by Owen Wiese (& Lois)
As a resident of Palisade Healthcare, I am acutely interested in my neighbors. All of us that reside in the facility have had some health crisis that has resulted in our residency. In my case, I fell outside the post office, broke my hip and am still recovering. After surgery, and a hospital stay, I was ready for discharge to a care facility and Palisade Healthcare was the choice.
Palisade Healthcare is owned by the EmpRes (Emp-employee, Res- resident owned) Healthcare Family of companies based in Vancouver, WA. They have 60 buildings throughout the United States. EmpRes purchased Palisade Healthcare from Welcov in February, 2019. At that time the status of the nursing home was uncertain and many nursing homes were closing, due in part to a low Medicaid reimbursement rate. Lourdes Parker was hired as the administrator. She transferred from a sister facility in Rapid City.
We received a very cordial welcome from administrator Lourdes, and her staff of nurses and aids, as I was transferred from the hospital. The staff helped set up my room to be comfortable for my needs and care. My family added touches to personalize my room with family pictures, a recliner, and an end table. Lourdes was personally involved in the move.
Lourdes has been in health care for 23 years. She started as a Certified Nurse Assistant in the Catholic Hospital in Sioux City, Iowa and soon knew she wanted to be a Registered Nurse. She registered for college courses at Western Iowa Technical college to begin work on her bachelor’s degree while continuing to work full time at the hospital and start a family. Before she finished her degree at Western Iowa, her husband, she & their 3 small children moved to Huron, SD for his work. Lourdes for a time drove weekly to Sioux City so she could continue her schooling. Eventually she transferred to Huron College and graduated with a BS in Nursing. After her graduation, her husband proceeded with his plan for education to finish his degree.
Lourdes is responsible for many updates to the infrastructure of the building and grounds. The air-conditioning has been upgraded, new flooring has been installed in select areas and outdoor areas have been upgraded. We see Lourdes in many roles throughout the facility as she takes her turn working shifts as a CNA, as the nurse on duty, and the medication nurse, as a counselor or confidant to residents and staff,—and always sharing a smile, a positive word and friendship. Should you visit the facility, you might find this administrator helping a resident in the bathroom, transferring a patient from wheel chair to bed, or bringing a meal to a room. She has also been seen sweeping the floor or painting spots on chipped paint, and mopping up water as she did from recent broken water pipes. These are among the many tasks she sees, not on a job resume. Lourdes is hands on to a job that needs doing as well as fulfilling the administrator role. I suspect many management duties are completed after non-clocked hours. Lourdes also serves the role of mother to her 3 children (2 in college out of state, one in high school in Sioux Falls).
Palisade Healthcare currently has 44 residents, some on a temporary basis for rehabilitation from surgery or illness, and some live as permanent residents. There are 38 staff members. This number includes nursing care staff, kitchen help, and maintenance personnel, both full and part time. Lourdes needs 10 more employees to bring the total to 48. All cleaning personnel are by outside contract. They do a great job of maintaining a healthy facility. The therapy (Physical and Occupational) is contracted by Aegis, soon to be Select Therapy. Three therapists currently are employed and outpatient therapy may be arranged for area residents. The dining room is staffed by a competent crew that plans and serves nutritious meals and snacks for residents. About half of the residents choose, for various reasons, to eat meals in their rooms. A few residents need personal help to complete the meal, and staff is available to supply this need. The staff at Palisade Healthcare are very caring, cheerful and efficient. Most live outside the Garretson area, and spend time driving to work. One staff member was heard to say; “We could find work closer to our homes, but we choose to work at Palisade because of the atmosphere here.” High recommendation for our home town.
All nursing homes are governed by the State of SD with criteria for long term care. All staff need to participate in dementia training, Each April and September the state puts on training sessions.
Lourdes is currently on the state SDHCA Educational Council. She has been on the SD Infection Council for 3 years. Decisions to admit new residents are made by Lourdes, as administrator, the Director of Nursing, Britney, and Ashley, the nurse liaison. Several times during the year, on-line students attending Nightingale College from Utah spend a week-long practicum and hands-on learning experience at Palisade Healthcare.
