To hear Drew Gackenheimer tell it, effectively providing geriatric care rides on two factors: Finding out what customers need and then tailoring services to those needs. He should know. As Chief Executive Officer of the Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center he has met the healthcare needs of the elderly population in West Palm Beach, Florida since 1983.
His 21 years as CEO started with the construction of the 120-bed Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center. Since then the center has expanded to include the Lola & Saul Kramer Senior Services Agency, which provides community and home-based programs and services, a Hospice In-Patient Unit, and most recently, a short-term rehabilitation and recuperative care program. In November 2004, the Marilyn & Stanley M. Katz Senior Living Community will complete the campus and be home to The Tradition of the Palm Beaches, a 144-residence independent and assisted living community.
Construction on the new Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Senior Living Community is on schedule for a November move in date. Pictured is the Sheila and Alec Engelstein Independent Residences of The Tradition of the Palm Beaches.
“Our longstanding mission has been to enable people to remain in the community for as long as possible, in effect delaying or preventing altogether the need for long-term institutionalized care,” Gackenheimer said.
One study completed by the Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center showed that people in its adult day-care program versus a similar population not in day care delayed the need to come into the institutional environment by 8 months.
Seniors throughout Palm Beach County have an opportunity to enjoy a multitude of daily activities at the Kramer Agency’s two adult day care centers.
The need to enable elderly people to remain in the community came about because of Floridas regulations governing nursing-home eligibility and the mind set inherent in the population base from which the center draws patients.
Early in the 1980s, relatively healthy people could begin residence in a nursing home until the State of Florida made it more difficult for them to do so. Now, people wanting to enter a nursing home need to meet two criteria: To be poor and to require assistance with three out of the five activities of daily life (ADL).
“Besides the regulations, people on fixed incomes moving to West Palm Beach have made it clear they dont want to pay for services they dont need. This has prompted us to structure our services on a graduated, pay-as-you-go model,” Gackenheimer emphasized.
For example, the assisted living residences currently under construction will include various levels of housekeeping services, a wellness center with trained people who know how to assist older people, onsite formal dining, a bistro, a synagogue, transportation to and from doctor appointments and shopping, and a primary-care clinic. Residents in this system will pay for the level and frequency of services they need, making the housing facility attractive to many more people.
The Morse Seniors Campus recently introduced a new short term rehabilitation and recuperative care program to its menu of services. Here, short-term residents can recuperate from an acute illness or hospitalization as a transition between the hospital and their own homes.
Another example of the leading-edge approach of the Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center lies in the service it has provided as a clinical training ground for a host of different professionals from certified nurse assistants, licensed practical nurses, and registered nurses to geriatric nurse practitioners, social workers, therapists, and physicians.
“We wanted to be one of the leading geriatric centers in the world. And we wanted to serve the public in a way to allow seniors in the community to delay or prevent residential care,” said Gackenheimer.
As a designated teaching nursing home of the State of Florida, the educational outreach programs of Morse and the Institute for Geriatric Research & Training have advanced to new heights. Partnerships with such prestigious institutions as Harvard Medical School, George Washington University and the University of Miami Medical School has made Morse a coveted site for medical and nursing students, post-doctoral geriatric fellows and allied health care professionals to train. “Today, Morse is at the forefront of its field, and the Morse Seniors Campus is a model for the future of elder care agencies,” Gackenheimer emphasized.
The Institute for Geriatric Research & Training is also participating in several projects and studies that will affect public policy and legislation both statewide and nationally.
In the meantime, Gackenheimer continues to enjoy guiding the Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center in its continuing quest to deliver new ways to serve the geriatric population in the northern half of Palm Beach County.
Drew Gackenheimer can be reached at (561) 687-5752 or at drewg@morsegeriatric.org.
To hear Drew Gackenheimer tell it, effectively providing geriatric care rides on two factors: Finding out what customers need and then tailoring services to those needs. He should know. As Chief Executive Officer of the Joseph L. Morse Geriatric Center he has met the healthcare needs of the elderly population in West Palm Beach, Florida since 1983.
Construction on the new Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Senior Living Community is on schedule for a November move in date. Pictured is the Sheila and Alec Engelstein Independent Residences of The Tradition of the Palm Beaches.
Seniors throughout Palm Beach County have an opportunity to enjoy a multitude of daily activities at the Kramer Agency’s two adult day care centers.
The Morse Seniors Campus recently introduced a new short term rehabilitation and recuperative care program to its menu of services. Here, short-term residents can recuperate from an acute illness or hospitalization as a transition between the hospital and their own homes.
