Seniors Looking to Raise the Bar on Memory Care Find it at Frank Residences

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living (SFCJL) is preparing to open the new Lynne and Roy M. Frank Residences in the Spring of 2020 - offering the most innovative memory care for seniors in the Bay Area and possibly the country. Serving at the forefront of senior care for more than a century, SFCJL's experience will provide a firm foundation of the new community at Frank Residences, including innovating programming and services.

The 270,000 square foot, $140 Million addition includes Frank Residences, 113 modern assisted-living apartments and 77 memory care support suites utilizing the latest in technology for older-adult care. Byer Square, a new multi-generational community center, will feature a fitness center and pool, cinema, performance center, art studio and a café. It plans to offer outpatient services, medical offices and care navigation. Byer Square will also offer programming tailored to provide life-long learning and experiences in a multi-generational community environment.

Memory care programming will focus heavily on creative arts therapies including music, art, dance, storytelling, improvisation, poetry, and drama. Memory care support groups for caregivers and family members will be available on campus and online to provide tools to manage memory challenges. In addition, SFCJL has created partnerships with Alzheimer's Association, Creative Aging SF, Medical Clown Project, UCSF, Family Caregiver Alliance, California Institute of Integral Studies, tailored to MA Psychology student interns in expressive arts and drama therapy.

Robert Sarison, SFCJL Director of Campus Programs, felt it was important to create a residential feel as part of the memory care offering at Frank Residences. This effort includes creating five different neighborhoods as well as camouflaged medication carts, no nursing stations, and medical staff wearing regular clothes instead of scrubs. Dining areas look and operate just like a restaurant. These details matter for the overarching sense of wellness that residents at SFCJL enjoy.

"We know that people retain their social sense even with memory challenges such as dementia and Alzheimer's. Therefore, our programming is geared toward interaction instead of simply filling time. We are dedicated to creating an environment where caregivers and residents are at their best and choose to focus on strengths not deficits. One of our most intriguing built-in programs is "Experience Stations" which offer Virtual Reality, sensory experiences for residents where realistic environments are created through an immersive visual representations, scents and sounds to evoke memories," said Sarison.
"The secret ingredient to the SFCJL philosophy is properly training caregivers and hiring the right people for the job. Every resident has a unique identity, and we focus on creating individualized and person-centered programming to support every resident's needs," he concluded.

Construction began in mid 2017 and is expected to welcome its first residents this Spring. For more information, or to schedule an appointment for a tour, please visit https://www.frankresidences.org.

San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living (SFCJL), located in San Francisco's Excelsior District offers a modern housing model for older adults to receive higher levels of care. A $140-million community including 270,000 square feet of new construction and renovations on SFCJL's 362 skilled nursing, short-stay rehabilitation and behavioral health units includes the new Frank Residences - 113 assisted living apartments and 77 memory care suites, slated for occupancy the Spring of 2020. Byer Square, the "downtown" campus epicenter, will feature a primary, specialty and integrative health care clinic, fitness and aquatics center, library, café, cinema, and a cultural and performing arts center. Programs for healthy aging and wellness, along with support for caregivers will be available on-site, in-home, and virtually for older adults and their families. To schedule an appointment for an introduction to Frank Residences and a virtual tour, contact the Preview Center at 415-562-2020 or visit https://frankresidences.org/.

SOURCE San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living (SFCJL)