Concierge: L Khalil Alexander
Patient’s Name: Marilyn Leo
Patient’s Age: 72
Admission Date: 2/17/2022
Admitted From: Morristown Memorial Hospital
Discharge Date: 3/15/2022
Discharged To: Home
Length of Stay: 27 Days
Reason for Stay: Rehabilitation for repeated falls
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? The patient was referred to Chatham Hills by the Case management team at Morristown Memorial Hospital

Details of Experience:

Marilyn Leo presented at the emergency room at Morristown Memorial Hospital with severe hip pain after falling in her home. After being admitted to the hospital, X-rays were done, and although the X-rays revealed that she had a fractured hip, she did not require surgery. Prior to discharge from the hospital, Ms. Leo and her family were provided with a list of subacute facilities where she could continue her recovery journey. Her daughter completed research on the listed facilities. She reviewed the Chatham Hills community website and immediately reached out to the admission director for an in-person tour of the community. She also enjoyed reading through the Google reviews and the case studies from previous residents. The daughter stated after reading google reviews and case studies, she knew Chatham Hills was the place for Mom.

Ms. Leo was admitted to Chatham Hills on February 17, 2022. She needed maximum assistance for all ADLs-(Activities of Daily Living). When she arrived, Marilyn could not stand and required increased assistance for functional mobility. Her strength and stamina had weakened, and she had depleted the range of motion in her leg. Throughout her stay at Chatham Hills, her therapist, Leslie Lykes, worked with Marilyn on therapeutic resistance exercises, including weights and lower leg exercises. Soon, Marilyn progressed from sitting to standing. They also trained her on correct hand/foot placement during gait training, emphasizing negotiating obstacles, increasing safety and performance within the facility, and increasing safety while getting to/from the restroom. They also worked with Marilyn on transfer training to increase safe and functional independence. Upon arrival, Ms. Marilyn’s ambulation distance was minimal. After participating in therapy five days a week over four weeks, Marilyn could ambulate about 200 feet with a rolling walker.

Marilyn was discharged on March 17, 2022. She returned home, and Social Services assisted with the placement of a home health aide, with services six days a week. Her daughter has been her biggest cheerleader and encouraged her to get back on her feet. As Marilyn shared, “You guys have an amazing gym, and it makes you want to get back to where you belong. I feel very confident about going back home. Thanks to your amazing Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy team. They are very efficient with what I need to get back home.”

Ms. Marilyn was independent before her accident, and her wish when she first arrived at Chatham Hills was to be able to get back her independence.

With hard work and determination, the team at Chatham Hills is happy to congratulate her on being able to return home and wish her all the best!

Concierge: Kathleen Ferlise
Patient’s Age: 92-years-old
Admission Date: 8/3/2021
Admitted From: Overlook Medical Center
Discharge Date: 8/31/2021
Reason for Stay: Fractured hip
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? The patient was given a list from the hospital, chosen for proximity to home.

Details of Experience:
It was a typical day for Daniel until the unexpected happened. He was walking back to bed in the middle of the night when he fell. He could get himself back in bed, where he stayed the remainder of the night and the next day. The next night when he tried to get up again, he, unfortunately, fell again. This time was worse. He realized he was unable to bear any weight on his right leg. Learning something was very wrong, his family arranged for him to be taken quickly to Overlook hospital, where he presented with a fractured right femur.
After surgery and receiving acute therapy at the Hospital, Daniel and his family were notified that he would require subacute rehabilitation to further assist in his healing process. When his daughters received the list of recommended communities, they knew they wanted him to come to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center since it was close to his house and where his loving wife was, waiting for his return home.

Daniel was admitted to Chatham Hills on August 3rd, 2020, where he and his family were greeted by our receptionist and nursing team to get him settled into the community. Upon his initial therapy evaluation, Daniel presented with unsteadiness on his feet, inability to stand or walk, and inability to perform activities of daily living alone. The incredible Chatham therapy team knew that he would benefit best from a personalized physical and occupational therapy plan and coordinated with his nurses to create the proper treatment plan for his needs.

With his routine in place, Daniel was healing and working hard daily in therapy. He trained in stair negotiation, lower extremity strengthening and practiced with assistive devices for dressing, toileting, and bathing. Not only did his therapists and nurses cheer him on daily, but his family supported him daily, cheering him on from the sidelines. With the help of his therapist, Dee, Daniel made huge strides towards recovery. Approaching his discharge date, he was now able to ambulate over 150 feet, compared to the 0 feet he was admitted with, and can stand, transfer, bathe, dress, and more with only minimum and standby assistance. Daniel’s family was so appreciative to all the staff for getting him better than his prior level of function. His daughter knew that Daniel and his therapist, Dee, had a special bond. She shared, “Dee did a wonderful job motivating him.”

