Norwood is a small, family friendly suburb of Boston, Massachusetts, a state with over 130,000 diagnosed Alzheimer's and dementia patients. Norwood itself has a population of 11,000, 15 percent of whom are seniors over 65. Many of these seniors may have Alzheimer's or dementia and need care in one of the city's close to 20 memory care facilities.Â
Memory care facilities are regulated by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, which requires certain security measures for residents, staff-to-patient ratios and around-the-clock supervision. This includes both assisted living facilities that have separate memory care wings as well as Alzheimer's-only treatment centers, referred to as dementia special care units (DSCUs). Other memory care facilities attached to assisted living communities are called special care residences (SCR).Â