FAQs

** Coronavirus / COVID19 Questions **

At this point, we are only accepting medically necessary items such as briefs, medications, toilet paper/tissue and medically essential items (Assisted Living Residents). These items have to be in unopened plastic packages, not singular in number. If medications or medically essential items are brought from home they need to be in a see through zip lock bag please.

Regular envelope mail is being delivered to the residents. Care packages are not being accepted at this time.

Mail order briefs or medications packages from medical companies in unopened boxes will be accepted.

At this point, we are not able to have food delivered to our residents.

The staff at Sprenger Health Care Systems is working diligently to keep you, your loved ones and our staff as safe as possible. Any item coming into the facility from the public provides opportunity for the virus to enter our doors. This virus has the ability to survive on certain surfaces anywhere from 5-7 days so you can understand our extreme concern with allowing multiple non-medically necessary care packages entering the building. Therefore, our staff is wiping down each and every single medically necessary item that is delivered and it is very time intensive. While we understand this is very difficult to hear, we want you to again, realize we are just doing our best to prevent the spread of the COVID19 virus to our residents and staff.

Sprenger Health Care Systems staff will be following State, Federal, and CDC Guidelines. As soon as they make us aware it is safe to resume normal activities you will be able to make deliveries again.

We are asking for all residents to remain in their rooms with the exception of emergencies. Staying socially distant is a guideline from the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) that helps keep all of our residents and staff as safe as possible. We all have a responsibility to enforce these guidelines that affect not only ourselves, but our neighbors, staff, and friends.

The activities department in each facility has worked diligently to create individualized plans for your loved ones while allowing them to stay in their rooms. We are currently following Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines of no group activities at this time.

The only visitors permitted in our facilities are essential supply delivery and emergency repair workers, first responders, hospice staff, and Nurse Practitioners and Doctors directly related to a resident’s care needs. All of these essential people are screened for health symptoms following Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines.

Assisted Living

An assisted living is a community that provides supportive services for seniors with activities of daily living such as: nursing care, housekeeping, laundry and meals. Assisted living also provides a variety of recreational activities.

No, the community will arrange for medical attention and then evaluate appropriateness to best suit your needs.

Residents can bring their own furniture from home and decorate to as they wish.

Yes, nursing is available at the facility 24/7. You have the choice to keep your regular doctor or to elect to see the facility's doctor.

Hospice Care

Considering hospice can be a difficult choice. How do you know if it’s time and are you and your loved one ready? Here are a few signs/reasons that you and your loved one maybe ready for Hospice: if your doctor shares there is nothing further that can be done for your disease and gives you a prognosis of 6 months or less, if you no longer wish to seek aggressive treatment, or if you have a significant weight loss and multiple hospital trips.

Hospice services are covered under your insurance benefit. Every insurance has a Hospice Benefit that covers the care provided by the hospice team to your loved one.

One of the biggest misconceptions is that hospice is a place. Hospice is a philosophy and is provided where the patient is at. This can be personal residence, family/friends residence, assisted living and nursing facility. Our Hospice services can be provided at any location within our service area. 

Pain can be emotional, spiritual or physical and is what the patient says it is. The hospice team manages pain through collaboration with the patient’s doctor and care team to determine what medications may be effective. The team’s Social Worker and Spiritual Care Coordinator are utilized to address emotional and spiritual pain.

A social worker is available to provide support as needed. This support can consist of many different things. Your social worker is able to assist with processing feelings for acceptance of your loved ones decline, education on what to expect regarding signs and symptoms of death and dying, funeral arrangements and discussions, and facilitating a dialog between family and patient to share feelings and say good bye. Your social worker is also able to assist with Medicaid applications, VA Benefit applications, Living Wills and DPOA-H. 

Independent Living

It's a senior community for age 55+ that is a unique option combining the ease and comfort of independence in your own private apartment.

Yes, some pets are allowed to live within independent living communities. Please contact the individual communities directly for more information.

You can expect entertainment such as outings, day trips, spiritual and wellness activities and more! Please contact each community director for a current events calendar.

Yes, transportation is available for weekly outings.

Memory Care

Memory Care is a specialized type of service where the resident's stay is catered specifically to those with Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. Memory Care units are typically secured to offer family members peace of mind and residents the safety and security they deserve.

It might be time to consider memory care when a family can no longer safely care for a loved one with some form of dementia. Often times, these loved ones have been diagnosed by a physician to have some form of dementia and may be at risk of injury or wandering due to their condition. The decision to choose memory care can be very tough for families. We recommend talking to a physician, social worker, or other qualified personnel regarding options for your loved one. Please feel free to call any of our facilities offering memory care to talk to one of our specialized staff members.