Team Chatham Hills is thrilled to congratulate Daniel on his amazing progress since the day of admission, and we were so excited to see him at his full potential!

Concierge: Kathleen Ferlise
Admission Date:4/23/21
Admitted From:Morristown Medical Center
Discharge Date:6/11/21
Discharged To: Home
Reason for Stay: Weakness, Sepsis, Dysphagia, Feeding Tube
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? The primary care physician is Chatham Hills’ Medical Director.

Details of Experience:
Tom was admitted to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center on April 23, 2021, after his stay at Morristown Medical Center. Tom’s road to recovery started in early April when he became very ill at home. His loving wife by his side, he was taken to Morristown Medical Center. After many tests, Tom was diagnosed with pneumonia sepsis. He, unfortunately, developed many different health obstacles. Diagnosed with c-diff and dysphagia, Tom required a feeding tube and was bedridden for two weeks. 

The team at Morristown Medical notified Tom and his family that he required subacute rehabilitation before returning home. With Tom’s primary care doctor being the medical director at Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center and a previous patient, Chatham Hills was his number one choice. 

Tom was admitted to Chatham on April 23rd. Our team greeted him, anticipating his arrival, and excited to see him again, under the circumstances. Upon initial evaluation with his incredible therapists, he required modified to maximum assistance with activities of daily living, could not ambulate, and required assistance with bed mobility tasks. Since Tom also suffered from aspiration pneumonia in the hospital, he was on an NPO (nothing by mouth) restriction. Before his hospitalization, he was eating regular, solid foods and thin liquids. Not only did Tom require physical and occupational therapy, but our speech therapist had a plan of treatment for him.

Tom attended therapy six days a week, working hard to get back to his prior level of function. Unfortunately, he acquired covid and needed to be in isolation. After two weeks of recovery, Tom was ready to start up his therapy program again. Tom’s goals upon re-evaluation were “to eat safely, to walk and be able to return home.” His highly trained speech therapist, Natasha, worked hard with him five times a week on safe swallowing strategies, reducing his anxiety/fear when eating, and improving his diet as time went along. He worked hard practicing self-care skills, balance, transfers to and from his chair and bed to return home at his highest level of function.

After a few weeks passed, Tom was nearing his discharge date. His determination and motivation lead him to be able to reach his goals. When he was admitted to Chatham Hills, he was unable to ambulate, required maximum assistance with all activities of daily living, and was unable to transfer himself without assistance. Tom graduated from our therapy program able to ambulate over 250 feet, requiring standby assistance for toileting, dressing, and transferring! Not only was he able to return home close to his prior level of function, but he also transitioned from requiring a feeding tube to meeting all his goals and eating normal food again! All of Tom’s therapists were so proud of him.

Team Chatham Hills congratulates Tom on his amazing progress and is so happy he can be back home with his number #1 supporter, his wife!

Concierge: Kathleen Ferlise
Patient’s Age: 72-years-old
Admission Date: 5/4/21
Admitted From: Overlook Medical Center
Discharge Date: 5/14/21
Discharged To: Home
Length of Stay: 10 days
Reason for Stay: Weakness, Multiple Wounds, and GI Bleed
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? She has been a patient here before.

Details of Experience:
Connie enjoys her life at home, being independent and able to do everything herself. On a regular Thursday, she started to feel lightheaded and dizzy. She knew something was not right and was quickly taken to Overlook Hospital. 

Connie was in the hospital for a couple of days when the medical professionals found her to have symptomatic anemia due to a GI bleed. While living independently at home, Connie was recommended to receive subacute rehabilitation for physical therapy to regain her strength. Connie had been a previous patient at Chatham, and she knew that was where she wanted to return. Connie was admitted to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center on May 4, 2021. She was greeted by our receptionist and nursing staff, who were waiting for her arrival. 

Connie was completely independent prior to admission and knew she had to stay motivated if she wanted to get back there. Her goal upon admission was “to get back to living independently.” Our highly trained therapy team knew she would benefit from a personalized PT/OT plan. During her initial assessment, she required contact guard assistance with transferring and walking. She demonstrated excellent rehab potential, and her therapists were excited to see how quickly she would progress.

