Syracuse, N.Y. -- In addition to scrapping the traditional model of the big impersonal nursing home, Loretto is about to radically redefine the role of the nursing home worker. At Loretto’s 13 small skilled nursing care “Green House” residences about to be built in Cicero, there will not be certified nurse aides caring for residents. A “shahbaz,” which means the...
Syracuse, N.Y. -- In addition to scrapping the traditional model of the big impersonal nursing home, Loretto is about to radically redefine the role of the nursing home worker.
At Loretto’s 13 small skilled nursing care “Green House” residences about to be built in Cicero, there will not be certified nurse aides caring for residents.
A “shahbaz,” which means the “King’s Falcon” in Persian, will do the caregiving. That’s the title for a new breed of certified nurse aide who will take on extra duties such as cooking, cleaning and seeing to the overall welfare of elderly residents. The plural version of the term is “shahbazim.”
“Loretto is working on a cultural transformation,” said Robert Jenkins, director of the National Green House Project. “It’s about setting people free to do what they do best.”
Jenkins spoke Thursday at Loretto’s annual luncheon at the Oncenter. Loretto is a Syracuse nonprofit provider of nursing home care and other services to the elderly.
Jenkins’ nonprofit group is serving as a consultant to Loretto on its Green House project. Loretto plans to start construction later this year on the 13 homes, each of which will provide skilled nursing care to 12 people. It is a $40 million project. Loretto also will close two of its big traditional nursing homes in Oswego and Syracuse. The goal of the Green House approach is to provide more personal, higher quality care.
There are 87 Green House homes nationwide and another 127 being developed. The concept was developed by Dr. William Thomas, a geriatrician from Ithaca. He also coined the term “shahbaz.”
Research shows the smaller homes provide a better quality of life and care for residents and higher levels of employee satisfaction at a cost comparable to traditional nursing homes, Jenkins said.
Green House homes are cost effective largely because of the different approach they use to caregiving, he said. The assembly line concept does not work well in health care because it prevents employees from getting to know residents, he said. That leads to mistakes and problems with care, according to Jenkins. “They may have 20 people to give a bath or shower to and that’s the only time they may interact,” he said.
The Green House approach is more efficient because there is no wasted downtime while a certified nurse aid is waiting for a housekeeper to change linens or kitchen staff to prepare meals.
“The minute the shahbaz stops cooking, she picks up the vacuum and starts vacuuming,” he said. “The minute a call light rings through to her pager, she goes and provides care, then comes back and picks up the vacuum.”
In a traditional nursing home, a certified nurse aide spends an average of 45 minutes a day just pushing people around in wheelchairs from dining rooms to bed rooms and other locations, he said. That’s practically eliminated in a small home.
Shahbaz workers will be paid more than a traditional aide, Jenkins said. They will be self-managed, eliminating the need for managers. The savings in management costs will more than offset the higher wages paid to shahbaz workers, he said.