Providence Mount St. Vincent and Providence Marianwood expand number of transitional care rehabilitation beds to meet community needs

Responding to a community need, Providence Mount St. Vincent and Providence Marianwood are adding beds to serve patients transitioning from the hospital to their home.

Providence Mount St. Vincent in West Seattle has expanded the number of transitional care rehabilitation beds from 20 to 58. Providence Marianwood in Issaquah has expanded from 29 to 57 transitional care beds.

"For many years, Providence Mount St. Vincent has operated as completely full in our rehabilitation unit. Yet, in strategic conversations with the local hospitals throughout the Seattle and surrounding areas they indicated that expanding our capacity was the highest priority in our goal to better serve the needs of their discharging patients," said Providence Mount St. Vincent Administrator Tom Mitchell.

Mitchell said this is happening because of changing trends in long-term healthcare. "People are choosing to live longer in their own homes, often to conserve rapidly declining resources, and some are waiting until their final years or very-high care need phases of life to enter assisted or skilled care settings. Aging Baby Boomers expect a greater number of options and entering a nursing home is low on their list," he said. "An increase of transitional care beds will assist in the recovery and rehabilitation following hospitalization of this growing population, which will choose to return to their homes."

Additionally, changes brought about through health care reform will increase demand and will lead to the formation of tighter partnerships with neighboring hospitals to maximize the care-efficiency from acute care to transitional care and then to home settings - as well as to minimize re-hospitalization, he said.

Providence Senior and Community Services, the organization that oversees Providence Mount St. Vincent and Providence Marianwood, is already well positioned to serve this population. It provides a full range of services to meet all the needs of the aging population post-hospitalization. This includes assisted living facilities, home care, PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly), supportive housing, hospice and palliative care, as well as partnerships with other community providers. By establishing a connected system of care and by keeping physicians involved all the way through, the cost of care should go down without negatively impacting quality of care.

"We look forward to serving the community with newly expanded transitional care units," Mitchell said.

About Providence Mount St. Vincent: Providence Mount St. Vincent in West Seattle offers older adults a loving home during the transition from independence to increasing reliance on the services, support, and compassion of others. Providence Mount St. Vincent, nationally recognized as a leader in the practice of resident-centered care and culture change in long-term care, is committed to providing programs and services that respect the personal values and dignity of each resident and program participant. For more information, go to www.providence.org/themount.

About Providence Marianwood: Providence Marianwood enjoys a superior reputation in the community for providing high-quality nursing care with love, compassion and respect for the dignity of all individuals. Operated by Providence Health & Services, Marianwood is the only not-for-profit skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in the Issaquah/Sammamish area. For more information, visit www.providencemarianwood.org.