Connie worked with her therapists daily on techniques to facilitate functional balance skills, dressing techniques, neuromuscular tasks with bending, reaching, self-care skills with all ADL-(Activities of Daily Living) tasks, transfers, and mobility. Over just ten days, Connie went from requiring assistance with her ADLs…only able to ambulate 15 feet with assistance, to ambulate over 200 feet, and able to do mostly everything independently again!

Team Chatham Hills is happy to congratulate our celebrity of the month, Connie, on her remarkable progress with us and wish her nothing but the best back at home!

Concierge: Kathleen Ferlise
Patient’s Age: 80-years-old
Admission Date: 3/25/21
Admitted From: Morristown Medical Center
Discharge Date: 4/25/21
Discharged To: Home
Length of Stay: 31 days
Reason for Stay: Pneumonia, Generalized Weakness
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? Hospital social worker

Details of Experience:
It was a typical Thursday afternoon as Joan spent the day bird watching at her house. Joan had been experiencing symptoms that she hoped were just a seasonal cold. She could not get herself to stand up, which caused her to get nervous. She began feeling dizzy, nauseous, and weak. Knowing that this feeling was getting worse, she quickly called her daughter and told her what was happening.

Joan was rushed over to Morristown Medical Center, where she discovered that she was suffering from pneumonia. After a couple of days of being monitored, her hospital social worker recommended extensive rehab before returning home. Her daughter did research online, spoke with the admissions team at Chatham Hills, and knew this is where she wanted her mom to be.

Joan was admitted to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center on March 25, 2021. Upon admission, she had a goal of returning to her prior level of function, or better! Joan’s goal was “to be able to stand up, to drive and return home.” Amongst many others who came in to introduce themselves, Joan was greeted by her physical and occupational therapists. Upon admission, Joan required moderate to maximum assistance. She was very weak, anxious, and nauseous. She could not transfer, get up, get dressed, or use the restroom on her own. After just one week of working with her excellent therapists, Joan began to progress to standing for a few seconds at a time and walking with a walker. She was thrilled when the dizziness started to subside. She became confident in her progress, and Team Chatham Hills was cheering her on every step of the way.

During her stay, Joan enjoyed spending time with her roommate and talking with the staff. Her favorite part of Chatham Hills was how she felt when she arrived; she shared with our Concierge, “the atmosphere was more like home, not a hospital. It was so inviting.” Getting to be near a window where she can see the birds were the highlight of Joan’s stay. 

Joan’s attitude from the beginning was to not give up on herself and to get stronger every day. She was discharged to her home on April 25th, 2021. She thought she would not be able to walk again but was discharged using a rollator! After a short few weeks of extensive therapy and working to reach her goals, Joan’s therapists and family were so proud of her! Joan stated, “Everyone was so great with me. Physical therapy was outstanding. They taught me so many things that I will happily continue to practice at home. Thank you to everyone who helped me along my way!”

Team Chatham Hills wishes Joan all the best back at home!

Patient’s Age: 90-years-old
Initial Admission Date: 01/14/21
Admission (re-entry) Date: 01/30/21
Admitted From: Overlook Medical Center
Discharge Date: TBD
Reason for Stay: Ischemic Bowel Disease
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? The patient has been a previous patient at Chatham Hills.

Details of Experience:
Antonietta was admitted to Overlook Medical Center on January 14, 2021, with severe abdomen pain. She was diagnosed with ischemic bowel disease and was scheduled to undergo a procedure. After a successful procedure and small-bowel resection, Antonietta felt well and felt like she was improving daily. Antonietta’s life at home is filled with love, and she is always surrounded by people who care about her. When she found out she required subacute rehabilitation, she knew she wanted to go to a community where she felt that same love and care, Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center.

Antonietta was admitted to Chatham Hills on January 22, 2021. She has been to Chatham Hills before, so she could see familiar faces when she arrived. The Admission team greeted her to welcome her and ensure she had everything she needed to be comfortable during her stay.
Antonietta was ready to start her recovery. She was independent before admission and knew she had to stay motivated to get back there. Her goal upon admission was “to get stronger, get back to where I was and return home.” The community’s highly-trained therapy team knew she would benefit from a personalized PT/OT plan. During her initial assessment, she presented with decreased endurance, poor tolerance to position changes, and required maximum assistance for daily living activities.

After both hospitalizations, Antonietta was not ready to back down. She stated, “I’m on the road to recovery because of therapy here.” After participating in strengthening activities and different interventions to increase her activity tolerance, Antonietta increased her functional mobility, during her activities of daily living, from maximum assistance to modified independence! She was starting to feel like her old self again and could not have been happier.

