Living at Birchwood Cottages

Birchwood Cottages is committed to respecting the path of life and all that the aging process may bring. Our communities lead the way in smaller, homelike settings that are dedicated to the care of seniors with Alzheimer’s Disease and other related dementias.

    • Building layout and décor are specifically designed for memory care.
    • Homestyle living areas with social kitchens to encourage socialization.
    • Person-centered social and recreational programs.
    • State-of-the-art camera and alarm technologies in place for resident safety and peace of mind.
    • Private and companion room options available.
    • 24/7 on-site dementia trained caregivers who are dedicated to caring for our residents.
    • Easy and understandable care packages designed to fit a variety of care needs.

Our one-level homestyle environments offer a welcoming and comfortable atmosphere. Our communities are setup to meet the care needs of the residents we serve so they are able to thrive and have a quality, joy filled life.

Amenities Our Residents Enjoy

Outdoors:

    • Beautiful outdoor courtyards
    • Walking paths with seating areas
    • Raised garden beds for residents to use
    • Comfortable patio for residents and families to enjoy

Indoors:

    • Open floor plan with social kitchen
    • Heated floors throughout building
    • Whirlpool tub and showers with heat lamps and heated towel rack
    • Warm & bright sunrooms
    • Large back sunrooms that lead to the beautiful courtyard
    • Private spaces to reserve for family get togethers at no extra charge

Dementia-Related Behavior and Medication Usage

Memory loss may cause behaviors that can make it difficult to care for a loved one. Often it is these behaviors that prompt the need to move out of the home and into a setting like ours. It also can result in people with dementia being prescribed antipsychotic medications that come with harmful side effects and negative outcomes.

What does Birchwood do to address this?

Our nursing team periodically reviews resident medications. They collaborate with the resident’s providers and family to discuss how we can potentially reduce or eliminate unneeded medications.

In addition, our staff apply a variety of person-centered non-medical approaches such as:

    • Music therapy
    • 1:1 time with staff
    • Group activities
    • Essential oils
    • Reminiscing

This approach is not to say that traditional medicine does not have a place in the treatment of dementia, but rather, that by incorporating non-traditional, non-medical treatments we can often produce the desired results of a higher quality of life for the resident.

Life Enrichment and Daily Activities

Our life enrichment programming is developed around the preferences of each individual resident that promote socialization, life skills, cognitive stimulation, and physical activity.

Each day is filled with a variety of these activities for residents to participate in, and we encourage families to participate as well! An activities calendar is available for all residents each month, and posted on our website here.

In addition to our life enrichment programming, we encourage residents to participate in activities of daily living (ADLs). This may include assisting with meal preparations and clean up, folding laundry, sweeping or vacuuming. This focus gives the residents the ability to maintain a lifestyle centered on familiar household routines.

Other favorite activities include:

    • Reminiscing
    • Board games
    • Walking club (indoors and outdoors)
    • Crafts
    • Baking
    • Bingo
    • Flower and vegetable gardening
    • Watering flowers
    • Decorating for the holidays
    • And so much more!