Assisted living again earns longest possible licensure
Warsaw, Va. – Virginia’s Department of Social Services has awarded The Orchard, a Riverside healthy living community in the Northern Neck, a three-year license. It’s the second consecutive three-year license for The Orchard, which earned the designation because of its exemplary compliance history, along with the way in which state standards are met or exceeded.
Administrator Pam Doshier calls the three-year license “a reflection of the trust that the Department of Social Services puts on us for our care.”
Doshier says that trust is borne not just of her expectations, but the way The Orchard team – many of whom have worked there since the facility’s 2002 opening – works together to treat residents the way they would treat those they love.
“They understand the assisted living environment,” Doshier says, “and they promote the quality of care that’s expected, not just by myself and the Department of Social Services, but the residents as well. That’s a reflection on them.”
One of the biggest challenges The Orchard and other assisted living facilities face is that their residents are requiring more assistance to comfortably and safely age in place.
“Everyone at The Orchard understands that dynamic and addresses it accordingly,” Doshier says, adding that they are considering increased staffing to better meet the residents’ evolving needs.
Earlier this year The Orchard earned a pair of national honors that recognized the community as among the very best in Virginia and the nation. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a federal government agency, recognized The Orchard as a 5-Star Nursing Facility. This agency awards a maximum of five stars in its quality rating system, which takes into consideration how well a facility and its staff care for residents’ physical and clinical needs, along with health inspections and staffing. The Orchard received the honor for its short-term and long-term facilities and care.
The American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living honored The Orchard’s approach to long-term care with a 2017 Silver Award, one of just six awarded to Virginia long-term care facilities and 191 facilities nationwide.
ABOUT The Orchard, a Riverside Healthy Living Community
The Orchard, located in Warsaw on the Northern Neck of Virginia, offers assisted living in its 40-apartment community, along with long-term and short-term rehabilitation care in a combination of private and semi-private rooms. Included in The Orchard’s long-term care is The Garden Memory Support Household, which is the region’s only memory support household licensed for 24/7 nursing care. The Orchard is part of Riverside Health, Virginia’s leader in aging related services. With the Riverside Tappahannock Hospital nearby, it is able to deliver a comprehensive and holistic care for older adults to age with dignity and independence. Riverside Tappahannock Hospital has recently been voted as the “Best of Virginia 2017” by the Virginia Living Magazine.
ABOUT AHCA/NCAL
The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) represent more than 13,000 non-profit and proprietary skilled nursing centers, assisted living communities, sub-acute centers and homes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. By delivering solutions for quality care, AHCA/NCAL aims to improve the lives of the millions of frail, elderly and individuals with disabilities who receive long-term or post-acute care in our member facilities each day. For more information, please visit www.ahca.org or www.ncal.org.
ABOUT the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is a division of the federal government’s Department of Health and Human Services. CMS created the Five-Star Quality Rating System to help consumers, their families and caregivers compare senior living communities more easily. Facilities with five stars are considered to have much above average quality.