Edward C. Allworth Veterans' Home is a skilled nursing facility on 12 acres in

Lebanon, Oregon Lebanon ( ) is a city in Linn County, Oregon, Linn County, Oregon, United States. Lebanon is located in northwest Oregon, southeast of Salem, Oregon, Salem. The population was 19,690 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Lebanon sits be ...

, with spaces for 154 American

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in an job, occupation or Craft, field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in the military, armed forces. A topic o ...

s. It offers skilled nursing services, rehabilitation services and long-term care, as well as care for

dementia Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...

and

Alzheimer's Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

patients.

Design

In April 2010

Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs The Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs is an agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for programs and benefits for citizens of the state who are veterans of the U.S. armed services, their dependents and survivors. Th ...

selected Lebanon as the location of the second Veterans' home in Oregon, on the campus of

Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital The Samaritan Health Services (SHS) is a non-profit, integrated delivery healthcare system consisting of five hospitals, over 110 physician clinics, and multiple health insurance plans in Oregon and is headquartered in Corvallis, Oregon. As of ...

(a 25-bed

Critical Access Hospital The Critical Access Hospital program is a United States federal program established in 1997 as part of the Balanced Budget Act. The program aims to offer small hospitals in rural areas to serve residents that would otherwise be a long distance fr ...

), and next to WesternU's osteopathic medicine school, and

Linn–Benton Community College Linn–Benton Community College (LBCC) is a public community college with five locations in Linn County, Oregon and Benton County, Oregon. LBCC is the sixth largest of Oregon's seventeen community colleges, educating more than 12,000 students pe ...

's Lebanon extension. Groundbreaking took place in September 2012 on the $40 million facility. Named for Maj. Edward Allworth, who was awarded a Medal of Honor for his World War I service, it opened in 2014. The facility was designed by CB Two Architects, in collaboration with NBBJ Architecture, using the "small-house" model and design guide of the

Department of Veterans Affairs The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

Community Living Centers. The design features "clusters of small residential buildings connected by a spine of shared program space", intended to foster independence and personal connections. The building is divided into eleven housing units with 14 residents each. John Osborn, project manager, said, "The small house model alters the facility's size, the interior design, staffing patterns, and methods of delivering skilled professional care and services." According to Jeremy Woodall, admissions officer, the design gives residents "more one-on-one time with medical staff and creates an intimate, home-like environment." Three paintings by April Waters, including a portrait of Major Allworth, were installed in 2017. The portrait was commissioned by Oregon

Percent for Art The term percent for art refers to a program, often a city ordinance, where a fee, usually some percentage of the project cost, is placed on large scale development projects in order to fund and install public art. The details of such programs va ...

and the Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs.

History

The new facility reached capacity at 154 residents in November 2016, the second anniversary of its opening, a year ahead of projections for full occupancy. In 2016, the average resident age was 85, with an average length of stay being 50 days.

Coronavirus outbreak

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

outbreak occurred at the home. By March 16, the virus was confirmed in 13 residents (most over age 70) and one healthcare worker. With 151 residents and 225 workers, the county health director said, "I can't stop it. I can't stop the virus. I can't make test kits appear", but there was some optimism that the spread would be slow since the retirement home is divided into eleven housing units. On March 16,

Providence Health Systems Providence Health & Services is a not-for-profit Catholic healthcare system headquartered in Renton, Washington. The health system includes 51 hospitals, more than 800 non-acute facilities, and numerous assisted living facilities in the western ...

Kaiser Permanente Kaiser Permanente (; KP) is an American integrated delivery system, integrated managed care consortium headquartered in Oakland, California. Founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield, Sidney R. Garfield, the ...

Legacy Health Legacy Health is a non-profit hospital system located in Portland, Oregon, United States. It consists of six primary-care hospitals, a children's hospital, and allied clinics and outpatient facilities. The system employs about 14,000 staff mem ...

, and

Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public university, public research university, research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded ...

formed a coalition to set up a regional

health system A health system, health care system or healthcare system is an organization of people, institutions, and resources that delivers health care services to meet the health needs of target populations. There is a wide variety of health systems aroun ...

in the state in order to address anticipated need for capacity and coordination to address the outbreak.

References

External links

*
Tour of Veterans Care Center of Oregon

Energy Trust of Oregon : Edward C. Allworth Veterans’ Home, Lebanon
{{Authority control 2014 establishments COVID-19 pandemic in the United States by location Health in Oregon Old soldiers' homes in the United States