Mary Ellen McTague of Swarthmore talks about her mother’s experiences in Atria, a Philadelphia-based assisted living facility.

Mary Ellen McTague of Swarthmore talks about her mother’s experiences in Atria, a Philadelphia-based assisted living facility.

My mother, Helen Dee, has been a resident at what is nowcalled Atria Center City for approximately six years. This is a private, “upscale” facility. We are able to pay the fees with the funds my mother saved over all her years as a reading specialist in several different local school districts, including Philadelphia.

While Atria is generally beautifully maintained, especially with the new owners, there remain issues that disturb me. The overriding concern is that my mother has not received an assessment for several years. My mother has multiple sclerosis, which is now affecting her cognitive and emotional functions as much as her physical movements.

She is, unfortunately, losing her independence slowly but steadily. This is why she lives at Atria. However, after being promised assessments many times over the last year, we have still not seen anything. Staffing and timing issues are the reasons given. On the positive side, the staff at Atria is generally caring and considerate. I find everyone to be helpful and kind. I am not familiar with all the qualifications of the staff, but I have few complaints about how they interact with my mother.

I am also concerned about supervision and security. I have received reports about my mother going out in the winter without a coat. She has to pass by the front desk any time she leaves the building. I had hoped they would be able to make sure she is properly dressed, as she is becoming increasingly forgetful about this. I have been told that at issue is her willingness to comply, but I am unclear about how a facility can allow a resident to go outside when it is clearly unsafe. If there are liability issues for Atria, then this needs to be addressed in regulations as well. Somehow a balance between safety and voluntary compliance should be established. As my mother becomes more and more forgetful, I need to know she is also secure.

The final concern I have is cleanliness. The housekeeping staff seems to be mostly teenagers who are not particularly thorough. I have come into my mother’s apartment and found conditions I wouldn’t want my dog to live in. We now have someone coming to help my mother two mornings a week, but why do we have to spend even more money for private help when we already spend so much?

My final complaints with Atria are more business related. I find the business office to be unavailable to review billing issues far too often. I never get return phone calls or confirmation calls. My dealings with the General Manager have also been frustrating. I get lots of talk and no follow up. I am actually totally disillusioned with assisted living. I thought this would be great for a woman who wishes to maintain as much independence as she can for as long as she can. I am finding the expense covers her lodging and her meals and that’s it. She cannot even use the driver since it requires her to make a reservation and she cannot manage that type of advance planning. The dining is fine; in fact the dining room staff is amazingly kind considering the grumpy people they deal with. I would like to see more assistance given to helping my mother do the things she enjoys and needs to get done. It is called ‘assisted’ living, right?
Regulation and supervision of facilities is more necessary than ever. I foresee my mother needing increasing care in the near future. I worry about whether I will even know if she is getting attentive, proper care. She does not want to have to move and I don’t blame her. But if Atria cannot provide for her, then we will have no choice.