Aultman to close nursing facilities in Jackson Township, Alliance
The Aultman Health Foundation is shutting down two skilled nursing facilities: One in Jackson Township and another in Alliance.
The first facility to be closed is the Transitional Care Center at Aultman Woodlawn at 2821 Woodlawn Ave. NW, according to a statement by Aultman released Wednesday. The second is the Community Care Center at Aultman Alliance Community Hospital at 200 E. State St.
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Aultman cited staffing shortages due to the pandemic especially in nursing, health insurers refusing to adjust reimbursement rates in response to increasing costs of providing care and "unsustainable losses."
“This decision was not one we made easily,” Linda Casey, chief operating officer of Aultman Post-Acute Services, wrote in a statement. “We will work with short- and long-term residents to identify their needs and help them find another facility that will address those needs, as well as provide support and education as needed during the transition process.”
She added, “It’s a tough market for health care right now. We’re all competing to fill the same types of positions, particularly in nursing, and agency staffing to fill in the gaps is exceedingly expensive. ... In addition, we’re facing increasing costs of care, and in many cases, health insurers that aren’t willing to adjust their reimbursement rates to reflect that, putting additional strain on hospitals and care facilities.”
Both facilities are no longer accepting new admissions as of Wednesday. Aultman in a statement Thursday said it will close the Transitional Care Center in Jackson Township and the Community Care Center in Alliance after current patients are transferred to new facilities over the next three months.
Aultman did not release numbers on how many patients are at the two facilities to be closed or their capacities.
Aultman Health Foundation said it will give all 187 affected staff members at the two facilities to be closed an opportunity to be assigned to jobs at other Aultman facilities. The organization said it does not anticipate layoffs as it has more than 600 open positions.
According to Aultman's website, Aultman Woodlawn, "offers short-term rehabilitation and transitional care for patients who need additional treatment after being hospitalized. Special indoor and outdoor therapy environments help reintroduce patients to homelike and community settings while preparing them for a realistic level of independence."
Aultman Alliance Community Hospital's website says the former Alliance Community Hospital opened the Community Care Center in 1991. Aultman closed its acquisition of Alliance Community Hospital in 2018.
Aultman said at Aultman Woodlawn's campus, its inpatient rehabilitation unit, which will be expanded; its home healthcare unit Aultman Health Care In Your Home and its Compassionate Care Center, which offers hospice and palliative care, will remain open.
At Aultman Alliance Hospital, some of the Community Care Center beds will be converted into an inpatient hospice unit. Aultman hasn't yet decided what it would do with the remaining space at the Community Care Center.
Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com. Twitter: @rwangREP.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Aultman to close nursing facilities in Jackson Township and Alliance
