Nursing home options weighed
Nursing home options weighed
By Michael Johnson
BHG News Service
A crowd of about 30 local residents gathered in the Underwood City Hall on Saturday to discuss the future of the Sanford Health Underwood Continuing Care Center, formerly Prairieview Nursing Home.
Mayor Rick Olson, District 8 Rep. Jeff Delzer, Underwood Community Developer Tyler Demars, and Common Enterprise Executive Director Bill Patrie were all in attendance to hear concerns of the public and offer their knowledge.
Several nursing home staff members were also in attendance and shared their fears about securing a job in their field. If another long-term care center was not established there, it would mean they would have to commute outside of the area or change professions to find work locally.
Patrie suggested to the group that they still had a quality facility in town and a highly skilled work force. The key was trying to make sure the facility remains used for high-asset purposes similar to long-term care.
He talked about designing a building that fits the needs of the community.
But those who were losing their positions at the local nursing home were immediately concerned about finding work nearby. Joann Fleischman was not looking forward to having to commute to Bismarck to keep a job in her pay range.
She knew some who were already planning to move.
