Photo by Daniel Freel/New Jersey Herald Jake Lighten, Homestead Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center administrator, shows a floor plan for the future fourth floor of the Homestead in Frankford. The floor will include 26 private suites.
New Jersey Herald
By LORI COMSTOCK
lcomstock@njherald.com
FRANKFORD — In an effort to finish what was to be started in 1969, the Homestead Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center may be getting a fourth-floor makeover, complete with private suites and a car.
Originally built in 1969 with the intention of being used as a residential floor, the fourth floor of the facility has become a vacant area for storage use, said Jake Lighten, administrator of the Homestead.
“We have had a lot of demand for private suites, especially from current patients, and ever since I started working here it has been something we wanted to do,” he said.
“This is where the industry is going; we have the facility and we are in much more demand now for these rooms,” he said.
Lighten said there were four rehabilitation beds when rehabilitation services started in 2008 and now there are 20.
The facility currently houses 102 patients and is constantly at maximum capacity, Lighten said.
“Demand is especially high for patients who have sports injuries, have been in car accidents, and for senior-related care,” he said. “With winter coming, we will get a lot of patients suffering from flu-like illnesses.”
The plan for the fourth floor calls for 26 private suites, each with its own bathroom and full shower, as well as a multi-purpose room, dining area, kitchen, skylights, an oversize window and a lobby area.
“It will be a very modern design to meet the needs of the customer,” Lighten said.
Another addition to the floor, which may be the most exciting to many, is a car to be used for physical therapy.
“For many of our patients, getting in and out of a car is one of the most difficult things to do,” Lighten said. “So it only makes sense to have one.”
In order to place the car inside the building, a hole needs to be cut into the outside of the fourth floor, ultimately where the oversize window will go. A crane will then lift the car into the building before any other construction begins.
Although Homestead officials are not in search of a car quite yet, Lighten would like for it to be a vintage one.
“Sussex County loves their vintage cars, so that is the kind of car we might look at,” Lighten said.
With a vintage car comes an outdated operating system, which may not seem feasible; however, the car itself will be gutted to include “just the seat and necessary items,” Lighten said.
“Our therapy department will help with the dynamics of the car itself,” he said. “So it might need to be more of a current style (of car).”
In addition to the car, occupational therapists will be able to assist patients with everyday tasks, such as washing and folding their clothes, making food, and cleaning dishes in the state-of-the-art kitchen and washing areas.
“The ease and convenience of having everything they need for rehabilitation will be right on the floor,” he said. “Having this will give patients the opportunity to be confident when they go home.”
The unit will have its own staff, which, Lighten said, is already growing excitement from current staff members.
“They are all so thrilled about the unit and have already inquired about working up there,” he said, adding that staff might be moved around as needed.
Currently in the end stages of planning, his next step is working out the regulatory part of the process.
“We spoke to the bank and discussed getting an appraisal done and they told us it was a great idea,” Lighten said. “From there, we have had an architect jot up plans.”
After plans of the fourth floor were finished, they were previewed at the Sussex County Chamber of Commerce’s Business to Business Breakfast on Sept. 8.
The next step is submitting plans from the engineering firm to the state Department of Health, Department of Consumer Affairs and local authorities.
Once it’s approved, which Lighten said might take up to eight months, construction can begin.
The Homestead Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center currently offers professional care to patients on a long-term basis in semi-private rooms as well as short-term care for patients transitioning from hospital to home.
Lori Comstock can also be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.
http://www.njherald.com/story/30112727/homestead-plans-floor-of-private-suites
