By Matt Wiley
Technology and medical care go hand-in-hand, and lately have been synonymous with the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel areas. In addition to the recent opening of Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC; see page 12), another technologically advanced care facility will begin construction in New Tampa early next year.
A company spokesperson says The Legacy at Highwoods Preserve will be one of the most impressive assisted living and memory care facilities in the country. A collaboration between Houston-based PinPoint Commerical, LP, and Thrive Senior Living, LLC, The Legacy will be a 104-bed care facility located between Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and New Tampa Blvd., on Highwoods Preserve Pkwy.
The Legacy will feature 44 rooms dedicated to memory care for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, and 60 rooms dedicated to assisted living. However, its design allows the number of rooms dedicated to each purpose to fluctuate depending upon demand.
“There is nothing like this facility in the area,” says Charles Turner, a principal for PinPoint. “Our design and use of technology doesn’t yet exist in the southeastern U.S.”
The design and technology also make The Legacy stand out from all of the other assisted living facilities in the Tampa Bay area, he says.
According to a recent press release, the layout of The Legacy will allow residents and family members much more flexibility than those living at the typical assisted living center by separating the center’s wings into uniquely themed “neighborhoods” and allowing residents to hang out, either in their “neighborhood,” or in the “Main Street” area, which will feature a fitness center, restaurant, sports bar and movie theater.
“The ‘neighborhoods’ will have some degree of redundant functionality,” says Turner, meaning that they are more or less identical in design, even the secure memory care wing. “So the ‘Main Street’ area gives residents and their families the option to hang out somewhere other than in their rooms.”
However, even though residents are given more flexibility to move around the complex, by employing some of the latest technology available, including infrared motion detectors and even bed sensors, The Legacy will be able to keep track of every resident and know when someone needs assistance, especially those living in the memory “neighborhood.”
The facility also will use radio frequency identification (RFID) bracelets — eliminating the need for room keys — as well as wireless caregiver alert systems that are customizable for each resident.
“We want to keep residents safe and give relative peace of mind,” says Turner of The Legacy’s technology. “We also want to keep residents connected to their loved ones. Feeling deserted and alone is one of the biggest causes of depression in assisted care facilities, and we aim to eliminate that feeling.”
The Legacy is one of only nine assisted care facilities currently in the works in the southern U.S. from PinPoint and Trive. If all goes according to plan, the facility should break ground in January.
“We’re currently in the planning and zoning phase,” says Turner. “We’re still waiting on some permits.”
For more information about The Legacy at Highwoods Preserve, please visit TheLegacyAtHighwoodsPreserve.com.
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