Longterm Care Facility - Research Paper Example

Life care center of Hickory Woods al Affiliation: This nursing home provide medical nursing care for seniors who have chronic illnesses or are disable and operates for 24 hours a day. The nursing home employs registered nurses, practical nurses who are licensed and also certified nurse aids. This center further takes care of different kinds of patients who require either short term or long term medical and nursing supervision. In addition, this nursing home offers a specialized program that caters for patients suffering from Alzheimer and other illnesses on the basis of request to access care away from home.

The facility consists of 124 beds thus; making this care center larger compared to the average of 114 beds required by the Tennessee state. This facility can be found at Antioch, TN 37013. The facility can be contacted through the number (615) 501-3500, and the federal provider number is 445507. Further, this care center accommodates patients that are covered with Medicaid or Medicare. The owners of this nursing home do not own other care centers, and this nursing home has been registered as a profit-corporation (Life Care Center of Hickory Woods, 2013).

Being a long term care facility, Hickory Woods require adequate residential facilities that are spacious and consists of private or rooms that are shared. The facility should be well equipped to provide services such as personal care, provide meals and have caregivers work throughout to assist resident clients or patients. Further, the facility should provide space to accommodate both medical and nursing care for resident clients or patients. As a facility that accommodates different types of patients and clients such as the elderly, the building should be in the form of a multi-residence care facility that provide the required services by the senior citizens.

In essence, the facility needs to allocate apartments if possible for every couple or resident clients. Additional facilities within the building should include areas for gatherings, rooms for hospice care and areas allocated for recreational activities. The community need at Hickory Woods should consist of services required by senior citizens and their family members within the Tennessee state (Berryman, Palmer, Kohl & Parham, 2013). The community needs in this case may consist of such services like elderly care, and also living arrangements, among other services.

Further, Hickory Wood should take into considerations community needs such as care for the retired and campuses that can provide a continuum of care. Special needs of the senior citizens that the nursing home should take into consideration also include Alzheimer’s care and the availability of an in-home nursing care. Rehabilitation is also an important community need for the senior citizens in the sense that, the community is exposed to unexpected twists. This includes accidents, emergency surgeries and illnesses that may occur suddenly, and aftermath of such incidence require recovery.

As a need, the nursing home should focus also in providing rehabilitation to help patients to return to their normal life. The services that can be provided in this sense include therapy services to hasten recovery. It is often difficult for family members to let significant others be admitted in a nursing home, but because of unavoidable circumstances, the nursing home provides the best alternative for the elderly to recuperate from illnesses or spend their old age. This is a community need in the sense that, within the nursing home, the elderly can find solace in other residents instead of feeling isolated while at home where everyone is often busy with little time to provide care and support (Zhang, Gammonley, Seung & Frahm, 2008).

Life care centers such as the Hickory Woods is significant to the community because, it provides the elderly with a place to call home. The center has skilled staff who are able to cater for the needs of the elderly both without and those with serious illness. In the same centers, the senior citizens are able to access psychological help in accepting old age and to live with integrity rather than despair. The type of population serviced by the life care center such as the Hickory Woods includes clients who need daily care.

This include clients who cannot support themselves as a result of certain disabilities resulting from old age, accidents or serious illnesses. The services provided to this population include personal care, assistance with medication, laundry and also housekeeping. In addition, the elderly often form a larger part of the community served by life care centers. This is because most senior citizens are in need for personal care which in most cases, is not accessible while in the home environment.

However, the life care centers provides different services that are suitable for persons experiencing the challenges resulting from old age. Old age is often accompanied by various challenges that include illnesses, social isolation, disability and psychological trauma. These elderly citizens at a point, may lack support from significant others and the available local programs within the community may not provide adequate assistance. In this regard, senior residents who require full time help prefer admission in a residential facility where they can access long-term care from a skilled staff (Berryman, Palmer, Kohl & Parham, 2013).

In conclusion, a large contingent of the population served by life care centers such as the Hickory Woods include patients requiring specialized care. This specialized programs cater for patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease, or other forms of dementia common among the elderly. References Berryman, Sandra N.; Palmer, Sheri P.; Kohl, James E.; Parham, Jon S. (2013).Medical Home Model of Patient-Centered Health Care. MEDSURG Nursing, Vol. 22(3): pp. 166-196. Life Center Care of Hickory Woods. (2013). Retrieved 18 Dec, 2013, from http://nursing- homes.

findthebest.com/l/16872/Life-Care-Center-of-Hickory-Woods Zhang, Ning Jackie; Gammonley, Denise; Seung Chun Paek; Frahm, Kathryn.(2008).Facility Service Environments, Staffing, and Psychosocial Care in Nursing Homes. Health Care Financing Review, Vol. 30(2): pp. 5-17.