Lexington, KY - Kentucky's largest provider of physical rehabilitation services is celebrating its first patient care addition since 1988, and the new space can't come soon enough for the approximately 9,000 patients served last year.
Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital is a place that Kentuckians might not always think about, but as patients depart their hospital rooms at the University of Kentucky, Saint Joseph or Central Baptist, this physical rehabilitation center is the first place they look for help in setting their lives back to normal.
"Our No. 1 goal is independence," said Jenny Wurzback, director of community relations/foundation at Cardinal Hill. "We are training people to get back to the real world."
The 158,064-square-foot addition, which connects directly to the east end of the existing facility facing Versailles Road, pays homage to the real world that Cardinal Hill's patients are working hard to return to. With street lamp lighting at the main entrance, interior brick walls, a generous amount of natural light, wide hallways and sanded, wood floors, the facility is reminiscent of a classic midtown hotel, as opposed to a hospital.
But looks aren't all that the patient care-focused addition has to offer Cardinal Hill patients. The hospital will be expanding its ventilator program, adding more clinic exam rooms, larger patient rooms and therapy gyms, expanding the Aquatic Center with new pools and offering private rooms. Total bed count will increase from 108 to 232, and the 34 patients currently housed on the seventh floor of the University of Kentucky's Good Samaritan Hospital will arrive this fall.
Cardinal Hill opened in 1950 at the height of the polio epidemic as a 50-bed, convalescent home for children with polio and other orthopedic diagnoses, and while the hospital now serves clients of all ages, young people still play a major role in the Cardinal Hill mission.
Cardinal Hill's leadership realized the need for more space more than five years ago, according to board of trustees treasurer and building committee chair Gregg Thornton.
"Our original wards had eight to 10 people in a room. Then we went to two beds per room, and now our patients expect private rooms," he said. "We had capacity for 108, but because of blocked rooms, we were only able to fill 80 or 90."
Board of trustee members grappled with the limited availability of space on the site for the expansion, but the result is an innovative space that the skilled builders and designers on Cardinal Hill's long-serving board are proud of.
"Our board of trustees has been involved in every step of this process," said Wurzback.
The new patient rooms surround a European-style atrium. Every room has a window and natural light year-round. "We were creative with space," said Thornton. "And we wanted the area to be friendly and open."
The open and private rooms also allow families a more comfortable setting for visits with patients.
"The healing process is very much a family effort," said Wurzback. "Many of our patient's family members want to be here all day, every day."
The new patient rooms are also equipped with ceiling track lift systems to help patients from their beds, which puts less strain on hospital employees.
"The majority of our patients come in using wheelchairs," explained Wurzback, "but our goal is to get them strong and return them to maximum independence."
Cardinal Hill's new Aquatic Center is designed to help patients meet therapeutic goals. With three new pools, including one in which the water temperature will be kept at a constant 95 degrees, this offers a unique alternative to the traditional therapies.
"Therapy pools with higher temperatures can be used by individuals with a variety of conditions, such as arthritis, fibromyalgia and orthopedic patients," said Charlie Workman, program manager for outpatient services. "Our new pools will be used for individuals of all ages. We will be adding additional pediatric aquatic programs."
The hospital held its grand opening ceremony on Sept. 13 and plans to move patients into the new facility this month. Dr. William Witt's renowned Pain Institute at Cardinal Hill will move into the new facility in December.
Although Cardinal Hill serves 90 of the 120 Kentucky counties, in 2010 the hospital served patients from not only Kentucky, but Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
"We are serving patients from throughout the commonwealth and the country," said Wurzback. "The need is great."
"This expansion allows the hospital to serve more patients in our updated patient- and family-friendly environment. Everything about this building project is about commitment to the patients we serve," added Jimmy Nash, Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital's chairman of the board of trustees.
Cardinal Hill has an outpatient facility in Louisville that provides pediatric therapy services, childcare and audiology services. Services based in Lexington include inpatient hospital care for physical rehabilitation needs. In addition to the inpatient programs, both adult and pediatric outpatient therapy, home health care, childcare, adult day health and recreational programs are also available.
The mission of Cardinal Hill and the Kentucky Easter Seals is to help those with disabilities achieve maximum independence, which could be a lifelong process.
"Therapy is never really 'over,' so it should be highly relatable to the environment that you are returning to," said Wurzback. "And that's what we're trying to do here."