Our Life Enrichment Teams offer a wide array of activities for memory care residents. The type and length of any activity largely depends on the residents within the unit and who is participating. Our teams work very carefully to develop life enrichment programs that are clinically appropriate for everyone staying with us.

Respite Care

Respite care is a service offered at our communities where loved ones can enjoy short-term stays while engaging in life enrichment activities, social settings, clinical care and other support services. This type of stay is typically provided to allow a family member or caregiver time for vacations, errands, or time alone while knowing that your loved one is being cared for in a safe environment.

We recommend allowing for three to five days notice to give our team time to have everything in place. However, we are able to handle admissions 24/7 so in an emergency situation, our Admissions Directors could help guide you through the process in an expedited manner to meet your needs.

There are several options available to pay for respite care. We recommend scheduling a meeting with the Admissions Director at one of our communities so that they can guide you through which payment options might be best for you.

There are typically two types of respite care; inpatient and adult day care. Here at Sprenger, we do not offer Adult Day Care Programs. However, we can assist in inpatient respite care for your loved one.

Skilled Nursing

Skilled nursing is a level of service where a physician supervises a patient's plan of care and the patient has nursing staff available 24 hours a day.

There are several different levels of senior care available at our facilities. The biggest thing to consider when considering skilled nursing is if the resident needs 24-hour supervision or nursing care, or if the loved one is in danger of wandering off or mismanaging medication. To find out more information on what level of care might be best for you or your loved on, please contact an Admissions Director at the facility nearest you.

Each Sprenger community has a life enrichment department with trained staff that is dedicated to providing all of our residents and patients with activities to make their stay as enjoyable as possible. Common activities you might see are fitness classes, art classes, seasonal activities, cards, bingo, movies, and more! For more information on the activities that a specific facility offers please contact them directly for a current events calendar.

For skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, pets are allowed to visit residents within the facility as long as they are up to date on all shots, exams and have a license record available to the facility upon request. For the safety of all residents and staff, we ask that all pets be trained or otherwise contained during their visit. For more information on the procedure for pet visits, please contact the Life Enrichment Director at the facility.

Therapy

Following an injury to your bones or muscles, you may be referred for rehabilitation to decrease your pain, increase your ability to function safely and monitor your progress.  Many patients who elect to have a joint replacement (total hip or total knee) will be assessed by a Physical and Occupational Therapist to establish a plan to return them to their prior level of function.  Physical therapy will focus on increasing the strength and motion in your new joint as well as work on your balance and walking to make sure you are safe to return home.  Occupational therapy will focus on the activities you'll need to manage at home including dressing, cooking and bathing.  Besides a joint replacement, there are many times a person will be referred for Physical therapy following knee surgery to repair torn ligaments.  The goal for rehabilitation is similar to those following a joint replacement....to return to your prior level of function.  In some cases your surgeon will send you for therapy prior to surgery to strengthen the involved area which will help shorten your rehabilitation time.  The stronger you are before your surgery, the quicker you will recover after the procedure.  The main goal for all therapy is to get you back to your prior level of function, using adaptive equipment if needed (cane, walker, reacher), so you can manage safely in your own environment.

Short-term rehabilitation is a combination of interdisciplinary therapy regimens designed to enhance a resident's functional level to return to home in a brief but concise time frame.  Our goal is to deliver excellence in wellness and safely and effectively advance you to the next level of care. We will provide you with needed services to be successful after you leave one of our homes. 

Speech therapy is a therapy service that is available to patients who exhibit speech, language, voice, cognitive and/or swallowing difficulties. A speech therapist will meet with you upon admission to determine if you would benefit from services. A speech therapist is trained to address communication, speech and swallowing disorders that arise from a variety of medical conditions. A speech therapist will develop a plan to maximize your function through rehabilitation, development of strategies and patient/family training.

Occupational therapy strives to empower individuals to reach independence when recovering from the effects of a medical complication or event.  These specialized professionals help to engage patients in getting back to their activities of daily living (such as bathing, dressing, meal preparation, and medication management) and reintroduce them back to their prior environments. Occupational therapy provides strategies and training through a therapeutic person centered approach in which both mental and physical barriers are addressed to help patients reach their goals.  

Physical Therapy is the treatment of a disease, injury, deformity, pain, or disability which results in lack of mobility.  Physical therapy uses strength and balance training though exercise prescription, along with using modalities to facilitate neuromuscular responses and diminish pain.   Physical Therapy is utilized to provide alternative options rather than using medications or surgery to treat a condition.  Physical therapy restores mobility for all ages, whether preparing for a sport or gaining independence for living. 

