Where the Lowcountry's Memory Care Units Are

Why the DPH flag matters

South Carolina has no separate memory care license. A building that runs a secured dementia program is described in Regulation 60-84 as having an Alzheimer's special care unit or program, and DPH's licensing data carries a flag for it. That flag is the most reliable way to separate a real secured program from a marketing phrase.

A second flag marks buildings that report Alzheimer's care without a secured unit. Those buildings may suit someone with early memory loss but usually not someone who wanders.

The list, by area

Source: S.C. DPH licensing data as of November 6, 2026.

What the list cannot tell you

DPH does not publish how many beds sit inside each secured unit, what memory care costs, or how many staff work on the unit at night. CareScout does not survey memory care prices anywhere. Those answers come only from the programs themselves.

South Carolina's Alzheimer's Special Care Disclosure Act requires every program that advertises dementia care to describe in writing what makes its care special: philosophy, admission and discharge, staffing and training, the physical environment and activities. Ask each building on your list for that document before touring.

Questions to bring on the tour

• How many licensed beds are inside the secured area?
• How many staff are on the unit at 2 a.m., and are they dedicated to it?
• How do staff handle exit-seeking and late-afternoon agitation?
• When would a resident have to move to a nursing home?
• What does the all-in monthly price include?
• Where does the unit evacuate in a hurricane, and how are residents with dementia kept calm during the move?

That last question is specific to the coast. Moving people with dementia is stressful under any conditions, and a good program will have thought about familiar staff, routines and comfort items during an evacuation.

Memory care in nursing homes

A few nursing homes also carry an Alzheimer's flag. Those matter for people with dementia who also need daily skilled nursing, such as wound care or complex medication management, which an assisted living building cannot provide. Their CMS ratings, staffing and inspection results appear on their directory pages.

When comparing nursing home dementia care, ask whether residents with dementia live on a separate unit, how staff are trained, and how the home avoids relying on antipsychotic medication to manage behavior.

Timing the move

Families often wait until a crisis, such as a fall, a wandering episode or a caregiver's collapse, forces a move within days. Touring two or three flagged units soon after a diagnosis gives time to compare calmly, join a waiting list and plan finances.

Some families choose a building with both standard assisted living and a secured unit, so a parent can move in while still fairly independent and transfer to the unit later without changing communities.

Using the list

Start with buildings near the family member who will visit most. Many families also prefer a building with both standard assisted living and a secured unit, so a spouse can stay nearby or a resident can move down the hall later. The full roster is on our memory care directory.