Topeka Presbyterian Manor
DECEMBER 2020
Employee spotlight: Registered Nurse Michelle Winder Last month, Michelle Winder celebrated two milestones: she turned 40 and celebrated her 20-year anniversary at Topeka Presbyterian Manor. “I have been here half my life,” Michelle said. “When I started, I told myself that I would work here for five years, then I would move on as I really wanted to work in obstetrics. “The residents stole my heart, and here I am. I absolutely love the elderly and can’t imagine being in a different field of nursing.” Michelle Winder When she joined the Presbyterian Manor staff, Michelle’s only work experience was from Scotch Fabric Cleaners and Godfather’s Pizza. She was 19 years old and her first job here was as a certified nursing assistant. Michelle received her licensed practical nurse degree from Kaw Area Technical College in 2002, and studied to be a registered nurse at Manhattan Area Technical School, where she graduated in 2010. “I chose nursing because I wanted to be able to help people,” Michelle said. “I wanted to make a difference in someone’s life.” As the nurse case manager, Michelle helps plan admissions and discharges. She is also in charge of the restorative program, which means that she works with therapy and the restorative aide to ensure that residents are getting the appropriate programs they need. Between her first role and her current one, Michelle has also served as a charge nurse, health services supervisor and interim director of nursing. Michelle has two sons. The oldest is 21 and used to work in the dining services department at Presbyterian Manor. Her younger son is 17 and is a current dining services aide here. She has been married to her husband for 13 years, though the couple has been together for 18. In her free time, Michelle likes to spend time with her family, which includes two brothers and her parents. She and her husband enjoy taking motorcycle trips when they can. ◆
Topeka Presbyterian Manor named to U.S. News and World Report Best Nursing Homes list Topeka Presbyterian Manor is on the U.S. News and World Report Best Nursing Homes 2020 list, earning recognition as a High Performing skilled nursing community for those in longterm care. The list is available at www.usnews.com/best-nursinghomes/search. Topeka Prsbyterian Manor can serve up to 68 residents in the health center, where they offer both long-term care and shortterm rehabilitation. The campus offers independent living and assisted living in addition to health care services. U.S. News and World Report annually analyzes data from the Centers for Medicare and LIST - continued on page 3
Topeka Presbyterian Manor | A PMMA COMMUNITY
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‘COVID buddies’ are cuddly companions for assisted living, health care residents Life Enrichment Director Alyssa Colter had an excess inventory of stuffed animals. One resident’s generous relative had donated 47 teddy bears and other fluffy friends, which the life enrichment director once planned to use as prizes for winners of blackout bingo games. But during a pandemic, residents aren’t gathering to play games. What they are missing, Alyssa realized, is the comfort of touch. “I’ve had a family member or two who has gone through radiation or chemo, and they always got what we called a ‘chemo buddy,’ which was a stuffed animal,” Alyssa said. “I thought that during this rough time, it might be nice for them to have what I’ve been calling a ‘COVID buddy.’ “It’s a stuffed animal that they can touch and hug, because those are important things they’re missing right now.” The activity team made tags to attach to each plush creature. They read: Coronavirus is rough, but we are plenty tough. We can be one and the same, I just
need a name. “When we present them to the residents, we thought it would be a fun one-onone activity to help them come up with the name and write it on the tag,” Alyssa explained. The COVID buddies were distributed to all of the residents living in the health care and assisted living areas. Alyssa said she hoped to have some left over for independent living residents as well. “It was so awesome for this family member to donate all of these stuffed animals, and the whole team rallied to think outside the box about how we could use them,” she said.
She’s enjoying her new role so far.
Alyssa has worked at Presbyterian Manor for more than eight years. She began as a certified nursing assistant and joined the life enrichment staff over the summer.
