By Lucie Roy
Morinville – Aspen Villa is opening soon according to Aspen House site supervisor Donna Phinney. The Villa is completed but awaiting opening. Aspen Villa, situated at 97-6-100 Avenue, is a 28-room secure facility for approved Alzheimer’s and Dementia residents.
The entrance to the facility faces east, towards the resident parking area and MCHS. Upon entering the facility one can see into the main dining room, from there is the activity room and the living room. The dining room has round tables with seating for four as does the activity area. The main entrance also has a few areas where family can come in, sit down and visit and with the décor, the atmosphere is home -style family oriented.
“The individual rooms are approximately all the same size, with a slight difference in the corner rooms,” Phinney said, adding the corner rooms also have more windows. The entrance to each room has a locked Memory Box where the residents can place items. The doors close automatically when exiting the rooms. Each room comes equipped with a toilet, sink, mirror and seven-foot shower; there are no bath tubs. “They have a main tub room,” Phinney said. The rooms have a closet, sink, bar fridge and cupboard space.
There is an internal court yard and sitting areas within the entrance. The hallway to the rooms makes a complete circle back to the main areas of the dining room, living and activity area. The Villa has private bedrooms and shared kitchen, living room, tub room, and courtyard space.
Aspen Villa has been designed for individuals with moderate to severe dementia, residents who may have a high risk of wandering and unpredictable behaviour but who are not a safety risk to themselves or others.
The facility could be opened as early as later this month and will bring Aspens total accommodations to 72 units. Aspen House currently has 44 units.
