A new assisted living facility for patients generally suffering from a dementia-related diagnosis is slated to open in Hixson this summer.
Bailey Manor is building a $6.5 million site on a vacant Highway 153 tract near the Kohl's shopping center, said Candi S. Raney, the company's chief operating officer.
"We did a market analysis to see which areas in Tennessee had the most need for memory care," she said in a telephone interview. "Chattanooga was very high on that list."
Raney said the 23,385-square-foot facility will hold about 33 beds and employ some 30 people.
"With the clientele we care for, we have a higher staff ratio than most assisted living facilities do," she said.
Bailey Manor, privately owned by Nashville businessman David Scharf, also has locations in Tennessee in Manchester, Winchester, Fayetteville and Cookeville, Raney said.
"We want to go where we can serve the community and fulfill a need," she said.
The new facility, expected to open in July or August, will focus on memory care, a factor that makes Bailey Manor different from many other assisted living operators, Raney said.
"We really do a hard focus on training staff to approach and interact with a memory care patient," Raney said. "It's a considerable difference with how to approach any other patient in health care. There's a big learning curve."
Bailey Manor will join other assisted living facilities in the area, including Chattanooga-based Morning Pointe Senior Living.
Local businessmen Greg Vital and Franklin Farrow started Morning Pointe in 1996. Now in 35 locations in five states across the Southeast, Morning Pointe owns and operates seven communities in the Tennessee Valley, including sites in Athens, Chattanooga, Collegedale, East Hamilton and Hixson.
Its facilities include a rebuilt Lantern at Morning Pointe Alzheimer's Center of Excellence on Shallowford Road, which was damaged during the tornado of April 2020.
"This is a human life crisis," said Vital in an interview at the time, noting the tornado hit while the senior site was fighting against exposure to the coronavirus outbreak.
Bailey Manor is licensed by the Tennessee Department of Health and offers 24-hour licensed nursing services. Also, staff include certified nurse aides, licensed dietitian and social worker, full-time activities director and culinary workers.
According to the company, Bailey Manor's dietary program provides made-from-scratch meals with numerous choices and various snack options 24 hours daily.
Higher than typical staff-to-resident ratios allow Bailey Manor to provide more hands- on care and individualized one-on-one attention for residents, the company said.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318. Follow him on Twitter @MikePareTFP.