A new residential care facility, Casa Abuela’s, held its open house on March 20. The new facility provides compassionate and comprehensive quality elder care services in Chula Vista. This independent facility is owned by certified Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly Administrator MaryAnn Guitierrez.
Guitierrez said the facility is ready and waiting to take in residents. Guitierrez, a previous live-in caregiver with nearly 10 years of experience, was told by the mother of the woman she was taking care of introduced her to facilities, but after getting into a role as scheduling manager for an in-home care service agency, then moving to the position of care coordinator, she saw the need for more residential care facilities in the area.
“I am also a placement agent for the home care agency that I work for now. I asked to be transferred into that department because I was interested in seeing what it would take to open one of these up,” she said. “So, I toured multiple facilities and there is a definite need. Most of them are full.”
Guitierrez said it took about a year and a half of research to become confident enough to do this.
“Hopefully we will set ourselves apart from others,” she said. “We are a faith-based facility. We want our residents to be taken care of not only in body, but in spirit and in mind. We want to foster a community where their faith is also implemented into their daily lives. I know that is important to many. I know that it is for me. We want our spiritual care to be the cornerstone of life. We are also going to add activities that will foster health and social engagement. Our plan is to outreach to the schools. Many schools have programs where kids need community service hours, so we would like to invite the high schools to come out and conversate with the residents and be a part of Casa Abuela’s residents as well.”
Guitierrez said it accepts residents of all faiths.
“Every faith is accepted and celebrated,” she said. “When I was a live-in caregiver, the lady I was caring for was Jewish, and I learned a lot about the Jewish culture. We have open arms for all faiths. I am Christian, but I just have a love for people and a love for people who love God. To me, that is very important, and I know it is very important for many people as well.”
Guitierrez said her mission with Casa Abuela’s is to foster peace, community, and compassion towards people who need assistance in doing daily activities in daily living.
“I have so many ideas in my head,” she said. “I have set myself apart from other facilities in making it a more nurturing environment where the residents can live a peaceful life in their golden years.”
Currently, Casa Abuela’s is a six-bed facility, but is adding an accessory dwelling unit, which will house an additional three residents. Casa Abuela’s is located at 194 H Street in Chula Vista.
Casa Abuela’s provides individualized care plans, mild cognitive impairment care, hospice care, and medication management. It assists residents with daily living such as showering and bathing, grooming, dressing, toileting, and transferring, laundry, fine dining, and daily activities.
For more information, call (619) 214-2958 or email at Maryann.g@casaAbuelas-ral.com.
