As young people, we can hardly wait to leave home. Then, in our later years, when the walls around us have embraced decades of love and laughter and any number of milestones have been marked and traditions kept—leaving home is one of the things we fear most. Those who make Bethesda the next stop on their life’s journey enjoy a wonderful opportunity to create a new place to call “home.” One door closes; another door opens.
Bethesda has spent more than a century caring for area seniors, creating a community that focuses on enhancing quality of life and providing support services tailored to address individual physical, social and spiritual needs. Bethesda now has the tremendous opportunity to enhance these services and invest in a healthy future. This expansion project is not about building buildings but about granting seniors the right to age with grace and dignity through a healing environment that inspires and serves. The new campus will include relocating the residents from Heritage Center onto the Pleasant View Campus into new neighborhoods of approximately 20 residents. The neighborhood design will create a homelike feel of community within the Bethesda campus. Individuality and personalized care is enhanced with new private resident rooms that include full bathrooms with showers.
The heart of each neighborhood includes a kitchen, dining room, living room and indoor porch area. The new design enhances quality of life and sense of purpose by creating familiar spaces for resident use such as social areas, walking paths, gardens and neighborhood laundry. The required nursing stations and other service areas will be tucked away to allow resident living spaces to remain the focus. The neighborhoods are connected to the main hub or “town center” where the new chapel, salon and café are located. A new café is designed for residents, staff and visitors to enjoy a cup of coffee anytime throughout the day and a great place to meet for lunch with offerings such as sandwiches, soups and salads.
A new 36-bed short-stay therapy center will also be constructed. This area will reflect an environment of wellness and healing for post-acute recovery and will feature spacious rooms,
open layout, modern décor and a separate entrance for visitors to promote independence, socialization and family involvement. A bright corridor will connect the short-stay center to the Wellness Center. A new 1,000 square foot therapy suite will also be available for patients to receive therapy services onsite. When completed, the project will be a major step toward our
goal of creating a new kind of continuing care retirement neighborhood; one that fosters active lifestyles and community relationships. Housing options will include independent living, assisted living and spaces tailored to the special needs of those struggling with Parkinson’s, memory loss and Alzheimer’s. It will also allow for tenants to stay on campus and receive appropriate housing options, such as assisted living or memory care, should their health needs change.