Individuals in skilled nursing settings often have chronic medical conditions that require 24-hour monitoring. They need support and assistance for all activities of daily living (ADL’s)-such as physical assistance with transfers, ambulation, bathing, dressing, feeding, and toileting.

An instrument that can help determine which level of care is appropriate and is required to be considered for admission to any nursing home in New York State, is called a PRI, a Patient Review Instrument. These can be done for an out of pocket cost and are most often completed by a home health care agency or privately hired case management agency or care manager. If your loved one is currently in the hospital or another nursing home, a PRI can be completed there.

It is important to have open discussions with your loved ones about their wishes in relation to their health care directives and planning for the possibility of needing to enter a skilled nursing facility.

You will need several types of documents at your disposal:

• Health Care Proxy
• Power of Attorney
• A Living Will
• MOLST forms (Medical Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment) are encouraged to be completed by potential residents so the facility providers have clear documentation of the individual’s wishes for treatment. MOLST forms can be completed with your Primary Care Physician or a hospital or nursing home physician.

With so many different types of insurances, it is best to contact your insurance company to learn about your benefit package for skilled nursing services when you are pre- planning or in need of a stay for short –term rehabilitation.

For long-term care, it varies depending on the individual’s needs.

Call, and we would be happy to discuss details about you or your loved one’s situation to best help determine your coverage and what costs could be incurred.

Medicare is a health insurance plan, funded by the federal government, based on eligibility, which primarily covers hospitalizations and outpatient services. In most cases it covers the first 20 days in full of a short-term rehabilitation stay if the individual has had an acute 3-night inpatient hospital stay.

Medicaid is a health insurance plan funded by New York State to income eligible individuals. Chronic care Medicaid can help with the costs of long-term nursing home care once the person’s insurance/financial resources are exhausted.

Yes. Residents diets, as prescribed by the physician based on the individual’s specific medical/nutritional needs, are monitored by our full-time dietician. The dietician works in conjunction with the nursing staff and medical providers (NP, MD) to ensure the resident’s nutritional needs are met.

24-hour nursing staff including nurses and certified nursing assistants, nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician services from the Strong Health Geriatric Group (the NP’s are there M-F, MD 3 days/week, someone always on call evenings/weekends/holidays). Other medical consultants are available as needed (dentist, podiatry, audiology, and ophthalmology). They will also have a household specific nursing administrator, social worker, and activities director. They may also interface with physical/occupational/speech therapists & a dietician.

Each floor has its own activities director. Activities vary by week and time of year. Regularly offered activities include:

• Bingo
• Trivia challenges
• Outings for lunch
• Musical performers
• Religious services
• Crafts
• Pet Visits