When Bertie Loveday came to Life Care Center of Morristown on March 1, 2013, she was not able to bear weight on her hip and needed help with her bed mobility. However, two weeks of seven-day-a-week physical therapy helped her rebuild the strength and range of motion she needed.

“It was good for me to have therapy every day instead of going home right away,” said Loveday. “The therapists really helped me make progress with my hip. Lanz’s awesomeness will never be forgotten.”

Allan “Lanz” Damian, physical therapist, shared that Loveday was a motivated and determined patient.

“That was very important in reaching her goal for a safe transition back home,” he said.

Loveday returned home on March 14.

Three weeks and a day later, and Cody was returning home fully independent and healthier than he had been for some time. He had even quit smoking.

“Roy’s sense of humor and good nature were key components in his vast improvement,” shared Amanda McCamey, speech therapist. “He has a great personality and is very witty. Our therapy department enjoyed working with him to help him reach his goals and succeed in his transition back to independent living.”

It was a team effort.

McCamey and her fellow speech therapists helped Cody speak clearly again and boost his memory skills. Physical therapists worked with him on strength, balance and endurance, and occupational therapists helped him re-master self-care tasks like dressing and cooking.

Being on a smoke-free campus was also the motivation Cody had been seeking to stop smoking cigarettes, and associates helped him through the process of quitting.

Along the way, Cody made friends with his fellow residents and the staff at the building.

“I feel like I’ve made great improvements,” said Cody. “I look forward to continuing on my way with a healthy lifestyle. I’m very appreciative of the help I received at Life Care.”

Members of the Jefferson County High School ROTC color guard sang “The Army Goes Rolling Along,” the official song of the U.S. Army, and performed a marching routine. These guests gave an individual salute to all veterans who live at the facility, thanking them for their service to our country and the sacrifices they made.

“I enjoyed the ROTC coming out,” said resident Charles Rothrock, who served in the Air Force. “It’s good to know people still greatly respect us for our service.”

At the end of the program, Sylvia Livesay, a representative of the Amvets Auxiliary 7, presented resident veterans with American flags.

It was a matter of connecting resources. Morristown Hamblen Central Services, Inc., needed pillows for its Project Sweet Dreams, which provides children with bedtime bundles. Life Care residents had been making pillows as a fun social activity for several years.

“Our activity department embarked on a new activity journey in 2010, not even imaging where the road would lead,” said Ginger Kelley, activity assistant. “One afternoon each month, we would meet with a small group of residents just to enjoy chatting while everyone stuffed decorative pillows for their beds.”

Thus, Life Care Center of Morristown’s Pillow Talk group began.

“Before long, we realized a bed can accommodate only so many pillows,” Kelley explained. “We began distributing our pillows as welcome gifts to new residents.”

In the meantime, two community volunteers learned about the pillow project and joined the group, donating fabric, providing sewn pillows to stuff, bringing sewing machines to meetings and even taking pillows home to finish.

As fabric and filling donations steadily appeared from a variety of sources, residents continued making pillows just for fun.

“Before long, though, we were in a dilemma,” Kelley said. “We had pillows stored in the shed, activity room and activity office! What would we do with all those pillows?”

Another volunteer told the group about the Central Services Christmas project, and the connection was made. Now residents have a way to reach their community.

“I enjoy making the pillows because we are making them for children to have,” said resident Kathleen Harrison. “That’s the important thing.”

A look at the pillows reveals a variety of styles, colors and designs – from polka dots to brilliant stripes, animal prints to John Deere prints, there’s a pillow for every child’s personality. But they all have one thing in common.

Kelley shared, “Each pillow has been stuffed with love, laughter, good wishes and hope for a bright tomorrow.”

Each Life Care building undergoes an annual audit of its core rehab program, assessing how the team works with other departments to provide a cohesive plan of care. Auditors (regional rehab associates with Life Care) score the rehab teams on four key areas: environment, human resources, clinical programming and systems management.

Facilities that achieve Gold standard are shown to have a strong, stable therapy team that is eligible to develop a specialty program based on the community’s needs.

“Reaching the Gold status is reflective of the level of patient care and quality short- and long-term rehab services we provide,” said David Gagnon, rehab services manager at Life Care Center of Morristown. “Through hard work, dedication and perseverance, our highly trained therapy staff, as well as staff in other departments, have made modifications to our rehab environment, acquired additional certifications and education and expanded our services.”

