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BakerRipley Dementia Day Center in Houston will be closing its doors as of Friday, Oct. 29 due to lack of funding.
BakerRipley Dementia Day Center, established in 1987 and formerly known as Sheltering Arms Senior Services as the first dementia-specific adult day center “in the Greater Houston area accepting individuals from early to moderate-late dementia,” announced its closing on June 1 as a result of a 20% decrease in funding over the years, Click 2 Houston reported.
Dementia is a group of symptoms that cause a decline in people's thinking and memory skills to the point it impacts day-to-day living and relationships. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form and is irreversible, causing memory and thinking skills to deteriorate until completely destroying the ability to do daily living tasks, the Texas Department of State Health Services website said. Those suffering with this disease will end up requiring full-time care at some point during the illness' progression.
"Through the results of a rigorous two-year assessment interrogating our ability to strengthen the Dementia Day Center’s financial model and strategically diverse revenue streams for its operation, the decision was made to sunset the BakerRipley Dementia Day Center," Director of Communications with BakerRipley Ebony Fleming told the Houston Daily.
Fleming said the early announcement of the facility's closure is to ensure that families and caregivers have enough time to make other arrangements for care of those who attend the BakerRiplet Dementia Day Center.
"We are providing our impacted members with as much notice as possible to allow them as much time as possible to prepare and make alternate arrangements. While BakerRipley cannot continue to offer services beyond Oct. 29, our committed center staff remains available to offer advice and support throughout this transition," Fleming said.
As part of the transition for clients at BakerRipley Dementia Day Center, Fleming said the facility and administrators will continue to help with the transition by offering alternatives to caregivers and families.
"Prior to the center’s closure, we encourage our families and caregivers to do what they feel is absolutely necessary for the well-being of their loved ones. We’ve spoken directly with 67 caregivers/clients who are currently enrolled in the day center to offer guidance as they navigate finding alternative resources," Fleming said.
David Haines II, BakerRipley’s chief strategy and innovation officer, told Click 2 Houston that it costs approximately $1 million per year to run the facility and the decision to close was not made lightly.
“This decision by BakerRipley is one of the hardest decisions we’ve had to make as an agency. We’re heartbroken. We understand there are a lot of people hurting about this decision,” Haines told Click 2 Houston.
One man who is the primary caregiver of his wife who is suffering from the disease called BakerRipley Dementia a "godsend" and has been working to raise awareness about the shut down in hopes of private donor coming to the rescue and helping keep the doors open, Click 2 Houston reported.
Another option for the facility includes another non-profit stepping in to take on the program, but no such offers have yet been made.