A Smooth Road to Recovery
Pine Run Health Center provides quality, compassionate care to Bucks County seniors in skilled nursing, short-term rehabilitation, and memory care.
When seniors in Bucks County need long-term care or support services while they recover from an illness or surgery, the Pine Run Health Center serves as a trusted resource and a vital component of the area’s health care community.
Located on Pine Run Retirement Community’s 43-acre campus, nestled in the heart of Bucks County, the Pine Run Health Center specializes in health care for seniors. It offers long-term nursing care, short-term rehabilitation services, and specialized memory care, all provided by the finest professionals in their fields and delivered in a nurturing, home-like environment with private or shared rooms and a private bath.
As a member of Doylestown Health, Pine Run Health Center is an integral part of the health system’s commitment to wellness for all.
“Doylestown Health is dedicated to providing innovative, patient-centered care for all ages,” says Jim Brexler, CEO of Doylestown Health. “Pine Run Health Center provides the backbone of care on the Pine Run Retirement Community campus for Villagers and community members alike.”
It is this combination of high-quality care and the human touch that leads families to choose Pine Run when their loved ones need care.
Clara Robinson of Doylestown learned firsthand how true that promise was when she realized her husband of 63 years, Lee, needed more care than she could provide by herself. Diagnosed with severe dementia, Lee Robinson moved into The Garden, the secure memory care neighborhood at Pine Run Health Center.
“It was the hardest choice of my life,” says Clara. “It’s difficult to relinquish care of someone you love.”
What Makes Pine Run Different
Families such as the Robinsons can be reassured by Pine Run Health Center’s five-star quality rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and the fact that Pine Run has been named a “Best Nursing Home” by U.S. News & World Report. Those ratings are two indicators of the dedication to excellence that is the hallmark of health care at Pine Run.
“Our highly trained staff values patient care above all,” says Sandra Stiles, Pine Run’s Nursing Home Administrator. “Ensuring that everyone in our care receives the very best services is our top priority, every day. Those services encompass body, mind, and spirit. Our dedicated team works closely together with patients and family members to deliver excellent care and help people achieve their goals.”
Knowing that Pine Run Health Center’s staff would care for Lee as a person, and not just a patient, made all the difference for Clara. “It’s very personalized,” she says. “The staff work very hard to understand Lee’s needs.”
For instance, she explains, “Lee has certain triggers that make him more tense and fearful. He grips very tightly when he’s being moved; it’s alarming to him. Although he’s now nonverbal, there are some things he still understands and his caretakers attempt to reach him. I feel good about that.”
With health care in a senior community, it is often the little things that are so comforting to both the patient and the family. At Pine Run, it’s well understood that every patient’s needs are unique and important, no matter how small or large they may seem. Clara says her requests for anything she may be concerned about for Lee are “always received respectfully and acted upon, if possible.”
When his eyeglasses break, as they frequently do because he bends them, the staff has a reliable vendor who can quickly repair them. When Lee is upset or frightened, the aides give him something to hold onto.
“They think ahead for him anticipating how he will react and how they can help him,” Clara says. “They make every effort to understand and involve him. That’s a great comfort to me.”
Comfort and Care, in the Heart of Bucks County
Located in Doylestown Township, Pine Run Health Center is just minutes away from Doylestown Hospital, providing easy access to healthcare providers. As a part of the Doylestown Health System, Pine Run offers the peace of mind of having quick and convenient access to a full continuum of care. This played a large role in the Robinsons’ decision to move Lee to The Garden at Pine Run Health Center.
“Knowing that Pine Run Health Center is a part of the Doylestown Health system was definitely a key factor in our decision to move here as Lee’s condition was declining,” Clara says. “We have proximity to family here, and the connection to Doylestown Hospital gave us the impetus to make this our choice. In fact, we were able to continue seeing our same doctors.”
Working within the Doylestown Health System allows Pine Run Health Center’s health care providers to coordinate care and treatment plans with the hospital and the health system’s network of doctors and other providers.
“Our ability to provide comprehensive, personalized, patient-centered care to every patient at Pine Run Health Center is one of the many qualities that sets Pine Run apart,” says Maria Santangelo, Pine Run’s Executive Director. “That peace of mind is so important for patients and families no matter how short or long their stay with us.”
Pine Run Health Center’s staff, administration, and providers have all implemented procedures in recent months to combat the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has dominated life in 2020. As Bucks County is experiencing another surge in the number of COVID-19 cases, the team at Pine Run is well aware that they are caring for the community’s most vulnerable people, especially in the Health Center.
“Pine Run continues to take every precaution to prevent and contain this disease,” Santangelo says. “Staff and residents alike are screened according to state and federal regulations, and we have temporarily closed the Health Center to visitors to limit exposure. We know that this presents unique challenges to individuals and families who need care during this difficult time. Trusting a loved one to our care demands a leap of faith even at the best of times. We are committed to valuing and caring for family members as if they were our own, especially during this pandemic when family cannot be present.”
Short-Term Rehab Care Earns Top Rating
In addition to long-term nursing care and memory care, Pine Run Health Center offers short-term rehabilitation services for older adults who may need some support getting back on their feet. Seniors who are mending from surgery such as joint replacement or recovering from a stroke or other illness can rely on Pine Run Health Center whether they need care for just a few days or up to several weeks.
Pine Run Health Center offers on-site licensed physical, occupational, and speech therapies under the direction of a physician specializing in rehabilitative medicine. Every member of the team is committed to helping older adults recover from hospital stays to build strength, maximize abilities, and regain independence.
Those rehab services have meant a great deal to Rick Lentine and his wife, Lois, who lives with dementia and Parkinson’s disease. Lois has received care at Pine Run Health Center three times, after a number of falls, according to Rick. The Lentines found the high quality of care and concern demonstrated by the center’s staff to be a lifesaver.
“We’re very pleased with the care offered at Pine Run Health Center,” Rick says. “The staff and providers always follow up to see how we’re doing, which means a lot.”
The Lentines also value the prompt and efficient communication between themselves, the nursing staff, and the doctors. “If you need to ask a doctor a question, the staff will convey the message and get back to you,” Rick says. “They’ll explain the information clearly, and I appreciate that.”
This type of superior care and genuine concern has helped Pine Run Health Center garner national recognition. U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Nursing Homes” program recently again bestowed the highest possible rating, “High Performing,” on Pine Run’s short-term rehabilitation services.
“When a family is coping with multiple medical issues,” Rick adds, “the quality of services and programs such as those at Pine Run Health Center make a significant difference in moving down the road to recovery.”
Pine Run Retirement Community is one of Bucks County’s top senior living and continuing care retirement communities. Located in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, an hour north of Philadelphia, Pine Run offers independent living cottages and apartments and on-site long-term nursing care, short-term rehabilitation services, and specialized memory care at the Pine Run Health Center, as well as personal care on its nearby Lakeview campus. To learn more, visit pinerun.org.
Photograph courtesy of Pine Run Retirement Community
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, December 2020