For people with such a close bond to their loved ones, it can feel heartbreaking to spend your birthday without them, especially your 90th birthday! While Antonietta was here, her 90th birthday approached fast. The Director of Concierge Services and the Recreation department teamed together to make sure she was surprised like a queen for the day. She was surprised with lots of balloons, gifts, and encouraging words from her Chatham Hills family. She stated, “even though I was not home for my 90th birthday, I felt at home here. Chatham Hills is my family, and they treat me like their family also.”

As her discharge date is approaching fast, the Director of Concierge Services visited Antonietta to ensure everything was set up for her. Antonietta stated, “When I got here, I was flat on my back. How I progressed was unbelievable. The therapy was fantastic. That is the only word I have for it. Not that it was easy, but they pushed me in the best way, and I was willing to do the work. I love this Chatham Hills family. My nurses and aides were amazing. One was as good as the next. They made sure I was comfortable and had everything I needed. The concierge here is the best; she is the most caring. From how I came in to what I am now is a huge difference. I would recommend Chatham Hills to anyone.”

Team Chatham Hills is thrilled to congratulate Antonietta for all her focus, determination, and positive spirit to reach her set goals. Her inviting smile and warm personality will be missed, but we are happy she is returning to her family and loving dog, Brooke!

Patient’s Age: 84-years-old
Initial Admission Date: 11/07/20
Discharge Date: 01/20/21
Discharged To: Home
Reason for Stay: Orthostatic hypotension
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? Mary has been with us previously.

Details of Experience:
Mary was in and out of the hospital for months before admitting to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center. She presented to the hospital in October for chest pain and was sent home shortly after. She was sent back to the emergency room with similar complaints of chest pain. She underwent cardiac catheterization with two stents placed. Following her days in the hospital, Mary was given the recommendation of transferring to a subacute rehabilitation center. With the strong support of her husband, Jerry, they worked together to get Mary to a place they could trust. Mary arrived at Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center on November 7, 2020.

On arrival, Mary was greeted by our admission team who escorted her to her room. Mary arrived at Chatham Hills requiring maximum assistance with all activities of daily living and was unable to ambulate. Within the first 24 hours of her stay, Mary was evaluated by her team of highly trained therapists. Together, they set personalized goals to work towards before Mary’s discharge. According to her therapy team, she demonstrated good potential as evidenced by recent onset, strong family support, and motivation to participate.

Over the course of the months, Mary worked hard every single day she was at Chatham Hills. She worked daily with her Physical Therapist, practicing transfers and walking. She trained in proper ways to transfer safely and participate in activities of daily life. She was cheered on, daily, by her husband, who visited at the window.

After her time working with our team at Chatham Hills, Mary was ready to go back home. She went from needing assistance and depending on caregivers to assist with all her activities of daily life to meeting her goal of walking better and performing ADLs with supervised assistance. Mary and her husband were grateful for the progress she made at Chatham Hills and so excited to return home.

Our concierge followed up with Jerry, who was so excited to share that she does not require caregivers at home and is doing so well!

It was a long battle for Mary, but Team Chatham Hills wishes her and Jerry health and happiness today and every day!

Patient’s Age: 76-years-old
Initial Admission Date: 11/16/20
Admission (re-entry) Date: 10/16/2020
Admitted From: Morristown Medical Center
Discharge Date: 12/13/20
Reason for Stay: Elevated INR, venous stasis
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? Granddaughter is on staff at Chatham Hills

Details of Experience:
Leroy dedicated his life to helping others, along with his wife. He served as a police officer for Chatham Borough and his wife as a nurse for Morristown Medical Center. After both retired, they dedicated their lives to helping each other. With nursing experience, Leroy’s wife helped him tremendously at home. One day, however, he experienced such severe pain and he needed further help. With a history of health complications in the last year, Morristown Medical was ready to assist.

After being cared for at Morristown Medical, Leroy was recommended to pursue subacute rehabilitation to further assist in his healing process. When given a choice of rehabs to choose from, Leroy, his wife, and his daughter knew they wanted him to go to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center, where his granddaughter Kathleen is the Director of Concierge Services.

Upon admission to Chatham Hills, he was welcomed by the admission and nursing teams, and he shared that at home he could not ambulate for several months due to his osteoarthritis and was dependent for most ADLs-(Activities of Daily Living). The therapists created a set of goals for him to achieve while he was in the community. The focus of therapy was strengthening and practicing transferring.

