Today we’d like to introduce you to Imani Simmons.
Hi Imani, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Hi! Thank you so much for allowing me to tell my story. I am a Unicorn. That is what people born and raised in Austin refer to ourselves as. I am a kid that sang on stage with The Wailers at Liberty Lunch (if you know, you know).
I love this town. Do you know how special moonlight towers are, and that the only surviving moonlight towers in the world are in Austin? Did you know that in 2011 Tibetan monks blessed Barton Springs pool and that the indigenous people considered it to be sacred land? Austin is not your average city. It is a place where special things, places and people are all around, you just need to know where to look. Now to my story.
In 2014 I became a licensed physical therapy assistant and in 2015 I was working in a skilled nursing facility and was very challenged by some of the behaviors of our patients with dementia. I had been well prepared by the Austin Community College PTA program and couldn’t believe how difficult this one aspect of my job was.
In 2018, I became a Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) and what I learned changed everything. I saw those with dementia differently, more holistically. One of the best things to come out of that experience was a passion to learn more about dementia. I wanted to understand the brain better and teach others about it. I wanted to educate on how to care for those with dementia both clinically and practically. And I had the perfect partner to do it with, Paige Chamberlain. Paige was a PTA like me but had chosen to become a CADDCT, someone who trains and certifies CDPs. She is brilliant, kind, shared my passion and best of all we worked together.
We were on a mission. We wrote a presentation putting it all together and through our job got to both occasionally treat patients and provide this presentation to older adults in independent and assisted livings throughout Texas. Our presentation focused on what dementia is, taught to enter the world of someone with dementia and make it brighter, practical ways to improve cognition. and most of all, the importance of grace and compassion for those with dementia and their families. When we gave this presentation, we were always asked to come back because someone who needed to be there missed it. It turned out people were thirsty for this knowledge, that there was a huge need for this type of education and we were the ones to do it.
We also wrote other presentations on varying topics from happiness to hydration; they just weren’t as popular. All along we were training in dementia care, safe transfers and how to address challenging behaviors in assisted livings and memory cares.
When Covid hit there were no more presentations or staff training. I went back to treating patients and did a lot more one on one training with the primary caregivers. The most important thing I wanted them all to know was that they could do EVERYTHING right and their loved one would still have bad days, that is the nature of the disease. What leading dementia support groups taught me was that caregiver guilt, grief and shame are prevalent, and I wanted them to know that dementia care is hard, especially if you don’t have specialized training.
For years I searched for something that compared to my job with Paige and failed. I was lucky that my old PTA Program at ACC wanted to prepare their graduates as much as possible and I began doing a yearly lecture there in 2019, teaching the same things Paige and I taught but more clinical.
A friend of mine said there was a position open and I had to apply. He said something like, “it’s perfect from you.” This is a friend I trust and respect. I looked online and applied. It was for Silverado Barton Springs.
When I was a newish PTA we had a family looking for memory care and my supervising Doctor of Physical Therapy recommended Silverado. Later, when a family friend asked where to send their mom, I suggested Silverado. I trusted my PT’s judgement.
When I walked into Silverado Barton Springs it felt like walking into my Granny’s home. There were dogs, cats, birds, and people laughing. I looked around and took it all in. These were folks with dementia living, not seated in front of screens or in their beds. These residents were making jokes with the caregivers seated on couches, petting dogs and cats. The staff were fully engaged and doing everything I spent years teaching; it was surreal, like a world I designed. I thought to myself, “everyone needs to know about this place.”
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My dad passed away in 2020 during the height of Covid. He knew it was coming, and he gave me two instructions:
1. Take care of momma.
2. Tell Kathy (my mom) that I love her.
In 2024 when I picked up my granny for the neurologist, she didn’t recognize me at all. I have known for years that my Granny has dementia, but this still hit hard. I made a joke and told her who I was. She laughed and said, “I was just testing you.” That’s one thing that people need to know about. Masking. My Granny is still a smart woman. Don’t let the dementia fool you. She had no idea who I was, but she has a strategy for that. A good strategy. A smart strategy.
