Loring Hospital

Swing Bed Care Enables Safe Return to Home

Pictured above L-R: Patti Collett with Loring Hospital's Kay Martin, RN. 

 

After Patti Collett had her hip replacement surgery, she wasn’t quite ready to go back home. Luckily, her swing bed team at Loring Hospital was more than ready to help – right down to every important detail.

“They paid such close attention to everything, from staying on top of my pain at all times to communicating well with each other about my care and needs,” Patti said. “The experience was as near to perfect as it could get.”  

Like many people, Patti wasn’t previously all that familiar with Loring Hospital’s swing bed unit. The term “swing bed” refers to the hospital’s ability to use beds for acute or skilled care, thereby “swinging” patients from one level of care to another after a surgery, illness or injury. Instead of going to a nursing home setting, Patti was able to regain her strength at Loring Hospital with easy access to specialized services, including physical therapy.  

“I felt more than comfortable with their level of knowledge at Loring,” Patti said. “They all listened to what I had to say and worked with me to get me back on my feet. They were very compassionate.”  

It wasn’t Patti’s first experience with the quality care at Loring. Her husband, who suffered from Alzheimer’s and was nonverbal, had been a patient at Loring years before, and Patti had been impressed with his care. For Patti, Loring’s compassion and personal approach are what set them apart.  

“My nurse, Kay, was absolutely perfect for me – her whole demeanor really fit my personality,” Patti said. “She said things that encouraged me and offered me suggestions that made a difference in my walking and healing.”  

Patti also loved the fact that she could get her food when she felt hungry instead of on a predetermined schedule. Even when she couldn’t pull herself up in bed, her nurses came to help call in her order. She found she could customize her choices to her preferences and truly enjoyed her meals – something she wouldn’t have necessarily expected at a hospital.  

“They had fantastic food there. I had the best hamburger I’ve ever had,” Patti said. “Loring’s quality of care translated across all aspects of my stay.”