TCU Expansion Enhances Services

Sixteen months after construction began, the renovated and expanded Carolyn Bennett Arnold Transitional Care Unit (TCU) opened in fall 2008 with 24 additional beds, renovated patient living and activity areas and additional nursing and staff space.

“I believe the TCU is central to our mission,” said Sharon Darby, RN, NHA, FACHE, Vice President Clinical Operations, Chief Nursing Officer and Long-Term Care Administrator. “It’s one of the best representations of what this hospital is all about.”

The TCU provides long-term care for children up to age 21 who require specialized, round-the-clock nursing care and may be dependent on technology to thrive. The TCU’s services are in such demand that from 2005-2007, there weren’t any vacant beds on the former 23-bed unit.

“The expanded TCU increases our ability to serve more children,” commented Sharon. “The redesigned space also offers better ways for patient care by making it easier for patients to participate in activities of daily life.”

Patient care is customized for each resident based on individual medical and personal needs and includes daily recreation therapy activities, educational services and comprehensive medical care. The TCU is divided into two neighborhoods with each neighborhood having a dedicated nursing station, medication room and activity area.

As part of the renovation, bold colors and patterns were added to the interior design to identify patient living and activity areas. “The benefit of our bold use of color has been greater than anticipated,” remarked Sharon. “It’s like a whole new world just through the use of color.”

New residents are being admitted through a phased admission plan, adding one to three new residents each month, for more than 30 patients by the end of December 2008, said Sharon. She expects 46 beds to be filled by June 2009, leaving the final bed open to accommodate illness or other isolation issues. New patients and families are being welcomed through family dinners and family days, which allow parents, siblings and other family members to meet other TCU families and stay involved in their child’s care.

Funded in part by a substantial bequest from Carolyn Bennett Arnold’s estate, the new TCU was unveiled at celebrations on Nov. 12 and 13, 2008.

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