HELEN PORTER HEALTHCARE AND REHABILITATION CENTER
(From our most recent 2008 Annual Report to the Community)
(View printable brochure about Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center.)

Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center

A Positive Start to the Fiscal Year The new fiscal year at Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center (HPHRC) began with the good news that the Vermont Health Care Association had named HPHRC Chaplain Lucy Pellegrini as the “Chaplain of the Year” in the State of Vermont. Pellegrini has served in this role at Helen Porter since 2000, and was nominated for this award by Pam Puccia, Director of Clinical Services.

According to Puccia, “Lucy never waivers as she develops relationships with those in need, and she is never far from one’s side or from their heart.” Without a doubt, Lucy personifies the level of commitment and compassion that exists throughout the staff at HPHRC—and we are very proud of her, and of every member of our Helen Porter team, who provide outstanding care to our residents.

Electronic Medical Record System Introduced

From high touch to high tech—Helen Porter unveiled a new Electronic Medical Record system early in FY 2008. The new system has radically transformed how clinical and financial information is stored and made available for a variety of uses to improve resident care and operational efficiency according to HPHRC administrator, Neil Gruber. “The new system fundamentally changes the process of medical record keeping by allowing any appropriate staff member to enter and retrieve data through an easy to use software program.” Information ranging from Individualized Care Plans, Physician Orders and Nursing Assessment forms are now integrated with Accounts Receivable, General Ledger and Accounts Payable information—allowing immediate access to all pertinent information without the “massive paperwork” previously required. “Long term care involves many caring professionals spending time with residents and meeting their medical and social needs”, Gruber said. “In recent years, we have found that we are spending more and more time filling out forms and capturing the same information in multiple systems—this is time that cannot be spent providing direct patient care.” He added, “We are extremely proud of our staff for embracing this significant change and the up front work that has been required to improve resident care and efficiency.”

Promoting Health Careers for Area Youth

Career opportunities for young people in a variety of health care fields abound, both locally and nationally— and it is anticipated that these opportunities will continue to increase in the future.

Thus, a new and innovative partnership forged between Porter and the Helen Porter Healthcare And Rehabilitation Center Hannaford Career Center in Middlebury represents a major step in providing Addison County students with exposure, experience and specific training in support of their interest in a career in a nursing home or hospital setting. The new Health Career Program, based at Hannaford Career Center, will provide both classroom exposure and clinical exposure (in the hospital and nursing home settings). “The education and retention of a medical workforce from within the Addison County community is essential” said Lynn Coale, Director of the Hannaford Career Center.

“The career opportunities that will be created for our students will be extremely valuable and will provide them with career options that will allow them to live and work right here in our community in a rewarding job that pays well with good benefits.” In addition to this partnership, Helen Porter was awarded a $14,000 grant from the Vermont Department of Labor to support three local courses to train 18-24 new Licensed Nurse Assistants. These courses are also being offered via a collaborative effort between Porter and the Hannaford Career Center.

Community Outreach and Education Programs

A new initiative by the Dementia Special Care Unit staff at Helen Porter has been the offering of free community education programs on topics having to do with memory loss and caring for a loved one who is experiencing early stages of dementia. As the fiscal year came to a close, Dr. William Pendlebury— Medical Director of the Memory Center at Fletcher Allen Health Care, provided a presentation to more than 100 members of our community entitled “The Latest Strategies for Diagnosing Early Stage Alzheimer’s Disease”. On an ongoing basis, staff members from Helen Porter and Porter Hospital now provide monthly memory screenings in a program entitled “Memory Tuesdays”. This is a new program offering free, private screenings for people who have concerns about their memory. It screens for Mild Cognitive Impairment, which is memory loss that is a persistent and troublesome problem vs. normal memory loss.

There are three distinct areas of service within the walls of HPHRC- traditional long-term care, short-term rehabilitation and a Dementia Special Care Unit-each providing a unique component of the total continuum of care available here in Addison County.

Working in close collaboration with the Discharge Planning staff of Porter Hospital and representatives of other area health and human service agencies, the short-term rehabilitation staff strives to make smooth and productive transitions for patients either from the hospital and eventually home...or perhaps from their home for a short stay and then back again..through a variety of physical, speech and occupational therapy services. It is a busy and important component of HPHRC and our overall mission.

The Dementia Special Care Unit offers specialized care, programs and staff with specific skills for people suffering from Alzheimer's Disease or other memory impairments. With unique elements including full-size wall murals depicting street scenes from years gone by...secure access to the landscaped courtyard.and programming designed to maximize quality of life...the staff on this Unit have earned a reputation throughout the State of Vermont as offering the highest level of compassionate care. During the past year, leaders from this Unit have reached out into the community to offer free educational programs on Alzheimer's Disease and how to support a loved one suffering from memory loss. These programs have been well-received and have further positioned HPHRC as a community leader in programs for the elderly in the region.

Eastview Retirement Community

The proposed "Eastview Retirement Community" is a separate organization outside of the corporate structure of Porter Medical Center-but the positive implications to our organization are so significant that we have chosen to include this project within the context of this report.

A marketing survey conducted by the Eastview project developers very early in the process of investigation indicated a strong interest among Addison County residents for a high quality retirement community with connections to Porter Medical Center.  More important, early marketing activity during the summer and fall of 2005 resulted in well over 100 "priority list" deposits of $1,000 each-80% coming from current Addison County residents-demonstrating that there is in fact a need and desire among local people to remain in our community as they age.

The still evolving relationship between Eastview (which is now governed by a local and separate not-for-profit board of directors) and PMC will be both "tangible" in terms of annual lease payments for the property adjacent to our campus that will be the home of this new community.and "symbiotic" as it relates to the addition of a new form of retirement housing and elder care services that expand the existing long-term care continuum.

Through the generosity of Middlebury College, the land adjacent to our Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center was added to the existing land lease between the College and Porter Medical Center at no cost to Porter.  This has facilitated the creation of a sublease between PMC and Eastview that will produce significant revenue in support of the community mission, services and programs offered by our organization to the people of Addison County via Porter Hospital and Helen Porter. Given the chronic and very real financial challenges facing HPHRC as outlined earlier in this report, it is not difficult to understand the potential importance of these funds in supporting the operations of Helen Porter and providing a more dependable source of funds.

In addition to the potential financial benefit in support of our mission, aging members of our community will have an option to remain in Addison County, among their friends, family and neighbors-and continue to be active members of our community while enjoying the benefits of a community designed to meet their needs.

The PMC and HPHRC boards recognized the many benefits to our local community and to our mission; and have been supportive of developing this relationship and ensuring that this is a project that will enhance the quality of life for our citizens.