AUBURNDALE -- Dawn Carrillo is looking forward to helping her 78-year-old mother, Elba Schmidt, move into a new home. But while Schmidt will be moving, she isn't going very far.
A resident of Ozanam Hall of Queens Nursing Home in Auburndale, Schmidt is moving from the fourth floor to the newly renovated fifth floor.
"I'm very excited about the renovation and having mom move from the memory care floor on four to five," said Carrillo, who explained that her mom has advanced dementia. "The aesthetic is so important to people with dementia. And it looks so much less institutionalized and a lot more like home."
Ozanam Hall's fifth floor has been transformed into a 50-bed unit dedicated to the care of residents with Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and other cognitive challenges.
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The new unit, called Cabrini Hall, was dedicated on Aug. 17 as Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Raymond Chappetto blessed the facility and then, accompanied by Sister Philip Ann Bowden, a Carmelite nun who is the nursing home's administrator, walked around the floor and blessed each room.
The blessing marked the second time this year Ozanam Hall marked a milestone. On Feb. 6, the nursing home celebrated the opening of Carmel Hall, its memory care unit on the third floor.
With the dedication of Cabrini Hall, the nine-story, 432-bed nursing home will have two entire floors dedicated to cognitive issues.
"Today is a great day for Ozanam Hall," Bishop Chappetto said. "It's a day of gratitude for this accomplishment and for this successful story of a second memory care unit being opened in this building."
Ozanam Hall will soon begin moving residents from the fourth to the fifth floor and then start renovating the fourth floor.
Like Carmel Hall, the corridors of Cabrini Hall are decorated with brightly colored paintings of candy stores, smiling children, and other images designed to engage the residents and perhaps jog their memories a bit.
Even though Carmel Hall has been open only seven months, it has already made a difference for residents, Sister Philip Ann said. "It really changed their lives," she added.
Christine Pomijalski, RN, assistant director of nursing at the home, said she can't wait for the residents to move in. "I'm looking forward to seeing the residents feeling like more at home," she said.
While Carrillo enjoyed looking at the decor, she said what means more to her is the compassionate care her mom gets.
"This has made all the difference in my mom's care -- the consistency and care, the kind of care that she gets, even the spiritual support that we get," said Carrillo, a parishioner of St. Matthias Church in Ridgewood. "She's able to receive the sacraments, and it's wonderful."