HETTINGER -- In a step to add much needed long-term medical care to their services, West River Health Services acquired the Hillcrest Care Center in Hettinger from Lantis Enterprises earlier this month.
Jim Long, administrator of West River Health Services, hopes to complete the transition from Lantis in either August or September. Robert Stohrer, assistant marketing director at Lantis Enterprises, said selling Hillcrest came at the sake of convenience for Hettinger and nearby communities.
"The community and the (nursing) home had worked together for a long time, and it only made sense that the hospital and the nursing home were joined," he said. "It was the best interest in the community that the hospital and the nursing home be under the same umbrella."
The cost of the deal isn't being disclosed due to a clause in the purchase agreement.
Long said the current expansion of the hospital is unaffected by acquiring Hillcrest, as WRHS had an interest in acquiring the nursing home over the last decade. The two sides started the latest negotiations six months prior to the start of construction.
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Long said assisted and basic long-term medical care is in increasing demand, and felt purchasing Hillcrest is necessary for WRHS in benefiting overall local health care.
"We think there's a high need for Alzheimer's and dementia care that needs to be added to the mix," Long said.
One specific focus is creating a more home-like atmosphere for patients, including filling as many nursing positions as possible with local people to limit the number of nurses needing to commute.
The Hillcrest Care Center's main focus is as a long-term care center. It features 88 total beds; 82 skilled beds and six basic care beds. Basic care is defined loosely, Long said, as an equivalent to lower-level care in a nursing home.
He said there are no plans to change Hillcrest's general operations, but he plans to improve the level of care by improving/replacing equipment such as beds. Future plans also include replacing the current building with a new one in five to seven years.
"Our intentions are to add to (Hillcrest's current service), we'd really like to build a replacement facility that's adjacent to our assisted-living building," Long said.
Melana Howe, current chief nursing executive at West River Health Services, has accepted the newly created position of chief operating officer of long-term care services.
"I think (adding Hillcrest) is important because this nursing home is in our community, and now it is truly owned and operated by the community," she said. "It's in the backyard on our medical center; we're very comfortable with bringing them right into their system.
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Howe is to look at the strengths and weaknesses of Hillcrest's current system and then begin to add services such as adult daycare and hospice services.
"I think part of the future of health care is senior services as the country rapidly ages," she said. "The other growing segment is wellness/chronic disease management."
