Phoebe Ministries

WEST END LIVING See Pages 8 & 9

West End-Based Phoebe Ministries Thrives as Health and Housing Provider

Phoebe Allentown

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PHOEBE MINISTRIES

Terrace independent living residents

Phoebe Ministries, headquartered at 1925 W. Turner St., in Allentown, has been a West End fi xture since its founding in 1903. But as the years passed, it expanded its vision and purpose to become a multi-campus complex that serves 12 Pennsylvania counties.

The non-profi t organization maintains four continuing care retirement communities (CCRC) in Allentown, Wernersville, Richlandtown and Wyncote. Each one is dedicated to providing a full spectrum of care – including independent living, personal care, short-term rehabilitation, skilled nursing or long-term care, and memory care to senior residents.

And exactly what is a continuing care retirement community? “It means we off er seniors a combination of housing choices, accommodations and health care services tailored to the particular stage of their lives,” said Donna Schudel, community relations and grants specialist in Phoebe’s marketing and community relations department. ”For example, someone may enter our independent living facility at age 75; at age 80, they might need daily help with medication management or daily tasks, such as bathing. That’s when they could move into one of our personal care apartments, where that kind of assistance is available. As their needs change, they could transition to our skilled nursing facility.

“We also off er specialized memory care to anyone who needs it. And because everything is managed by Phoebe, we can make those transitions as seamless as possible, while providing consistency in care,” she said.

Schudel added that no one is required to pass through every stage. “Someone could move into independent living and stay there the rest of their lives. But if they someday needed more specialized care, they would be responsible for this cost – much like anyone ‘aging in place’ in their own homes.”

And these services aren’t limited to just the senior community, Schudel said. “Younger local residents can avail themselves of our rehabilitation services, depending upon their insurance coverage. People of other ages can use skilled nursing care, rehabilitation and other services that we provide. A person’s county of residence will determine eligibility for skilled care.”

There’s even some fl exibility in housing. While Phoebe adheres to the Housing for Older Persons Act 55+ statute – which requires that 80% of apartments or cott ages must have at least one person ages 55 or older, other arrangements can prevail in the remaining 20%.

Here’s a quick overview of Phoebe’s scope of services.

The health care center on Turner St. (the familiar building the tower) is home to Phoebe’s skilled nursing care and shortterm rehab facilities. “Our goal is always to help a resident att ain their highest quality of life, and we do this through a combination of compassionate care and state-ofthe-art technology and equipment. Residents receive the full range of medical and nursing services, as well as continual assessment of their healthcare needs,” Schudel said. That is supplemented by appropriate therapies and a variety of activities.

Phoebe’s fi rst personal care community, Miller Personal Care, has operated since 1991. The services provided are generally similar to those at an assisted living center, but with a key diff erence – each of Phoebe’s CCRCs can provide all necessary

IN THIS ISSUE 1 Phoebe Ministries 2 West End 1st Saturday 3 Focus on the Arts 5 Show Us Your Dog 6 Ron’s Ramblings 7 Neighborhood Art 8 World of Food Festival 9 Festival Sponsors 10 Paul Kita Cooks 11 Banking News 12 Brick Construction 19 Healthy News 14 West End Zoning 15 From Representative Schlossberg 15 Where Is It? 15 West End Clean Up (continued on page 2)