Leroy was very motivated to begin his journey in therapy, especially with his granddaughter cheering him on. He participated in therapy five to six days a week. Upon therapy evaluation, he was completely dependent on staff for transfers, presenting with increased weakness and suffering from a right hip wound. He was unable to transfer even with assistance, so his therapists tried another way of transferring, the sliding board. The sliding board method was much easier for him, especially considering his wounds.

While receiving nursing and therapy care at Chatham Hills, he also received special wound care from the same nurse practitioner who treated him in the hospital. As time continued, his nurse practitioner reported how well he was healing! He was able to put more effort into his exercising without that pain. His therapists were so proud of him, as they watched him successfully use the sliding board with set-up assistance.

Once he met most of his goals, therapy continued to work with him to maintain his strength and keep him active in preparation to discharge home. Leroy has a wonderful support system with his family, and he was excited to return home to his beautiful wife! Leroy shared, “The therapy team at Chatham Hills worked very hard with me. I have not walked in months but with them, I was able to conquer what I could! My advice to anyone going to Chatham Hills is to not be afraid, as long as you listen to your therapists. They will get you through anything! We love the concierge, and she will always come through!”

Team Chatham Hills is so proud of Leroy’s commitment and motivation to get to the point of strength that he was at upon discharge! Congratulations to him and his family!

Patient’s Age: 76-years-old
Initial Admission Date: 10/01/2020
Admission (re-entry) Date: 10/16/2020
Admitted From: Overlook Hospital
Discharge Date: 10/30/2020
Reason for Stay: Weakness, UTI. Re-Admit: Post joint replacement surgery
How did this patient hear about Chatham Hills? Online research

Details of Experience:
Mary S.’s life before coming to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center seemed simple, at best. She loved to go antiquing, painting, and gardening. Once quarantine began, her outdoor activities were limited, but she enjoyed relaxing at home and reading. There was only one problem; Mary was unable to walk fully without experiencing pain. She had a scheduled surgery to take place, finally, after multiple reschedules. She knew she was going to need subacute rehabilitation after her surgery to further heal. Being proactive, Mary did some research, saw Chatham Hills Subacute online and was in contact with Helyne, our Director of Admissions.

Mary could not handle the pain any longer. She called Helyne to set up an admission until she was cleared for surgery. She required assistance with all activities of daily living and simply was in too much pain.

Mary was admitted to Chatham Hills Subacute Care Center from home initially on October 1, 2020. She was diagnosed with weakness and suffering from a urinary tract infection. Upon admission to Chatham Hills, Mary was greeted by several of our interdisciplinary staff. She was welcomed at the door by our Director of Admissions and receptionist before being escorted to her room.

The day following her admission, Mary was evaluated by physical and occupational therapy. Mary was scheduled for a hip arthroplasty multiple times, but unfortunately had to be rescheduled due to a UTI onset. With her therapists present, they set goals and plans to get her back home safely!

During her initial assessment, she presented with decreased mobility and pain due to arthritis in her right hip. She was only able to ambulate 40 feet with supervised assistance, unable to support herself standing and overall difficulty with her activities of daily living. She was unable to return home, as she has stairs to climb and has been having increased difficulty. The Chatham Hills team was there to help. When asked, “what is your goal for therapy, while you are here in our community,” her response was, “That after my surgery, Chatham Hills will help me become more mobile, and walk up and down my stairs independently.” Her therapists knew she had a planned surgery and were dedicated to getting her as strong as possible beforehand.

Progressing the best she could in therapy, it was finally the day of Mary’s surgery! On October 14, 2020, she was directly admitted to Overlook Medical Center. After a successful surgery, Mary could now participate in therapy to her full extent. She was evaluated back into therapy on October 16, 2020. She made progress the first time with us, but still could not ambulate without pain or attempt stairs. Her therapists were eager to work with her again because they were familiar with her routine. She was motivated and ready to fully heal!

Throughout her stay and before her anticipated discharge, Mary was pleased with our staff and the care we provided her. She described them as, “miraculous.” She stated, “everything is going really well. I am really amazed at how well I feel, and I contribute that to the therapy, here, at Chatham Hills”.

When her discharge date was approaching, Mary could officially walk up and down a total of 8 steps, compared to the 0 steps when she was admitted, and can stand without pain, transfer and walk over 100 feet!

Team Chatham Hills was excited to congratulate Mary on her amazing progress and ability to rehabilitate, rejuvenate, recover, and return home!