However, I know what’s going on. She asked me if I already said hi to my dad because they lived together. I said, “yes, of course, he’s making music in his room.” He’s been dead for five years. In 2025 my family would shoulder it’s biggest hit when my young cousin Mo’Keysha passed away suddenly. This would have broken my Granny (like it broke me), but because of her dementia, she doesn’t realize her last baby is gone. It’s hard to look at dementia as a blessing, but in these circumstances, it is.
As I drove home I thought about my Granny. I began to remember Granny getting calls about my great-grandmother wandering around the neighborhood and having to go get her. Then it hit me. The women in my family often get dementia. I wondered if this was an unconscious driver in my passion for dementia care, education and knowing the latest research.
My Granny is my hero. She was a single, black mother raising six kids alone in Texas, in the 1970’s. She experienced racism, sexism and was treated poorly by many. However, that never stopped her from being kind, thoughtful and generous. Her spirit was never broken and she still chooses to love everyone.
I looked back at my life since my days with Paige. I had integrated most of what we talked about into my daily life. I eat decent, exercise, meditate (when I remember), I am learning the piano and Spanish a little every day, I take stress reduction/mental health/sleep seriously, have annual check-ups and have built a loving community around myself. All I know is that I am going to stack the deck in my favor.
All of this has even inspired me to write a new presentation bringing everything I know now together .My hope is that I can change even more lives and help those with dementia live in a more compassionate, understanding world.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Well, it all worked out. I am the Community Ambassador at Silverado Barton Springs. My job is to tell the world about the place that I would have designed as a dementia specialist.
I later learned that everything I observed that day at Silverado Barton Springs has a purpose. The dogs, birds, cats, and now turtles (some are over 40 years old and belong to a resident) are more than “just company”, they are part of an evidence-based approach to dementia care. Pets reduce anxiety, agitation, provide comfort, help us feel like we belong and reduce loneliness. Also, being around dogs and cats strengthens the immune system primarily by lowering stress and boosting feel-good hormones. The residents being fully engaged was part of Silverado’s research-based Nexus Program designed to improve cognition up to 60% in those in early stages of the disease. This is a community specifically designed for someone living with dementia to keep living a meaningful life.
Our families can see this and they know that not only are we going to take exceptional care of their loved one, but we also want them in the community. We want the siblings, spouses, children, and grandchildren to be present as much as possible, that’s why all our families can join for a meal for free, anytime. Also, have you ever seen a group of older adults with a baby or toddler? It is one of the sweetest things in the world.
Silverado’s hybrid model of assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care is unique but effective. The absolute highest quality 24/7 nursing, master’s level social worker on staff, and all associates being Dementia Care Certified by Alzheimer’s Disease International are the big differentiators between Silverado and other communities.
As they say, “The proof is in the pudding.” We recently received our Net Promoter Score. The scale goes from -100 to 100 with anything in the 60s being considered world class. To give some reference, Amazon and Apple are in the 60s. That’s what their actual customers rate them via a third party. Silverado as a brand is 72. A couple of weeks ago Silverado Barton Springs received a NPS score of 97. That score comes from our families. Which is also the biggest compliment to the 80+ associates that make it happen daily with love and compassion.
At the end of the day, Silverado Barton Springs is a place of acceptance, kindness, love, compassion and fun. Tell me what’s more Austin than that? In the world of memory care, Silverado Barton Springs is a unicorn.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Yes, I always have a mentor. Always. Choose someone who you believe to be the best at their game and just ask them. I have two mentors outside of Silverado and I just asked them directly and they both said yes. Which reminds me, a big thank you to Irina Cortinas (owner of Elgin Physical Therapy) and Sherrie McBurney.
Regarding networking, use Linked In, Facebook and search by industry and location. When you are networking, be fully engaged and be genuinely curious, you never know who you’re going to meet or what their story is. Also, meet 3 new people anytime you go-that is why you are there!
The thing that has worked best for me is going to a couple networking events consistently. What you will find is that you get put on mailing lists and people are promoting other events there. Before you know it, you will have to choose between two great events!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.silverado.com/locations/barton-springs/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/16iRbpw5SJ/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/imani-simmons-pta-cdp-393290179/
Image Credits
Hugo Mata A., Jr. Photography
