SunnyBrook opens first of new rooms

SunnyBrook Living Care Center recently opened the first of several ?pods? for new residents and is moving ahead with plans to open more.

The first pod is made up of 14 private rooms for residents, a sitting room, television room, game room, dining room, shower, nurses station and more on the second floor of the former Jefferson County Hospital building in the wing that housed the physical therapy department.

?We?re really excited,? said Betty Howell, SunnyBrook Living Care Center owner. ?We?ve really worked hard for this.?

Howell said the rooms, furnished with state-of-the-art oak furniture and wall-mounted flat-screen televisions, can be decorated by residents for a personal, homey touch.

?I love it here,? said Louise Schillerstrom, who lives in one of the new rooms. ?I?ve loved it since the very first day.?

Residents have access to snacks, like cookies and chips throughout the day, and can even cook their own food in the full kitchen of former physical therapy room.

?They can bake cookies and cupcakes and make their own macaroni and cheese,? said Howell.

The staff arranges outings for residents to places like the Dutchman?s Store in Cantril where they can make their own purchases and to church suppers where they can visit with friends and family. The residents also sometimes stay up until 10 or 10:30 p.m. playing cards.

?They have a life,? said Howell. ?It?s awesome to see that. We?ve tried extremely hard to create a homelike atmosphere in a skilled-nursing environment.?

SunnyBrook officials are now planning the next set of rooms to be opened, and eventually, the entire building will be filled with rooms for residents, said Howell.

Within the next year, Howell said SunnyBrook hopes to open a restaurant at the Living Care Center.

?It will be a real restaurant where a family can take their loved one to enjoy a nice steak dinner without having to worry about how to get their loved one out to a restaurant,? said Howell.

The Living Care Center also has a gift shop with fresh and silk flowers, stuffed animals and knick-knacks in the former Hospital Auxiliary Gift Shop area of the old hospital.

?It?s nice to be able to access this if someone needs a quick gift for a resident who isn?t feeling well or needs a pick-me-up,? said Howell. ?The residents themselves can get the staff to let them in at any time they need something.?

?They actually help run it,? added Judy Qualters, the administrative assistant at SunnyBrook Living Care Center. ?They like doing it, and it gives them something else to do.?

In addition to opening a restaurant and more resident rooms, SunnyBrook also plans to offer outpatient therapies.

Howell said one therapy service would focus on lymphedema, the swelling that occurs in an arm or leg that is caused by a blockage in the lymphatic system, a part of the immune and circulatory systems.

Another therapy service would concentrate on hands and could be beneficial to a person recovering from carpal tunnel surgery, she continued.

SunnyBrook Assisted Living took control of Jefferson County Hospital?s Living Care Center when the hospital moved to its new facility in April 2009. The State Health Facilities Council granted SunnyBrook?s request to expand its number of beds by 50, but Parkview Care Center administrator and owner Ed Osby challenged it because he thought the number should be based on demographics, as well as the availability of employees to provide care.

Since a Polk County district court judge made a bench decision allowing the beds in March 2010, SunnyBrook has been moving forward to get the additional rooms set up.

?A lot of people have been very patient,? said Howell. ?It will be three years on April 18 that we?ve been patiently waiting for our 50 beds.?

Howell said SunnyBrook Living Care Center is hosting a Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce?s Business After Hours from 5-7 p.m. Thursday.

?We?d love people to drop by and take a tour to see what we?ve accomplished,? said Howell.

The theme for the evening will be ?State Fair,? and SunnyBrook will be offering state-fair style food, like corn dogs, pizza, popcorn, funnel cakes, ice cream and cold beverages.

Door prizes, a clown and balloons also are planned as part of the festivities.