“I’ve always loved connecting with the residents and hearing their stories,” Alyssa said. “Now I get to do it in such a different and fun way.” ◆
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Community Matters 785-272-6510 ◆ Fax: 785-272-0496 4712 S.W. Sixth Ave. Topeka, KS 66606-2284 TopekaPresbyterianManor.org
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COMMUNITY MATTERS | December 2020
is published monthly for residents and friends of Topeka Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
To submit or suggest articles: rdahlgren@pmma.org Heather Pilkinton, executive director Rose Dahlgren, marketing director
OUR MISSION: To provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.
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Medicaid Services and other sources to determine which short-term rehabilitation centers and skilled nursing communities perform at the highest level and designates them as Best Nursing Homes in their publication. CMS, the government agency that sets and enforces standards for nursing homes, assigns one to five stars to each community for how well it performs in health inspections, nurse staffing and level of quality care. Over the past two years, U.S. News has changed its focus from the star ratings to specific quality measures included in the CMS data to determine which skilled nursing centers meet the High Performing standard. The 10 quality measures focus on staffing, outcomes, resident complaints and processes of care. Some of the measures used by U.S. News are not included in the CMS approach to determining 5-star ratings. U.S. News added the Short-Term Rehabilitation rating in 2018, evaluating the care delivered to patients after a hospitalization for
surgery, heart attack, stroke, injury or similar condition. In 2019, U.S. News added a Long-Term Care rating, evaluating the care delivered to residents who are no longer able to live independently and need help with daily activities such as eating, getting in or out of bed or a wheelchair, using stairs, or getting dressed, as well as administering needed medical care.
Manor of the Plains (Dodge City) and Wichita in Kansas and Aberdeen Heights (Kirkwood) in Missouri.
In order to be included on the U.S. News and World Report Best Nursing Homes list, a skilled nursing center had to receive the High Performing designation in either the short-term rehabilitation or long-term care categories. In 2020, CMS awarded 5-stars to 3,689 skilled nursing centers. A total of 3,277 skilled nursing centers were recognized as Best Nursing Homes in 2020 – 2,362 in shortterm rehabilitation and 1,623 in long-term care. Just 708 skilled nursing communities received this designation in both short-term rehabilitation and long-term care.
All Medicare- and Medicaidcertified health care centers were evaluated by U.S. News. To be eligible for an overall rating, a center must have received reimbursement from CMS in July 2020 and had sufficient data to evaluate quality in that rating.
In addition to Topeka Presbyterian Manor, six other PMMA communities were recognized for long-term care: Aberdeen Village (Olathe), Arkansas City, Lawrence,
“Presbyterian Manors of MidAmerica employees continue to focus their efforts on delivering quality care every day,” said PMMA President and CEO Bruce Shogren. “The High Performing designation confirms their good work.”
Aberdeen Village (Olathe), Manor of the Plains (Dodge City), and Wichita in Kansas and Aberdeen Heights (Kirkwood) in Missouri were named High Performing in the Short-Term Rehabilitation category. To learn more about the U.S. News and World Report rating system, visit their FAQ page: https:// health.usnews.com/health-news/ best-nursing-homes/articles/faqhow-we-rate-nursing-homes. ◆
COVID-19 updates continue
Get the latest updates on visitation status, ongoing safety measures and PMMA’s response to COVID-19 on your community website, TopekaPresbyterianManor.org/covid-19. Visitation status is updated weekly on Mondays for the week ending the following Sunday. Visitation status is updated as needed in between due to outbreak or health department orders. You can also send your loved one a digital Christmas Card from our Art is Ageless® card collection. Email the card to your campus contact for delivery, or send directly to your loved one via their email address. With cases on the rise, we remind you to practice basic safety measures to keep yourselves and others safe from COVID-19. Whenever you leave your residence or are in the presence of others, wear a cloth mask or face covering over your nose and mouth, wash your hands frequently with soap and water or alcohol-based gel, and maintain a safe social distance of six feet or more between yourself and others with whom you do not live. Practicing these simple safety measures can help stop the spread of COVID-19. ◆ Topeka Presbyterian Manor | A PMMA COMMUNITY
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COMMUNITY MATTERS | December 2020