Comfort and safety are the keys to healing at Sherrill House

Sponsored and provided by Sherrill House

Sherrill House, a not-for-profit skilled nursing and rehabilitation center in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, recently completed its biggest renovation project in more than 15 years, which replaced outdated larger rooms with private or semi-private accommodations.

The project was influenced by global design changes in long-term care that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic, where the highest levels of infection control are a priority consideration.  At the heart of it all, however, was the commitment to patient comfort, healing and safety for which Sherrill House – a provider of short-term rehabilitation services, long-term care, and memory care for people with dementia/Alzheimer's – has been known for more than a century. 

"The pandemic changed how we look at everything," said Sherrill House Chief Executive Officer Patrick J. Stapleton.  "The entire profession has never been more shaken than by COVID-19, and there will never be a question in my mind about making major investments in infection-control infrastructure." 

Sherrill House received a $1 million grant from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to help fund the project, which will restore 18 beds at the facility.  Previous renovation and expansion projects, conducted between 2003-2007, had made Sherrill House one of the largest skilled nursing centers in Boston, with 196 beds.  But that dropped to 164 after the state issued regulations establishing new square footage standards, allowing only one or two beds per room.

The renovation will enable Sherrill House to accommodate 182 individuals, all in private or semi-private rooms. 

While any reduction in bed count creates fiscal challenges for a health care provider, the immense improvement for patients outweighed those concerns. 

Each design decision and choice – from layout to light to paint color – was made with the intention of enhancing the patient experience and emphasizing the importance of environment to the healing journey.

"The thought and care that has gone into our single-room conversion project reflects how we are trying to make a difference for patients," said Stapleton.  "It really is a statement of our values."

"The difference is in the details," says Chief Clinical Officer Alessio Miniello. "The design of the rooms – former quads that have been converted to a total of 17 private rooms and 16 semi-private rooms – focuses on what is best for the patient.  The room layout, for example, allows for visitors to gather comfortably around a patient's bed.  The rooms are far from the sterile setting that is often found in health care environments.  They are bright and airy and decorated in colors that promote calmness, healing and warmth."

"Some of the changes were made in order to take care of more complex patients, but the rooms also provide the environment that patients want and need," said Miniello, a registered nurse who specializes in developing clinical programs.  "Our agenda for the renovation meant applying what was learned nationally during the pandemic and also asking our hospital partners what they needed to meet their missions, which often includes discharging patients from an acute-care environment when that level of care is no longer needed."

The renovation has coincided with Miniello's introduction of several new clinical programs in response to those partners' needs.  The result is that Sherrill House's new rooms increase the center's ability to accommodate in-house any level of care needed by patients who are being discharged from a hospital or other medical facility.

Thanks to the $1 million grant that is directed to the renovation, Miniello was able to use other funds to carry the design updates into priority spaces throughout the center, brightening hallways and common areas like the Great Room, which hosts expressive therapy and other group events and celebrations.     

The next phase of the building enhancements includes moving the 3,000-square-foot therapy gym to the sunlit penthouse that overlooks Olmsted Park.  Sherrill House also features a rehabilitation program that enables patients to develop and improve the skills they will need to live independently after a hospitalization.  A fully-equipped occupational therapy training suite has the look and feel of a real apartment.  Patients use this safe space to practice one-on-one with rehabilitation therapists such skills as getting in and out of bed, preparing food, and maneuvering around the bathroom.

The Sherrill House renovation project may have been motivated by infection control and operational sustainability, but it is driven by a commitment to patient dignity and high-quality care.