Willow Towers Assisted Living: A New Approach In Caring for those with Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders

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(New Rochelle, NY) October 10, 2011 - Willow Towers Assisted Living, part of United Hebrew of New Rochelle campus of services, has announced a yearlong initiative of specialized enhanced education for its staff and caregivers.  The announcement was made by Rita Mabli, President and CEO of United Hebrew of New Rochelle. “We reviewed many available options for this initiative and we are pleased to announce that White Plains Hospital Partnerships in Dementia Care will be our collaborators in this endeavor.”  Willow Towers was first in Westchester to be awarded the New York State Department of Health new licensure for Special Needs Assisted Living Residence (SNALR).  It is also first in Westchester to implement the new Partnerships in Dementia Care with White Plains Hospital Senior Services division.

Partnerships in Dementia is a newly created program under the auspices of the White Plains Hospital Senior Services Department that trains personal and professional caregivers to help people with dementia improve their quality of life while reducing the burden for the caregivers themselves.

Willow Towers will serve as the pilot site for the newly designed person-centered coaching educational program for caregivers.  Willow Towers, which opened in 2003, was the first in Westchester County to be awarded the new Assisted Living Residence (ALR) licensure, with dual certification for Enhanced Assisted Living Residence (EALR) and Special Needs Assisted Living Residence (SNALR) by the New York State Department of Health. 

 “Willow Towers has been committed to making a difference in the lives of people with dementia and indeed in the aging process as a whole,” said Geri Brooks, MSN, RN, CS, GNP, and Director of the White Plains Hospital Geriatric Services/Partnerships in Dementia Care program. “They are consistently innovative and are indeed an industry leader.”  Along with Geri Brooks as director of the program, White Plains Hospital Senior Services has also welcomed Kerry Mills, a dementia liaison coach. 

“Our goal is to continue our culture of excellence by giving our full staff the educational team building skills for our comprehensive collaborative model of care,” said Jean Dunphy, Executive Director of Willow Towers.  “The Phoenix Alzheimer’s Dementia unit at Willow Towers will be the main focus of the Partnership in Dementia care initiative.”

The innovative program will give the staff special tools for understanding the perspective of a person with dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.  The training includes sessions on the brain, sensitivity to geriatric issues, and team building exercises.  The White Plains Hospital staff will then visit monthly for practical interventions. 

Investing in this type of initiative is seen as essential to the vision and future of United Hebrew of New Rochelle, a leader in the field of long term care.  “We are seeing a strengthening trend towards non-profit operations when people choose long term care facilities for their parents. In these challenging economic times, people are more comfortable with a successful well run not-for-profit with a continuum of care with resources to invest and reinvest in their facilities, rather than a proprietary that may not have resources targeted to the resident. There is a comfort in the not-for-profit model of reinvestment in its operation and employees.” said Ms. Mabli.

“The staff is so energized and the momentum in the building is palpable.”  Said Ms. Dunphy. “We are engaged in listening to each individual’s needs and the residents feel our love. That is our focus each and every day.”

For more information about Willow Towers Assisted Living visit www.willowtowers.com or contact Jean Dunphy at 914.636.6565.