Discussions

It has been determined by a panel of health care professionals that my mother requires 24-hour care in a personal care home. There are 5 PCHs in Brandon. She has been asked to provide a list of her 'Top 3' choices. Can anyone with personal family experience at or with any of these care homes provide a recommendation? Any other insight is also appreciated.  
 
Thank you!

We have had family in a few PCHs and all have their pros and cons depending on what you personally want. I would highly recommend you tour the ones you feel would be appropriate. For instance there are private rooms only in a few of them and therefore would maybe take longer to get into. Dinsdale is the most sought after and hardest to get into and is also the smallest one with 60 beds, but is also private rooms with own bathroom. Rideau also has private rooms with bathrooms and outside access to residents. Fairview is the biggest and as such has more space to offer but shared rooms until a single comes available, which could take a while. Hillcrest and Valleyview weren't even considered to us as these three were our top three choices.  
Your Mom may not have a choice and be given whatever comes available at first, but would later be moved again to one of the choices when it becomes available. This is what happened in our case but the moving 'again' is also very upsetting to everyone.  
Good Luck and hope you get first choice.

Usually people book apts and tour each so you can decide what is best for your family.

Bluebell said "Usually people book apts and tour each so you can decide what is best for your family. "

We have already toured 4 of the 5 PCHs, but are looking for real-life experiences & recommendations.

My mom moved to care home a year ago. She went to Hillcrest. I am happy with the care she has been given. She is on the first floor so she can wander around fairly freely and has access to a lovely patio. My mom doesn't like joining in and never has but they have activities every day for the residents that i:ncludes a "Happy Hour" where the residents can have an alcoholic beverage or a different drink while socializing with the other residents. Food is made on site and family can join if they let the staff know for a charge. I certainly don't regret my choice to take the bed there.  
Yes she shares a room with another lady but they work very hard to put them with someone they have common interests with and that they will get along with...my mom was moved because she and her roommate weren't compatible.  
Be careful about moving them from facility to facility. I had opportunities to move mom to Rideau, Dinsdale and Fairview. While Hillcrest was not my first choice (actually my 4th of 5) I am not sorry I took the bed nor am I sorry. The staff are awesome right from the director to the housekeeping staff.  
Hillcrest has taken great care of my mom and treated me great as well.  
It isn't fancy, they aren't single rooms but the care is first rate.

Out of the five there are pros and cons to each. A lot of times it comes down to if they want a private room, what their needs are. For example if your family member has a lot of mental health issues/ dementia places like Rideau park and Fairview are well equipped for these cases. Food choices and dietary needs are also a big consideration. And it always helps if they know someone there that they can socialize with. Either way I would ask to tour all the facilities and go with a list of questions and and list of wants vs needs.

Allie Cat said "With my mom. She shared a room with 3 other ladies at Valleyview (was called Centennial back in the day) and because she was a loner, she was never happy. That was by her own choice by the way. The staff were wonderful there.     When mom moved to Dinsdale, we couldn't get her there fast enough! She accessorized her room with a dresser, tv, rocking chair, and even a water cooler!! If she was going to live somewhere that was not her home, she was determined to make the room her "home". LOL     Dinsdale is small so the residents get more attention I feel. The Salvation Army runs the place and I'm not sure, but maybe they have more freedom to do things with and for residents than other PCHs?     Hillcrest, I don't know much about but I do know two of the staff and they are wonderful! "

Just a correction,Valleyview was actually called Central Park Lodge before it became Valleyview.

fairview has good ratings, and dinsdale-  
 
would not recommend the 2nd floor of Hillcrest - (too restricting for patients, my mother was not happy there - we moved her to fairview and she improved

Personally id want to go to Rideau. Fairview i had a horrible experience at and i wouldnt peraonally put my worst enemy there.

Unless it has been redone by now, (I haven't been there in a while) Hillcrest has a smoking room that is not vented very well to the outside, so anyone who has allergies could have a lot of problems. You can smell smoke quite strong in that hallway.

The rooms are nice, the staff is nice, they treat the residents like family, the food is good, outings are offered, they communicate very well with family. VERY happy with Rideau.

This information is very helpful. Thank you everyone for your input! We have now toured all 5 PCHs. Feel free to keep those recommendations coming...

We currently have (or had until they passed away) both my parents and spouses parents at Fairview. We have had no complaints with Fairview. If there is a problem, they will fix it right away. On the floor, there are four double rooms. Some have both spouses in them, or if you are new that is where you are until a single room becomes available. Usually you will have a single room within two to three months or sooner. The staff are great (like any place, there might be the odd one that isn"t). We were worried at first that being such a larger facility, that the care would not be great. Mom knows all the staff and they chat about their families, etc.

My mother-in-law is presently at Fairview and we have encountered some issues. The amount of marked/tagged clothing that has gone missing is disturbing. At times it feels like we are clothing a number of residents and perhaps staff. Sweaters, shirts and slacks have disappeared and never found. She is now wearing someone else's glasses which is quite comical as she says she can see fine. On occasion while visiting she will be partially dressed and with no bra on. Seriously, help her get her clothes on, I realize everyone is busy but she can no longer do it herself.  
For the amount paid each month the quality of care is questionable. A good friends mom is at Dinsdale Care Home and has nothing but good things to say about Dinsdale. It would be too disruptive for the mother-in-law to move her.

should also be based on the reasons that she is now needing full time care. Some of the PCH's in Brandon seem to be geared to some very specific issues while others are simply there to accommodate elders who are quite able but in need of some assistance.  
I have had personal dealings with Rideau and Hillcrest and they are both great.

Allie Cat said "    Alrighty then said "My mother-in-law is presently at Fairview and we have encountered some issues. The amount of marked/tagged clothing that has gone missing is disturbing. At times it feels like we are clothing a number of residents and perhaps staff. Sweaters, shirts and slacks have disappeared and never found. She is now wearing someone else's glasses which is quite comical as she says she can see fine. On occasion while visiting she will be partially dressed and with no bra on. Seriously, help her get her clothes on, I realize everyone is busy but she can no longer do it herself.   For the amount paid each month the quality of care is questionable. A good friends mom is at Dinsdale Care Home and has nothing but good things to say about Dinsdale. It would be too disruptive for the mother-in-law to move her. " We had the same problem with Mom's clothing going missing after laundry day but what she really didn't like was the tags. Having the PCH do her laundry didn't last long at all. I just took her clothing and did them along with my own laundry because really, it's not like she had a lot. It also stopped her clothes from going missing or being "tagged".     OP, out of the 5, did your mom have a preference? "

Thank you to all who took the time to provide some personal experiences. The tours alone are not enough. It's not like they point out the negatives during the tour.  
 
Mom has decided that Rideau best met all of her wants & needs, followed by Dinsdale, then Fairview.