TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital, located on the fifth floor of The Villages Regional Hospital's (TVRH) North Tower, officially opened its doors to patients on July 1. The new 20-bed facility offers patients private patient rooms, a state-of-the-art physical therapy gym, ADL (Activities of Daily Living) suite, a communal dining hall, solarium and family conference rooms. Patients will receive around-the-clock care, occupational therapy, speech pathology, social services and case management, neuropsychology and more.
TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital will provide acute care for patients who suffer from conditions including but not limited to stroke, spinal cord injury, amputation, brain injury, major multiple trauma, hip fracture, neurological disorder and knee or hip replacement, according to Donna Bohdal, director of TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital.
"We are not a skilled nursing facility," explained Bohdal. "We provide intense therapy services including three hours a day, five days a week. Our patients form close connections with the staff and see their rehabilitation physician daily."
The Villages Regional Hospital has been serving Villages residents as well as patients in Lake, Sumter and Marion Counties since 2002. The completion of the TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital marks the end of a $59 million expansion project that began in 2013. The original rehabilitation hospital, located in Leesburg, was nearing the end of its useful life and was badly in need of replacement, noted Bohdal. The new facility includes the most up-to-date technology and spacious rooms that the old facility did not have.
"Many patients have a significant level of rehabilitation needs that can only be met by an acute hospital setting," said Bohdal. "Critical-needs cardiac and stroke patients will benefit greatly from the convenient location of TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital."
Bohdal noted that the intensity of its physician oversight far exceeds what is provided in a skilled nursing facility.
"We provide at least fifteen hours of intense therapy services each week for our patients," she said. "Our doctors round on patients every day and the entire team meets regularly to discuss patient progress, functional status and discharge plans."
The Villages Regional Hospital's North Tower addition opened late year, adding much needed patient beds and additional services. The addition--177,018 square feet of new construction--included a vertical expansion of the new North Tower as well as 28,253 square feet of renovation. The first floor expansion included three new operating rooms, 16 emergency department exam rooms, 25 pre/post exam rooms and additions to surgery discharge and the lobby.
The second floor houses shell space for catheterization laboratory services, while the third floor includes 32 intensive care unit (ICU) beds, consolidating all ICU beds to this floor. The medical/surgical beds are on the fourth floor and, in 2016, a 22-room rehabilitation unit will open on the fifth floor. the construction manager for the project was Robins & Morton with offices in Orlando, Fla. and the architect was Earl Swensson Associates, headquartered in Nashville, Tenn.
Robert Maiello, MD, medical director of TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital, said that the new rehab hospital was built with the goal to make sure that its patients have the proper therapy to improve their overall quality of life.
"The Villages is known as America's Healthiest Hometown," he said. "Our residents are active adults who are not ready to slow down. It's very rewarding to be able to work in this setting because it allows me to see patients walk out of the rehab facility and continue on with their lives. In just a few short weeks, patients who have been injured or experienced strokes are often leaving with smiles on their faces."
For more information on TVRH Rehabilitation Hospital, visit www.centralfloridahealth.org/about-villages.html.
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