Nation’s 1st Alzheimer’s-Only Center Opens in Los Alamitos

The first medical center in the nation designed to care exclusively for victims of Alzheimer’s disease officially opened Friday in Los Alamitos, although patients will not arrive until next month.

So far, 180 people have applied to become patients at the 148-bed John Douglas French Center for Alzheimer’s Disease. About 3 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s, a deterioration of the brain that leads to senility. The cause is unknown, but recent research indicates that genetics may play a role.

The applicants are being screened by doctors at the center, said medical director Stephen Read. The center was built by the nonprofit John Douglas French Foundation for Alzheimer’s Disease and National Medical Enterprises Inc., a private health services company that owns the Los Alamitos Medical Center.

“Today we celebrate hopes and dreams come true, a model of what people who care can achieve when they join hands with the private sector,” said Sen. Pete Wilson (R-Calif.), who spoke at the opening.

The center’s namesake, co-founder of the UCLA Brain Research Institute, will be one of the first patients admitted to the $10-million center.

“It was terrible to watch this beautiful man deteriorate before my eyes,” his wife, retired opera singer Dorothy Kirsten French, said in an interview. “But I’m very pleased that he will finish his days here.”

Tom Henry, executive director of the center, said patient costs will be $125 daily for a private room and $100 for a semi-private room, $25 for an 8-hour day-care program and $15 for a half-day program.