Last patients moved out of two New Bedford nursing homes
Last patients moved out of two New Bedford nursing homes An emotional day, closing day for two New Bedford nursing homes, Rockdale Care and Bedford Gardens. Financial problems forced the sudden shut down. Each home had just more than a week to move out 73 patients. NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WJAR) — Friday marked the scheduled closing day for two nursing homes in New Bedford that were forced to shut down over financial problems. As of 5 p.m., four patients remained at Rockdale Care, while all patients had been transferred out of Bedford Gardens a day prior. It was unclear if they would be moved out by the end of the day. The facility would remain open until they are transferred. It was an emotional day for the staff. “We’re all like family. It’s a family here. So, it’s devastating. It’s not right at all. It’s sad,” certified nursing assistant Tarisha DePina told NBC 10 News. “It was hard. It was emotional because a lot of the residents, they’ve been here about 20 years, more or less, and it’s just hurtful because a lot of them don’t have places to go and they all got places far away from their families and it’s just not right at all,” DePina said. Transport vans were moving patients out. Just last week, state health officials announced Rockdale Care, Bedford Gardens, and Bedford Village in New Bedford, Highland Manor in Fall River, and Dighton Care in Dighton would close. State officials said financial problems with nursing home owner Skyline Healthcare were putting patients at risk. Bills weren’t being paid. Bedford Gardens and Rockdale Care had a week to move everyone out, more than 70 residents in each home. “A week? You need to get families’ permission. They need to be screened. There’s so much that goes into discharging. And to do all that with 77 people in a week is insane,” said nurse Ruth Young. “What we care about are these people. They’ve been our responsibility for so long. We can’t just abandon them.” A spokesperson for the court-appointed receiver brought in to facilitate orderly closings of the nursing homes says it is trying to match patients with facilities that meet their needs for location and services. The other three homes are scheduled to close later this month. www.facebook.com/nancysworldnewsreporting/
#Bedford #Gardens #Rockdale #Hallmark #Nursing #skyline
