I chose to visit Terrace health and rehabilitation center, a long-term care facility located outside Gainesville off Interstate 75 in Kentucky. However, this was not my first visit to the facility. I had been a very regular visitor of the facility between June and August of 2014 often visiting my grandmother who had been diagnosed with defective heart valves earlier the same year. On all the previous visits, I had been accompanied by other family members. My earlier visits to the facility enabled me to familiarize myself with the staff and the facility's set-up. Consequently, I chose it for this assignment.
I was particularly drawn to the facility’s environment of compassion and the high standard of skilled nursing care they provided. I always admired the warmth and commitment of their professional staff who were not only geared towards ensuring a quality life for the patients but also encouraged support to the family members and friends. I was also captivated by the vast open courtyards and the highly comfortable lounge areas.
Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Center is on a mission to emerge as the leader in offering and fulfilling not only the needs of patients but also those of the family and community through the provision of quality service in a compassionate and professional way of caring. The facility also aspires to empower individual active involvement in decision-making on issues relating to care as well as personal well-being by enabling access to information and education. Furthermore, it seeks to provide resourceful leadership in an attempt to improve and raise community health.
In a bid to provide quality and personalized care, the facility is guided by goals that are allocated to each staff. In this case, each staff member works towards the purpose of identifying not only the needs but also the preferences of every resident in the facility. The facility also aims at providing a loving environment and a very compassionate patient care. Moreover, the facility works towards promoting quality and excellence in every department.
Quality and service are important core values on which the facility operates. The facility does this by providing information about the care condition and wellness to the residents, community, and the family. It encourages informed participation in decision-making on matters affecting the care and well-being of the residents. Another core value is respect and dignity. In pursuit of the value, Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre attempts to embrace both the residents and family as partners in the care process and often treating all with compassion. Besides, the facility strives to preserve resident privacy and confidentiality.
The facility also encourages collaboration among staff, residents, and between staff and community agencies. Moreover, the facility promotes entrepreneurship and innovative activities by attempting to identify and nature new ideas that would lead to effective and efficient care provision.
Another core value highly regarded by the facility is stewardship. In this case, appropriate allocation and use of resources at all levels of the organization for the required purposes is fundamental for the achievement of productivity within the facility.
Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre has a team of very experienced physicians, dietitians, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and pharmacists who are dedicated to the provision of care to each patient. Each member of the team monitors each patient’s medical needs using an individualized care plan.
Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre offers short-term rehabilitation therapy for patients following surgery, injury, or acute illness (The Terrace Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility. n.d., Short-term Rehabilitation Therapy, para, 1). The main aim of short-term rehabilitation therapy is to restore patient independence to enable them to resume daily normal activities promptly. This is facilitated by speech therapists, physical therapists, and occupational therapists.
The facility also offers post-hospital care, a service aimed at giving care to patients who are transitioning from hospital to home (The Terrace Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility. n.d., Post-Hospital Care, para. 1). In this case, it renders wound care management, post coronary bypass surgery care, pain management, pneumonia care, and respiratory therapy. It also provides skilled nursing care done by registered nurses, nursing assistants, and certified medication aides.
Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre also offers Long term nursing care and quality restorative services to patients with chronic illnesses, memory impairment, and physical limitations. In an attempt to achieve this, the facility focuses on the provision of dining program that is approved by a dietitian, safe designated places, and activities that create a supportive and caring environment.
Compassionate end-of-life care and hospice care is provided to patients who are in their final phase of life (The Terrace Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility. n.d., Compassionate End-of-life and Hospice Care, para. 1). This care focuses more on comfort rather than cure itself. The facility teams with local hospice care providers to manage patient symptoms, provide spiritual support, and create a compassionate environment.
During my visit to the facility, I interviewed some healthcare administrators to identify their roles and some of the challenges they face. I interviewed one geriatrician in this case. The primary role of geriatrician in the facility is overseeing the residents’ medical care and developing their care plans. Precisely, geriatricians in the facility were responsible for the development of care plans for the older residents.
My interaction with the facility nurse revealed that the facility had three levels of nurses within the facility. The registered nurses’ (RNs) main roles include assessing the resident health conditions, development of patient treatment plans, and supervising the Para-professional staff. Nurse practitioners (NPs), on the other hand, were responsible for conducting the physical examination on the patients, making urgent care patient visits, and prescribing medications to the residents of the facility. The Licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) were responsible for providing direct care for the patients by taking vital signs and administering medication to them.
I also interacted with an occupational therapist and a speech language pathologist both of who were employees within the facility. The occupational therapists are charged with the responsibility of helping the residents gain and develop valuable skills that are essential in daily life activities. They assist the elderly overcome disabilities associated with old age and enable the patients to perform leisure activities. Speech-language pathologists diagnose and treat speech, communication, language, and swallowing disorders.
In an attempt to ensure quality care for the patients, the facility hires highly qualified professional staff and provides them with appropriate facilities to render their services. The facility also provides housekeeping services and cable television programs (Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre, n.d.). It also provides transportation services including ambulance facilities. The facility further provides regular therapeutic meals and snacks. The facility’s residential rooms are fitted with advanced security systems to confer safety to the residents. Staff conducts and professionalism audit studies also ensure that each member of staff strives to provide best professional care within the facility.
References
Terrace Health and Rehabilitation Centre. (n.d.). Services. Retrieved from http://www.terrace-healthcare.com/services.htm
The Terrace Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility. (n.d.). Services. Retrieved from http://www.terraceky.com/?page_id=4
