Aloha … from BetheA shining star in nursing home care
After 25 years caring for area residents,
Dr. William Minsinger retires from Gifford
Menig Extended Care celebrates five years of state awards
RANDOLPH, June 26, 2009 – With shiny gold balloons bobbing near their heads and state officials before them, Menig Extended Care Facility residents Friday afternoon heard what they probably already knew – theirs is a quality nursing home, nearly unmatched in the state and special primarily for the committed and compassionate staff who work there.
Menig is Gifford Medical Center’s 30-bed nursing home in Randolph and on Friday it collected its fifth consecutive pair of annual state awards – the Nursing Home Quality Award from the Vermont Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (DAIL) and a Gold Star Employer Award from DAIL and the Vermont Health Care Association.
On hand to deliver the awards were DAIL Commissioner Joan Senecal, Division of Licensing and Protection Director Fran Keeler and Vermont Health Care Association Executive Director Laura Pelosi.
In introducing the state officials, Menig Director of Nursing Cindy Richardson said there was one reason the nursing home had such high quality, and that reason is its staff.
“I’m very proud to work with you. It’s your dedication to teamwork that make these awards possible,” said Richardson, naming not just the home’s nursing staff but housekeeping, maintenance, social services and kitchen personnel for contributing so much to residents’ quality of life. “Food services … that’s very important here, trust me,” Richardson exclaimed.
Senecal said she was glad that Richardson had thanked so many.
Indeed, Senecal said, “You would not be getting this award today if it wasn’t for everyone working together. It reflects the hard work, dedication and care provided here.”
Only five Nursing Home Quality Awards are available statewide each year, Senecal noted, and in both 2008 and 2009 only four nursing homes qualified for the difficult-to-achieve award. Menig was one of them each year. Also receiving the award in 2009 are The Manor Inc. in Morrisville, Derby Green Nursing Home in Derby and Mayo Healthcare Inc. in Northfield.
According to the award language it recognizes “outstanding nursing homes, which have met high standards of quality of care for Vermont’s nursing home residents.
“This award is granted based on results of health and life safety surveys, cost effectiveness, a lack of substantiated complaints and resident satisfaction survey results.”
Nursing homes must achieve a certain standard, a grade D or above, in each.
“I’m very proud to say that Menig not only met the bar, it far exceed it,” said Keeler, crediting the nursing home with achieving A ratings in all categories but one, where it earned a B.
Accompanying the award was a $22,081.55 check to be used to benefit residents.
The Gold Star Employer award is based in part on employees’ responses to work satisfaction surveys. Eighteen of the state’s 42 nursing homes received this award. Menig has received it each year it has been offered.
“The gold stars,” said Keeler, “ are the folks who make a facility what it is.”
Those folks are the staff, Keeler said.
A gold star employer retains those staff and staff retention, said Keeler, amounts to well-trained staff members providing better care and forming long-standing relationships with residents. That care and those relationships result in satisfied residents and leads to a quality facility.
Pelosi called the ceremony “a very exciting day” and thanked nursing home leaders for their continued efforts “to ensure an excellent workplace environment.”
Nursing home Administrator Linda Minsinger said supporting the terrific work done at Menig was the easy part, and jokingly called for “five more years” of quality recognitions.
But in fact, the nursing home is not in business to win awards, said Gifford President Joseph Woodin.
“We actually really don’t talk about winning this. We don’t strive to win this. It’s not the goal,” he said.
Providing quality care is the goal. The awards, he said, are a nice recognition of staff members’ efforts to achieve that goal.
Residents’ families have experienced that consistent, quality work often.
Sue Sytsma’s mother-in-law, Dora Bennett, lives in Menig, and Sytsma serves on the hospital’s Board of Trustees. It’s the former, however, that gives Sytsma an inside look at Menig.
“You catch this place at a moment in time when it’s not on display for the public and you realize that this place day in and day out is truly providing quality care,” she said, her voice breaking with emotion.
Polly Morrill called Menig “unique” for not only the way it treats her mother, resident Helen Billings, but for the way it treats her.
“I appreciate everything that’s ever been done for me and mom,” Morrill said.
She called the nursing home “excellent. I couldn’t ask for anything better.”
The event ended with nursing administrators and residents giving staff awards and – at a facility always focused on the residents – fittingly with toe-tapping country tunes from one of the residents’ favorite groups: the Peapickers.
Other awards
Menig, Orange County’s only nursing home, has also been awarded five stars on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services “Nursing Home Compare” site (medicare.gov) and has just been awarded a 2008 Excellence in Action award from resident satisfaction surveying company My InnerView. Menig was one of only 520 nursing homes nationwide to receive this award.
