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OpinionSUNDAY NIGHT - New nursing home is about quality of lifeBy MaryHelen Swanson, editor You have to use the bathroom that you and three others share. If itís available, youíll need a nurse or someoneís help because if you get your wheelchair to the door of the bathroom, it wonít fit inside. And although the room is tiny, youíll need assistance to get from your chair to the commode. So now thatís two people in that tiny room. There is no dignity in being helped onto the toilet. You made it to the bathroom this time, but with three others sharing it, and a busy staff, perhaps next time you wonít. Or at the least, youíll have to sit uncomfortable until someone can come and help you. This can happen at Green Acres. It Itís not that care is lacking; the staff is well-trained and knowledgeable. It is their job and their desire to make the people in their care comfortable. I bring this to you today because time has come for the public meetings on the future of Green Acres. For the past two years the county, owner of the facility, has been studying, through consultants, the current situation of a building that was constructed in part in the 50s, 60s and 70s. It has been determined that the building either needs extensive remodeling or replacement. The needed improvements are not hidden in a basement or attic. Common sense tells you that to create a facility to meet new goals of the state, a lot of extensive work will have to be done. Moving plumbing, knocking out walls, replacing aging infrastructure is costly. There are only two small elevators in the entire facility. I rode on both the other day. One made strange noises, was cold and moved so slowly I wasnít sure I was going to get to the next floor. In an emergency, it would be a fiasco trying to evacuate the residents down these two elevators. While there are fire doors, there is virtually no sprinkling system. The county moved along with plans to rebuild when it was learned that it would cost nearly as much to remodel as to build new. But the public was not included in the boardís decisions enough to understand what was going on. One reason for the push was a program that offered funding to nursing homes for renovations and rebuilding as part of the stateís long-term care reform initiative. Itís not a loan or even grant, itís a process that gives the facility authority to increase room rates $15 per day to provide the $12 million needed to build the facility. Seventy percent of current residents are covered by Medicaid, so the cost of their stay is paid half by the state and half by the federal government. The county, however, would have to bond for this money upfront. The Board of Social Ministry, the current contracted operator of Green Acres, said it will guarantee the lease payments, with which the bonds will be paid, for 10 years. It appears no county tax dollars will be used to pay the bonds. Other funds will of course be needed, including land costs and furnishings. To garner these funds, the county needs to sell the Green Acres site. It would be sold by the bid process. The county is anticipating no less than $10,000 per acre for the site. According to Steve Mork, former director of Green Acres, and the person mainly responsible for putting together the proposal for the new facility, a small area would not be sold, that being the graveyard. When you look at the material provided at the public meetings, you will see a source called ìcounty reserves.î This is actually the Green Acres fund reserves, about $1.2 million, which is used for capital improvements. This money comes from a percentage of the nursing home revenue from room rates. Again, this is not county tax dollars. This reserve fund is included in the revenue source for the new home, thus it would be depleted. The Board of Social Ministry, as operator of the new facility, would then be responsible for capital needs in the future. Mork said there should not be many for at least 10 years. At a presentation of the information about the project at the Chisago County Senior Center in North Branch last week, the folks there were excited about a new facility. It did not appear to be a matter of them having been persuaded by the presentation. Many already were familiar with the conditions at Green Acres, having visited friends and relatives or volunteered there. In fact, it appears that a survey of senior citizens a couple of years ago was correct in that the folks want a nicer place to live when the time comes. If youíve had loved ones in nursing homes, and Iíve had five in six different homes, you know how you wish their living conditions could be improved. You feel very guilty for leaving them in half of a tiny room, with little space to keep any personal belongings. But you leave them there because they need to be there. And you go home and pretend that theyíre happy and content. A major sticking point to the whole project is the location. Much emphasis is being placed on convenience, visibility, and marketability. Some people donít think the county should sell the 100 acres in exchange for 20. Others are saying the situation is ìback in the woodsî or ìout in the community.î Pressing for location should not be the point. Pressing for a modern nursing home should be the impetus for going forward. Plans include a medical clinic adjacent to the nursing home. Both Fairview and Allina were contacted to see if they were interested in building a new facility connected to the home. Fairview is. It does makes sense to have the clinic nearby. Thatís where you can have around you those possessions that remind you of the life you lived, and of the person you were and still are. And ... still get help when help is needed. Should the county be in the nursing home business? Of the 400 plus nursing homes in Minnesota, 54 are owned by government units: municipalities or counties. Recently, one was closed by a county, one was sold by a county, and two were taken over by a government unit. I encourage you all to attend one of the four meetings coming up to hear for yourself about the project. The county is allowing ample time for public discussion, according to the meeting agenda. While I myself do not find all of the reasoning relevant, I do know this is a good opportunity to provide people with a fine place to recuperate from illness or accident, to live with assistance, and most importantly, to live with a little more dignity when the days of our lives are numbered. Iím a taxpayer, too, I hope that county taxes wonít be needed to accomplish this project, but if they are, what better way to use my dollars than to make life better for our elderly. I can change the color of my hair, purple if I like, I can change my clothes. Even if I were green, I could dye my skin, but I canít stop getting older. And when I do, or my husband or best friend does, and we need a quality place in which to live and be cared for until we donít need to change anything any more, I hope there is that fine facility here in Chisago County. ©ECM Post Review |