The University of Arizona
When David Freshwater founded our first community, The Fountains in Tucson, during the 1980s, he collaborated with the University of Arizona’s Center for Aging. With their world-class healthy brain aging research, the Center’s goal is to promote healthy and functional lives for older adults. Our continuing relationship has helped us successfully incorporate wellness concepts into building design, nutrition, and activities.
UCLA Longevity Center
The motto of the UCLA Longevity Center is “Live Better Longer,” and we firmly agree! That’s why the center is our Brain Café Partner. The Center’s commitment to improving quality of life focuses on healthy aging, memory health, life-long learning, and support for people with memory loss and their caregivers. Their distinguished faculty translates scientific discoveries into practical applications.
UCLA School of Medicine, Geriatric Fellows Program
We are proud to collaborate with one of the oldest and most-distinguished geriatric fellowship programs in the country. It has consistently been ranked as one of the top programs by U.S. News & World Report. Fellows receive broad exposure to a variety of health settings and diversity in patient population, including theories and mechanisms of aging; biological changes of aging; pathophysiology of common aging illnesses; clinical pharmacology; psychosocial aspects of aging; geriatric rehabilitation; and preventive medicine.
Dr. Lené Levy-Storms
Dr. Levy-Storms has done remarkable work studying communication issues between health care providers and older adults, specifically caregivers. In partnership with Susan Kohler she created “Get Connected,” a communication training program for providing care to older adults living with dementia. The goal of using the communication strategies in “Get Connected” is to obtain an emotional connection, which can be difficult as older adults progress to later stages of dementia.
Baylor College of Medicine
We’re grateful for our partner the Baylor College of Medicine, a global leader in biomedical education, innovative research, and cure discovery. Our collaboration with this distinguished institution has helped us continue to develop programs that help our residents thrive.
Partners in Care in Assisted Living (PICAL)
We are excited to partner with Cornell University in a pilot program to improve communication between community teams and family members. PICAL addresses the unique communication challenges that assisted living staff and families face to improve the quality of care for assisted living residents. The program is based on an empowerment approach where assisted living staff and families are viewed as partners in residents’ care. Mutual respect and caring form the basis of this partnership – families bring their knowledge of their relatives and staff bring their technical expertise in providing care.
