Aspen Park, Utah, October 19, 2000 — SILVERADO GIVES SENIORS OTHER OPTIONS
-by Rachelle Graham
Silverado Senior Living Aspen Park opened in Sept. of 1999 as an Alzheimer’s dementia specialty community. Silverado is located at 1430 East 4500 South in Salt Lake City.
The living environment is home like with country kitchens, living rooms, beauty salon, craft rooms, formal and informal dining settings, and beautiful new furnishings. A primary focus of Silverado is providing a high quality of life to a population with multiple needs. This is accomplished in part by an environment that includes dogs, cats, tropical birds, fish a rabbit and even a duck pond. Residents respond favorably to daily interactions with the many pets and plants at Silverado.
Silverado is committed to achieving strong clinical outcomes with all of its residents. Improvements in ambulation, self-feeding, reductions in psychotropic medications, and decreases in depression and anxiety are common. The concept of “dignity of risk” encourages maximum independence within a safe and contained environment.
Family involvement is strongly encouraged and visits are welcome at any time. Families are invited to dine with their loved ones at no additional cost. Silverado has truly created an environment that fosters involvement.
There are five contained courtyards that are creatively landscaped including state of the art walking paths for residents. Benches, gazebos, a greenhouse, and a stunning waterfall fountain, may be enjoyed during strolls through the courtyards.
Most importantly, all associates of Silverado recognize that Aspen Park is first and foremost a home for its’ residents. This means that residents are welcome in all areas of the community. Mike Sieber, community ambassador, offered a recent example of this. One of the residents walked into a management team meeting. Rather than being quietly ushered out, the resident was offered a chair and remained for the entire meeting. It is probable that this individual had sat in many such meetings prior to the onset of Alzheimer’s. Having this opportunity likely felt reassuring and validating.
As Sieber stated, “It’s the little things that can make a big difference in the lives of our residents. We are very invested in giving life to those with dementia.”
