Editorial
Front Page - Friday, January 8, 2010
St. Barnabas provides comprehensive living facilities for the aging
David Laprad
As cheers go up across Chattanooga to herald the arrival of new industry, people continue to plug away at places that have served the city for decades. Some of these institutions rose out of visionary leadership and have survived many difficult years, primarily due to the support of the Chattanooga community. These places
couldn’t have been built anywhere else because the people who gave them life lived here, and they couldn’t exist anywhere else because the city they serve is unique.
St. Barnabas is one such place.
The nursing home opened its doors on Pine Street almost 45 years ago. The first nonprofit residence for the elderly in the area, St. Barnabas initially offered 85 skilled nursing beds. A year later, a 10-story apartment building appeared alongside the first edifice, and its people went to work.
They’re still working today, and St. Barnabas is still growing. In 2007, St. Barnabas Nursing Home moved into freshly built quarters on Siskin Drive, while St. Barnabas Apartments and Assisted Living took over the original accommodations, giving residents the ability to go from independent living, to assisted living, to skilled nursing, under one conceptual roof. CEO and administrator David Wildgen says this continuum of care offers senior citizens a rare opportunity to age in place.’
“Our residents change locations according to their needs, but they remain within the same social environment,” he says. “That’s a good thing. It’s important to be with people you know and love. Research shows that people who live in protected environments live longer,
happier lives.”
Good health care helps, too. To that end, the 109-bed Siskin facility is split between residents who will live out their remaining days under skilled nursing care and other patients who require short-term rehabilitation. “We call them patients because they don’t want to live here for the rest of their lives,” Wildgen says. “They want to go home.”
Wildgen is so confident in St. Barnabas’ therapy program, he says he’d put his more than 30 physical, occupational and speech therapists up against any other skilled nursing program in Tennessee. “Our staff is deep and experienced,” he says. “We have two speech therapists, whereas most other places don’t have any.”
Another unique feature of St. Barnabas is its foundation in the values of the Episcopal Church. The nursing home began life on the deathbed of a client of attorney Jack Chambliss. As Wildgen tells the story, the woman was unhappy with her experiences in a local nursing home and urged Chambliss to do everything he could to create a quality facility for Chattanooga. Then Chambliss enlisted the help of Rev. John Bonner Jr. of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, who put together a development committee consisting of several community leaders.
While the rest is history, the Episcopal roots of the nursing home remain in place. Consequently, the staff at St. Barnabas considers their work to be a healing ministry, one that provides quality health care and retirement living within an environment of compassion.
“We want our residents to get out of bed in the morning and feel like they have worth and that people are glad they’re alive,” Wildgen says.
Doing so requires St. Barnabas to maintain a less constrictive environment than nursing homes have a reputation for having. “One of the myths about nursing homes is that they’re a prison,” Wildgen says. “We have a more open environment.”
Residents are even encouraged to participate in councils through which they can communicate needs and concerns to the staff.
And no one is placed at a level of care above what they need. “If someone can do well under assisted living, we won’t put them in a nursing home bed,” Wildgen says.
The result is a dynamic retirement community that feels less like an institution and more like a family. When Christmas rolled around, for example, employees and board members made sure each resident received a gift. And the resident council at the Pine Street location pooled its resources to provide the staff there with Christmas bonuses.
While St. Barnabas might sound idyllic, Wildgen says working there “is not for the weak of heart.” There are financial challenges to overcome, and with talk of the government cranking down reimbursement levels even further, things could get worse. And, Wildgen says half jokingly, the only places more regulated than nursing homes are nuclear power plants.
Regardless, St. Barnabas stands strong, making a $5 million annual contribution to
the Chattanooga community through its payroll. “The economic impact of that money is significant,” Wildgen says. “We’re a major employer in the area.”
As cheers go up across Chattanooga to herald the new Riverfront, the rejuvenated downtown area and the arrival of Volkswagen, other places that have served the city for decades are still plugging away, doing their part to make Chattanooga a great place to live. St. Barnabas is one such place.
To learn more, visit www.st-barnabas.com.
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