Outpatient therapy is designed for those individuals who are mobile enough to leave their residence on a regular basis to participate in therapy treatments. Outpatient therapy tends to focus on very specific movement patterns and strengthening of specific muscles to alleviate pain and restore normal movement. One of the main goals of outpatient therapy is to teach patients a home exercise program and educate patients on how to control and manage any neuro and or musculoskeletal deficits they might have. Typically outpatient therapy consists of 2 to 4 visits a week with a duration of 45 to 75 minutes per visit depending on the deficit being treated. Treatment sessions are typically designed to progress patients towards their goals by continually increasing resistance and challenging the patient from session to session with progressive treatment exercises. The only side effect to outpatient therapy is that the patient gets better.

Prior to your discharge, we offer and recommend participation in a home safety assessment.  This service allows the therapist to be able to assess how well our patients are able to complete all the tasks they need to be able to do at home and provide recommendations in regards to set up, modification, or equipment needed for home-going.  Often we are able to identify specific areas of function that need to be a focus during rehabilitation at the facility.  This is also an excellent opportunity for our therapy team to provide hands on training and education to caregivers in the home to increase successful outcomes. 

Our therapy professionals provide various community outings (i.e. grocery store, post office, dollar store) in support of our patients to reintroduce and reintegrate functional mobility, tolerance and dynamic balance in coordination with safety awareness and social skills to endorse positive outcomes and healthy living.  This is service to take current mastered skills into real life settings to strengthen that skill and promote generalization for the highest possible independence while developing and promoting task performance. 

Therapy services are available to you 7 days a week.  Your therapists and physician will determine the best treatment plan for you based on your individual needs and treatment goals.

The length of each of your therapy sessions will depend on your functional abilities and overall clinical needs.  You will work together with your therapist and interdisciplinary team to determine what is best for you.  We also offer therapy at different times of the day allowing for both morning and afternoon treatments as necessary. 

We want you to be comfortable during your therapy with us! We recommend you wear loose fitting clothes that allow room for movement and exercise.  Sweatpants, T-shirts, and other athletic apparel are all appropriate as you may be moving, bending, and increasing your heart rate during a session.  We also recommend non-slip shoes that are supportive. 

Most insurance companies offer coverage for therapy services, but the level of coverage can vary greatly.  We recommend talking to one of our admissions and marketing directors or therapy directors at any of our communities to best determine what insurance would cover.  They can help guide you to what your best payment options will be. 

When you first arrive at our facility we will discuss preference for therapy times with you.  We will then have a member from our therapy team come and locate you in the facility in advance of when it is time for your therapy session.  This allows you to enjoy your stay and relax while our teams maintain your daily schedule.  We try very hard to work around any events, life enrichment activities, meals, etc. so your therapy does not conflict with your social experience within the community.

Yes, Sprenger will keep your physician and surgeon fully informed on your progress so you receive the best outcome from your stay with us.  In many situations, therapists or therapy assistants will attend follow up appointments with you to discuss your treatment plan and your progress information in person.

Employee Inquiries

All personal information for current employees can be updated through the Employee Self Service Center. Once you submit a request for a change through Self Service it will go directly to the appropriate personnel for approval. Further verification may be required for some requests.

Yes, all employees are encouraged to attend the open enrollment meetings at the facilities each year to learn about changes for the following plan year. Employees must re-enroll every year to continue health care coverage. Open enrollment meetings will be announced at every facility as they are scheduled. If you are unable to attend a meeting it is the employee's responsibility to get in touch with Human Resources to get the needed information.

For current employees, you can view all paycheck stubs and/or W-2s through the Employee Self Service website.

For all previous employees, you can view your old paycheck stubs and/or W-2s through the Global Cash Card website.

Any employee who experiences a qualifying event has 30 days to notify human resources of the qualifying event and make the adjustment to insurance. If you wait longer than 30 days you will not be eligible to make any changes to your plan until the following plan year. To contact the human resources department please call 440-989-5230.

Employees are eligible for benefits if they work consistently 30 hours or more per week. Once an employee is eligible they have 30 days to enroll in the health insurance plan of their choice and then the coverage becomes effective the 1st day of the following month. For instance, if you start working 30 hours or more on June 15th, you would have until July 15th to enroll and then your coverage would begin on August 1st. For questions regarding health insurance eligibility please contact the HR department directly at 440-989-5230.