JULY 9, 2009 ISSUE
Business Spotlight
Glenbridge Health & Rehabilitation—Big Enough to Assure Excellent Care, Small Enough to Be Personable
“We have a very nice building and that’s very important. The facility lends itself to be organized and comfortable,” said Dr. Ray Moltz, a physical therapist at Glenbridge Health & Rehabilitation, which is a provider of skilled and intermediate nursing services to High Country residents. Photos by Sam Calhoun
“If your grandma or grandfather needed to come to a place like this,” explained Dr. Ray Moltz, “you’d want it to be safe, comfortable, and you’d want to know everyone was friendly, not mean at all…”
“And you’d want it to be clean,” interrupted a resident passing by on his way to an activity in one of the facility’s living rooms. “It is. It’s very clean,” the resident assured, before wheeling off down the hall.
“This place is all of that,” reiterated Moltz, a physical therapist at Glenbridge Health & Rehabilitation, which is a provider of skilled and intermediate nursing services to High Country residents. “You see, we’re big enough to provide all the services, but small enough to be personable.”
Since 1977, Glenbridge Health & Rehabilitation has been the “caring part of the community,” per its mission statement. Formerly known as Watauga Nursing Center and Glenstone Healthcare, Glenbridge, over the years, has changed names and locations, but its mission has remained constant—to provide high quality care to each of its many residents, while providing a comfortable and supportive environment that most closely resembles that which they would find in a caring home setting.
Glenbridge’s administrator and owner is Scott Borum, who has guided the business into the 21st century with a new, larger, more comfortable and better-outfitted facility, which opened in 2001 and is located at 211 Milton Brown Heirs Road in Boone. Borum has led the way in transferring all residents’ medical records to computerized, which helps Glenbridge staff, as well as other doctors, to better serve their clientele.
Glenbridge is home to a constant population of 144 residents—“We stay at capacity,” said Julie Getty, director of marketing and advertising—and 140 staff, including licensed nurses, trained and certified nursing assistants, a medical director, licensed physicians, a registered dietician, a dietary manager, a hair stylist and activity directors. Some of Glenbridge’s staff has been with the company for more than 20 years.
“Our strength is our staff,” said Moltz. “We have a very dedicated staff—really good nurses.”
Glenbridge’s services can be broken into four categories—rehabilitation, long-term care, assisted living and outpatient therapy.
Glenbridge offers physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. A majority of residents utilize short-term rehabilitation, such as for knee and hip surgeries, and most residents—about 86 percent, according to Getty—return home after treatment. The other 14 percent stay for long-term care, said Getty.
“For physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, we help the residents get back to their baseline while improving their strength and skills,” said Getty.
Currently, ten physical therapists, seven occupational therapists and six speech pathologists staff the facility, which includes tools for therapy such as exercise balls, parallel bars, stairs, a full kitchen and a bathroom with safety bars.
“We believe that if you can do it safely here, you can do it safely at home,” added Moltz, as he showed off the facility.
Ten local physicians regularly make rounds at Glenbridge to help with and check on the progress of residents. As a new service, Glenbridge offers outpatient therapy, providing an alternative to outpatient services at the Wellness Center. To enroll, patients need to call Glenbridge after receiving a physician’s order for therapy.
If residents don’t need critical care but would like to reside at Glenbridge, the facility features a 20-room assisted living wing. The rest of the facility features eight private rooms and 76 double rooms for residents, as well as two large living rooms and a foyer for greeting guests. Glenbridge also features an exam room, laboratory and x-ray services, 24-hour nurses, hospice care, pharmacy services, on-site hair care, cable television and telephone service, supplemental nourishment therapy, IV hydration services, IV medication services, oxygen therapy, on-site dental services, ophthalmology services, psychological services and therapeutic recreational services.
“We offer activities daily. We try and hit the needs of every client who enters our doors,” said Getty.
Recreational options abound at Glenbridge. In addition to the normal bingo and arts and crafts offerings, Glenbridge features a garden for residents to use, numerous cookouts, holiday celebrations, monthly birthday parties, Sunday school, exercise classes, an annual fishing trip and a Nintendo Wii for fun and games. Often, ASU music department students and local church choirs stop by to play music, and in the fall and spring, residents host bazaars where they sell arts and crafts to locals in order to make money to go on more outings.
“And we actually have really good food, too,” said Getty. “We don’t just pull anything from the freezer and heat it up,” she laughed.
Glenbridge’s kitchen staff prepares meals for 144 residents three times every day, plus snacks and food for employees. That calculates to 432 meals per day. What’s more, the staff, said Getty, “handles all of [the residents’] wishes and dietary needs. Can you imagine?”
“Food is pretty good,” said a resident, who is approaching three years as a Glenbridge resident. “These people have been real good to me, real nice to me. I’ve also made a lot of friends.”
Glenbridge Health & Rehabilitation is located at 211 Milton Brown Heirs Road in Boone. Glenbridge accepts payment from Medicare, Medicaid, private payment, hospice and private insurance. For more information, click to www.glenbridge.org or call 828-264-6720.
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