It’s been a year of change for Hamilton Grove Healthcare and Rehabilitation in Hamilton. Formerly the Mercer County Geriatric Center, Hamilton Grove, a rehabilitation and long-term care center, has been renovating and developing their building, staff and equipment since December 2010.
Vice president Joe Kiernan said the rehabilitation center has a plan to put $10 million into renovations and improvements into the building, as well as into program development. So far, the renovations include the Hamilton Unit with fully renovated rooms for patients, new landscaping with a new sign and increased staffing.
Kiernan said the staff at Hamilton Grove is one of the most important improvements made thus far.
“We’ve hired new specialized, specially trained staff members for patients requiring complex rehabilitation,” he said. “We have a great focus on hiring and retaining the best staff possible.”
One project that Hamilton Grove will undertake in the next phase of renovation is a new therapy gym with equipment that will be able to handle and provide therapy services for an array of needs. Hamilton Grove provides physical, occupational and speech therapy seven days a week, and patients are given therapy as much as twice a day.
“We are very aggressive in helping patients return back to their prior level of functioning or with an improved level of functioning after therapy,” Kiernan said.
The gym will have a focus on needs for patients with cardiac and orthopedic needs.
In addition to the therapeutic renovations, Hamilton Grove has implemented a new dining program, allowing patients to choose from multiple meal options. There is a great emphasis on healthy eating as well as meeting dietary restrictions, such as diabetic diets, cardiac diets and low-fat or low-sodium diets.
Patients and residents of Hamilton Grove also benefit from the personal interactions and high level of personal care that the company expects from its staff.
“It’s easy for a nurse to provide medical care, but to have that nurse actually care about the person, and not just the diagnosis, that sets us apart,” Kiernan said.
This personal care is aided by the guest services coordinator on staff who makes sure that guests’ and their families’ needs are taken care of. From organizing birthday parties for visiting grandchildren to going out and buying a special requested magazine, the guest services coordinator keeps the patients feeling happy and at home.
One of the next projects to be completed is the renovation of 38 sub acute rooms. These large, private rooms are used for patients who have just come from a stay in the hospital.
In addition to the sub acute rooms, three signature programs will be implemented. These programs, along with the rooms, will be unveiled in the spring 2012.
The Hamilton Grove staff doesn’t plan on slowing down on its improvements, either in renovations or community outreach. For example, the center offers monthly bingo games and bus trips to Atlantic City, both free to the community.
Hamilton Grove is also developing support groups and free educational seminars on topics such as women’s heart health, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Kiernan is optimistic about Hamilton Grove’s development and role in the community.
“We want to be the best that we can be,” he said. “We feel that we are the premiere nursing and rehabilitation provider in the area.”
Hamilton Grove is located at 2300 Hamilton Ave. in Hamilton. For information about support groups or community events, contact director of community relations Denise Dougherty directly by calling her cell phone at (609) 947-8781.
Vice president Joe Kiernan and director of community relations Denise Dougherty inspect some blueprints for Hamilton Grove’s new sub acute unit. (Staff photo by Maddie Weinland.)
Newly renovated rooms in Hamilton Grove feature flat screen TVs and phones with preprogrammed buttons. (Staff photo by Maddie Weinland.)
