By HFT Staff

Philadelphia announced the closing of its Philadelphia Nursing Home, a 402-bed long-term care nursing facility managed by Fairmount Long Term Care. The city is committed to closing the facility by the end of the year and hopes to have all residents safely relocated to other appropriate living situations by the end of October. The plan for closure has been submitted to and approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. 

The decision to close the Philadelphia Nursing Home was made for financial reasons. Due to lower occupancy since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with an old building in need of many updates and repairs, the city no longer can sustain the worsening financial situation of the nursing home.  

Residents of the Philadelphia Nursing Home and their families, advocates and guardians as appropriate will be paired with staff to review other facilities and living arrangements in the region that are appropriate for their level of care. Staff will work with those residents and their families, advocates and guardians to find a situation that not only meets their needs but also the resident’s desires in a new location. Every effort will be made to allow on-site visits of other facilities. If that is not possible for safety reasons, such as an ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, residents will be given a virtual visit. Once the time for relocation happens, the nursing home will work with the new facility to transport residents and all their belongings. No resident will be moved until they have a safe discharge or transfer plan, and no resident will be moved within 30 days of receiving notification of the closure unless they choose to and a safe discharge or transfer plan is in place. 

Philadelphia Nursing Home staff are being offered retention incentives in order to maintain safe staffing levels through the facility’s closure. Staff will be provided with support as they transition into positions at other facilities. Given the large number of openings at other facilities, it is anticipated that staff will be able to quickly identify new positions.