Customer Reviews

Gilbert Guide: Bay Area Edition

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a very useful, objective resource guide for finding the best in long term care (LTC) options in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area (apparently the East Bay has a separate guide and I believe the Guide is expanding to other cities, as well). The guide is a comprehensive overview of all of the local LTC services and facilities; chapter One describes the various functions of home care, geriatric care management, adult day care, assisted living facilities, continuing care communities, skilled nursing facilities and hospice, specifying what each does and what to expect.

Chapter Two is particulary useful, in that it describes "who pays for what" - listing different ways of paying for LTC, costs and eligibility requirements of various forms of coverage, and which facilities and services accept which form of payment. It even lists local phone numbers.

The rest of the Guide is by County: San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin and Southern Napa and Sonoma Counties. (As someone who covers all of Napa and Sonoma counties, this was my only frustration - not having the northern areas covered). Each listing includes detailed information, including costs, unique qualities and a personalized in-depth review.

The Guide is appropriate and useful for both professionals and family members overwhelmed by choices. I hope they are able to expand into other communities - there is a real need for objective, thorough and informational, locally-based guides to long term care options.

Finally, a resource that offers an unbiased, independent view of senior living facilities in the Bay Area. Thanks for the hours of hard work put in researching and writing. Content is great. The one problem with the book is the binding - I've never seen a book where the pages falls apart so easily ! And within the first few days of very gentle use! I've had to tape about 30 or so pages back. No big deal, considering there really isn't any substitute for the book, and it's a gem. Kudos to the Gilbert family for the whole idea of putting together a resource book like this. This book is now out of print, and as far as I know, the Gilbert Guide has been bought by another company. Hopefully they'll continue the good work.

I purchased this when I was trying to locate a new living space for my elderly mother-in-law. As she was living in the San Francisco area and I was coming in from Wisconsin, it was extremely difficult to collect good information, but this book really helped me narrow down the choices. I would have given this five stars, but the binding was inadequate and I ended up relying on a large rubber band to hold all the pages in the book!