Brinton Manor

I had a friend who unfortunately was put in Brinton Manor by an uncaring family to live out their final days. In the 6 months I visited my friend I was appalled at the overall lack of care for the residents there. First, the personal living area for each resident is nothing more than your standard hospital room (circa the 1980s), with ANOTHER resident on the other side, separated by a curtain. Both use the same bathroom and shower, which is in the far front corner of the second resident's living area, forcing the other resident to walk past the separated curtain into their roommate's living area. So NO PRIVACY whatsoever. The worse part of it all is the size of what barely deserves to be called a "living space". I brought in a tape measure, as I was planning to buy a DVD player for my friend and find space for it by the TV. The space width wise my friend had for their bed, and all movement from the outside wall (wall of the hallway outside) to curtain separating their room mate, was 6 feet. The space from the far back wall that the head of the bed was against, to the closet a few feet away from the foot of the bed on the opposite wall, was a total of 12 feet. So you're talking about a total "living space" of 6 feet by 12 feet. In all of my visits to see my friend in those 6 months (once or twice a week), they were rarely checked on by any of the nurses (or anyone else). This is someone who was fighting (and dying) of cancer. My friends glasses broke, the arm came off. My friend repeatedly asked for assistance in getting the glasses repaired and for an appointment to be scheduled to see an eye doctor and get a new pair of glasses. This never happened and I bought an eye glass repair kit and fixed them best I could, reattaching the arm. An appointment was never scheduled or new glasses. I would ask at the nurses desk if it was being taking care of. Just received a BS non-answer. "We're working on it..." My friend also reported money being stolen from their bedside drawer. They give each resident a drawer with the crappiest little lock on it, that they carry a key for. The "lock" allows you to still open the drawer about half an inch. Anyone determined could easily pry it open and break the lock with a butter knife or some tool, if not just their bare hands. So my friend took to carrying all of their most important things on them at all times. Apart from the dismal living space, is the total absence of any real activities that are held for the residents. The best they get is BINGO day after day after day after day, and an "Ice Cream Social" from time to time, with two large brown economy tubs of lousy ice cream, where everyone gathers in the same room where the play BINGO everyday, and get to choose from vanilla and chocolate ice cream mixed, or strawberry. I spoke with the head of the "Recreation" department, who organizes the exciting BINGO and Ice Cream Social events about several free outdoor events/concerts in the summer that I thought the residents would enjoy and offered to make as much of the phone calls and arrangements possible myself to get them there. I knew one venue would definitely make special accommodations , them having a special road and unloading area especially for people in wheelchairs to get right up front at shows. She couldn't have been more dismissive or disinterested. I thought there'd be at least some excitement and discussion. Shot down immediately. I guess BINGO and Ice Cream is enough. My friend did tell me that from time to time they would take everyone out to dinner somewhere. I guess that's as good as it gets there. Residents pretty much just have to befriend one another and create their own "fun" it would seem. The shared community space inside is really nothing remarkable. The "nicest" thing is a very small sitting area outside, positioned in the center of the building, with some tables with chairs and a few small trees planted. Overall, it was just a very depressing place to be. The kind of place where just saying hello to someone in the hall and making eye contact, they would smile so big, just because you acknowledged them. My friend was not happy at all in there and told me so. Family never came to visit. Just dumped there to die. Sadly it is where my friend died. If you care at all for whoever you are looking to put into a permanent live in care "home", this place is as far as you can get from feeling like a home. There may have been better rooms there for some of the richer residents who could afford them, but I didn't see any. I just saw dismal hospital rooms. Holding cells for the old and dying. And as I said, apart from that, the total lack of interest and creativity in the "Recreation" for residents there is disgusting and depressing. To me, that is even more unforgivable than everything else. Just the fact that the place doesn't care enough to try and find more creative things and trips for the residents to take. It's not hard. It's called having a heart and caring. There are so many places around there that they could take them on the buses they already use for their dinner trips. Just people not caring enough or wanting to do their job. Imagine waking up each day with absolutely nothing new to look forward to. That's what being a resident there must feel like. Hopefully they won't take away their BINGO and Ice Cream Socials. Every time I drive by there I feel sad, think about my friend, and think how I need to let people know not to put their loved ones in there. I'm sure there are sadly worse places out there, but there has to be at least a few better places than this.

uncaring staff dirty linens dirty shared bathroom for 4 people dirty food and trays and cold food no medicines given aides sleeping in hallways nurse bells hidden dry mop rooms no vital checks no insulin no diet sodas SHOULD BE SHUT DOWN ripping off insurance and medicare fraud fraud fraud