Gagnon shared that the facility is focusing more and more on helping residents excel in activities of daily living, such as basic housework and personal care. The goal is to help residents be prepared to return home safely after completing therapy.

David Gagnon, rehab services manager, received the Team Spirit Award, and Stacie Stein, Tammy Watson and Farrah Scott were named Certified Nursing Assistants of the Year.

“David is always willing to step outside of the rehab area and assist any department that needs it,” shared Mike Addair, marketing director. “He assists with resident field trips and is willing to humble himself for the residents’ entertainment.”

The awards were presented during a reception at the facility thanking associates for their dedication. Those who reached milestone anniversaries received pins with their years of service listed.

“We celebrated 100 combined years of loyal and dependable service to the residents of Life Care Center of Morristown,” said Hollie Coates-Hensley, executive director.

Kathy Hurley, dietary manager, has worked at the facility for 20 years. Patsy Long, health information management assistant, and Monica Mendoza, dietary aide, celebrated their 15 years at the center.

It was the 10-year anniversary for Tasha Spears, MDS coordinator, and Sammie Moore and Dana Sellars, housekeeping aides. Five associates also reached their five-year mark: Lisa Coffey, laundry aide; Darien DeMayo, director of maintenance; Andre Roberts, dietary aide; and Caroline Smith and April Wiles, activities assistants.

Thanks to physical and occupational therapy at the facility, it took her five.

Barnes had suffered from torn muscles in one arm due to bone spurs. She had been making due with one arm until she could schedule surgery. The procedure took place in mid-April 2012.

“I used the rehab department here because I have seen numerous patients have great success and return home,” Barnes shared. “I believe in the care provided here.”

Barnes could not move her shoulder at all when she began outpatient therapy sessions at the center where she works.

Shannon Clark, occupational therapist, started Barnes out with some passive range-of-motion exercises and stretching. As she healed, he guided her with more strengthening exercises. Therapists also used electric stimulation to aid in breaking down the scar tissue in her shoulder.

“Debbie’s work ethic and desire to get better were determining factors in her recovery,” said Clark.

Barnes said she was very happy with the results. “The rehab was everything I expected. I knew that some discomfort would be involved, but I accepted it and pushed through it.”

After completing her therapy program, Barnes is back to work and doing well.

The Facility Leadership Award recognizes the achievement of long-term health administrators in maintaining quality facilities as measured by Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services standards. It is only presented to a few individuals in the country.

Coates-Hensley has been the executive director at Life Care Center of Morristown since 2009. She started in long-term care as a certified nursing assistant before becoming a registered nurse. She later decided to become an administrator.

“I have always felt a calling toward the geriatric population and have enjoyed the legacy our residents offer,” said Coates-Hensley.

Founded in 1962, ACHCA is the only professional association devoted solely to meeting the professional needs of today’s long-term care administrators. Its mission focuses on advancing leadership excellence in long-term care through the provision of leadership education, promotion of professional advancement programs such as fellowship and certification, and facilitation of leadership development. The College includes administrators of assisted living centers, nursing homes and retirement communities.

“I appreciate the collaborative support ACHCA gives us,” Coates-Hensley added.

Executive Director Hollie Coates-Hensley opened the event with a welcome speech. Pastor Danny Georges from First Baptist Church of Morristown provided an inspirational message as well as the blessing before lunch was served, and Rehab Services Manager David Gagnon shared about the services and amenities available at the facility.

Then, guests dug in to the picnic-style lunch. Hillbilly Cabin Restaurant catered barbecue pulled pork, baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad, drinks and desserts. Throughout the event, local singer Tommy White entertained the crowd with his renditions of classic country and soul hits from numerous eras.

Each of the 50 attendees received a gift bag, and five lucky people won ferns and daisies for door prizes.

“It was an opportunity for the community to see the building and hear firsthand about the services we provide,” said Mike Addair, marketing director.

When Shiflet arrived, he was extremely weak and suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He had recently been a patient at the hospital, during which time he had become de-conditioned.

Facility staff helped Shiflet work through some of the medical issues, and once he was past the initial work, he jumped into his therapy sessions with determination.

Shiflet completed his rehab successfully and returned home independent on March 26, 2012.