Ravenna – There’s a new administrator at Portage County’s nursing home, The Woodlands at Robinson in Ravenna. When Christa Mayes took the position on April 1, The Woodlands was home to 65 residents. As of April 29th, there were 80. The Woodlands is on the grow, so anyone considering short- or long-term nursing home care should visit before the 99-bed facility is at capacity, Mayes says.The Woodlands is in the process of taking admissions because one of Mayes’ primary objectives as new administrator is to increase the census. The other main objective is to get systems in place which will increase the nursing home’s efficiency and effectiveness. This includes increasing revenue, educating the staff, and increasing public awareness.Mayes — a Hiram Township resident — serves on the Ethics Committee at Robinson Memorial Hospital and comes to the Woodlands after 15 years in administration at Aurora Manor. While there, Portage County Commissioner Maureen Frederick had visited the Manor and noted how pleasant and clean the facility was. So when it came time for The Woodlands to hire a new administrator, Mayes was approached to help meet that need. The county nursing home has been located at 6831 North Chestnut St. in Ravenna for about 10 years. Portage County Commissioners oversee its operation, helping to set policies and guidelines. The facility features activity rooms, resident lounges, physical and occupational therapy suites, speech therapy, a central courtyard and an exterior activities terrace. Additional amenities include a full-service kitchen, beauty salon, dental office, two stories of resident rooms and a full basement for medical service and support for its occupants. Residents benefit also from a close relationship with Robinson Memorial Hospital and its medical services.“It’s a beautiful facility,” says Mayes. “It’s open, spacious, has lots of light, and the staff takes pride in being nurturing and caring, cheerful and friendly. Our focus is on care. We also have 100 volunteers that work here, which shows how supportive the community is.”According to The Woodlands website, “It is our primary goal to restore and maintain the health of our residents in a spirit of compassion and concern. The health care team strives to meet the holistic needs of our residents, including the physical, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of their care. We promote resident and family education to allow each individual the opportunity to prevent illness and achieve optimal health.”The Portage County nursing home offers short- and long- term medical care. This also includes skilled care for patients who need an individualized plan of progressive treatments and therapies while recuperating from a hospital stay. Typical circumstances for short-term rehabilitation services include recovering from knee or hip replacement, stroke, or broken bones; or needing intravenous antibiotics. The only requirement for consideration is that the patient requires around-the-clock skilled nursing care. The facility accepts Medicare, Medicaid, private insurances and private party payments.According to www.ucomparehealthcare.com, The Woodlands has an above-average rate of registered nurses per resident per day of 49 minutes compared to the Ohio state nursing home average of 36 minutes. The facility had 22 deficiencies in previous two state inspections (in 2006-2009) compared to the Ohio average of 11 and six complaints compared to the state average of three. The Woodlands had five fire safety deficiencies in the previous two state inspections, which is better than the Ohio state nursing home average of 11. Mayes says that The Woodlands just had “a great state survey” that demonstrates improvements over the previous two inspections. “Stop in for a tour and see the changes,” she encourages. The Woodlands will be reaching out to the community during National Nursing Home Week, May 8-14, with the theme, “Fulfilling the Promise.” Watch for event details in coming weeks.To schedule a tour or to learn more about what specific services are offered at The Woodlands, call (330) 297-4564 or (330) 298-4530 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.
