on a regular schedule but that fell through the cracks as the person I asked was let go. Unfortunately , mom suffered a fall getting out of bed. The staff found her on the floor early that am and I received a call directly after them finding her and calling paramedics. I met them at the hospital. Their emergency protocol was by the book in that I was alerted anytime mom had a mishap, large or small. As for the assisted living facility my assessment would be a lot less kind than the memory care facility.

I like that it's small and caregiver to patient ratio is the best I found. Given that, I would expect way more activities, and attentiveness to him. The care staff is not adequately trained, even the new director has admitted this and is working on turning it around. However the facility has raised our rate over [Amount removed] a month in less than a year and the care is not even meeting our expectations of what communicated to us going in. I do like that there are other more highly functioning dimentia patients there like my dad. One more thing, they fees them too much, not only have I seen my relative gain 14lbs in 5 months but also other residents have clearly gained weight. We are definitely considering moving him later this summer. Weighing the pros and cons.

The girl giving the tour hadn’t been there long and couldn’t answer many of our questions. Was ok, since we are still very early in the looking process. We did find a unit that would great for parents and Tyler has been able to answer all our questions.

Competent, talented, caring staff. Good day trips, pretty good food. I wouldn't recommend. We left, as had others, and some staff. Merrill (owners) made sudden changes that affected staff and residents 1. Fired sales manager [Name Removed] without any notice 2. Overnight removed all tables for 2 in dining room, replaced with 4 seaters 3. Elevator on one side of building broke and down for days. Wheel chair and walker users were stuck upstairs 4. Dug up the inside courtyard, and left a dirt mountain in its place. Don't know if it's still there

The people living there are the some of the most caring and supportive That's what keeps us there. The administration needs some guidance. I would recommend Merrill Gardens at Columbia. They are trying to fix the food issues. But most people don't care they get three meals a day and that's important. My mom arrived at 95lbs. She is up to 115. That's great my mom looks forward to eating which is really about socializing. I've learned so much through this experience. The wide range of people there from independent living to assisted livings keeps the less active younger.

Be sure to check in on your family member to make sure they're okay. I'm very disappointed. I was hopeful that things would get better. I was not planning to have to move again but will have to. I don't hold it against you, just my circumstances.

Make sure you know the limits of what the caregiver can do and other rules that might come up during their care. Some you might not expect to happen and when it does the solution is problematic

You do not get the services you are paying for . They assign levels of care and charge a lot of money for them and your loved one does not receive the service’s . The rooms ( some of them ) do not get cleaned thoroughly , depending on who’s assigned to them. Meds assistance , random times the meds are given . Sometimes at 7:00 am , then the next day you need to track down the med cart in the hallway at 11:00 am! Shower assistance, they stand by and watch , that’s it . Random charges to your credit card, or bank account . Check it every month . Stomach virus going around the facility and family members not told , you show up to visit only to find out from your loved one that there is a contagious virus going around , and they had to ask if there was a virus going around !!!! I’m sure there is more I could write . The only thing is that they are all like this and worse . The care industry is broken , the people who care for our elderly do not care !!!

I like my apartment on the ground floor with its high ceiling and little patio. Most of the residents here are mobility challenged and are in the beginnings of senility. It is hard to find residents capable of an intelligent conversation. There have been a number of problems with medication failing to be ordered on time and subsequently missing in my daily medication dose. A number were my heart medications which I must have each day. This does not inspire confidence in those in management positions. Although I am just a few months away from my 89th birthday I am fortunate enough to be mobile and still have my intellectual capacity.

The price changed. We were told one amount on a tour and several times. When we went to sign the contract it was $[removed] higher. The room is a great size. There is always something broken. The elevator and now a freezer.

If you are looking for a Senior living community in the South Bay, Merrill Gardens is beautiful, clean and has a friendly staff. It is a great option if you fit the independent living criteria. They have a great community and activities for the residents. However, if you need any assisted living care or ADL tasks, while many of the med techs are wonderful people, it is under staffed and poorly Managed. You will pay extra fees for check ins, showers, getting dressed, Medication management, transfers etc. However the above does not happen regularly unless a family member is present to advocate for their loved one. My parent got bed sores from not being moved, would be in the same clothes for days, did not receive scheduled biweekly showers and would often not be checked on unless a family member called to request. Very disappointing.

My main concern is the quality of meals delivered to my apartment. The majority of my meals are delivered cold or lukewarm at best. One of the ladies ([name removed]) tried to warm it up in a microwave which only made the piece of toast hard. This morning ([date removed]) was the same as previous mornings. My meal was delivered about 8:50 or so. It was lukewarm as always. There was a half of a bagel that was as hard as a rock. I was able to eat the grits and some cantaloupe. I'm trying not to complain, but to make someone aware of what we are receiving as far as breakfast goes. Lunch and supper are much better than breakfast. I had an issue with my laundry this past Tuesday also. If anyone wants to ask me more about that please contact me at [email removed] or call [phone number removed].