Elvis at Juniper Village at Aurora!

Residents and staff alike had a wonderful time with "Shelvis" as they listened and danced to all of Elvis' greatest hits and celebrated his music!

Alive Inside Screening at Juniper Village at Aurora Was Truly Touching!!

We received some fantastic feedback from our residents, family members, and people from the greater community at large during our recent Alive Inside screening. Here is a sampling:

“Very inspiring, endearing, hopeful. I’m so glad J[uniper] V[illage] doesn’t look like some of 

those other institutions! But I’m anxious to get some of mom’s old favorites and try them 

with her.” –Celeste

“I’ve seen the YouTube video on Henry 5 times. I’ve cried every time because his story is so touching.” –Anonymous

“Thank you for inviting us to this showing! I really enjoyed the movie and discussion 

afterwards.” –Ellie

Juniper Village at Aurora: Our Clinical Outcomes Speak for Themselves

We want to be your partner of choice in the new shared savings environment. At Juniper Village at Lebanon, we began collecting critical data upon our acquisition by Juniper Communities in January 2013. For example, we closely monitor residents to assure successful returns from either the hospital or rehabilitation setting.

Many re-hospitalizations are the result of falls. While unavoidable, response rate and injury rate contribute dramatically to unnecessary re-admissions.

Another common cause of both initial hospitalizations and re-hospitalizations is medication errors. Changes to medication regime whether after a scheduled physician appointment or emergency hospitalization can leave patients confused about what medications are most current. Our wellness team is responsible for medication reconciliation and management, a process which virtually eliminates medication errors.

Communication is key and Juniper Village at Aurora takes communication to the next level through:

• Use of Electronic Health Records (Point Click Care)
• Optimized care transitions protocols
• Full implementation of INTERACT (Interventions to Reduce Acute Care Transfers)
• Use of a highly recognizable and consistent transfer information packet
• Focus on resident and care giver education and engagement
• Individualized care and service

Contact us today to see how we can assist you in managing your patient transitions.

Where Words Fail, Music Speaks

We are very excited about our programs this month that revolve around the many facets of music.  This year we will be introducing the Music and Memory Program into our Wellspring community here at Aurora.  We have two events scheduled in the upcoming months and invite you to join us!

January 19^th at 5:30 PM: ALIVE INSIDE SCREENING An inspirational and emotional story left the audience humming, clapping and cheering at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award. The film dramatically portrays the power of music and memory. Refreshments will be served following the screening along with discussion on how music impacts each of us daily, especially those who live with dementia. See the trailer.

  

February 3^rd at 3:30 PM and 5:30 PM: MUSIC THE MAGIC HEALER AND CREATE YOUR PLAYLIST EVENT Presentation by Mindy Sterling, certified Pathways to Memory specialist. Previously an international singer and musician, Mindy toured with acts such as Don Henley of the Eagles and John Mellencamp. Mindy uses piano and voice to help foster memories. She advocates using music in senior care and feels Music and Memories is a pathway to this goal. We will end the discussion by helping participants start their own personalized playlist.

If you are unable to make any of our upcoming events, or have questions about Music and Memory, please contact our Connections Director at 303-341-6335.

Welcome New Beginnings: January Events

Welcome to 2015! What a wonderful time for us to reflect on the past year and forge ahead with new beginnings. January is a time for change when we make and sometimes break our New Year’s resolutions and focus on what we want to make better in the coming year.

January is also the month that Juniper Village begins our Winter Alive In All Seasons theme of Creative Expressions: “Explore Your Creativity” where in January we will focus on music! Research shows that music can help us physically by easing pain, helping us sleep better, eat less and enhance our blood vessel function. It is also suggested that music can help us mentally by reducing stress, relieving symptoms of depression, elevating mood, decreasing anxiety and improving cognitive performance. Hospitals are using music to help cancer patients manage stress and anxiety and to ease recovery in stroke patients.

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our Elvis (Shelvis) Birthday Celebration honoring the “King of Rock and Roll” with a PBJ sandwich and “Shelvis” a fantastic impersonator for a real treat listening to all those Elvis oldies that we know and love on January 9^th at 2:30 pm; our Alive Inside Screening of the inspirational and emotional film dramatically portraying the power of music and memory that left the audience humming and cheering at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Audience Award on January 19^th at 5:30 pm; or our Music Therapy session to help manage stress and agitation, stimulate interactions, and help with cognitive function, and motor movements while participating in an iPod and MP3 player donation drive for musical tools to utilize throughout the community on January 21^st at 3:30 pm!

Look through our calendar and join us this month as we explore our creativity through music with outings to local musical performances, Elvis’ birthday celebrations and concerts by our Joyful Noise Choirs. We invite you to Welcome New Beginnings at Juniper Village and make a habit of joining us for activities and events throughout the year!

Juniper Communities Appoints New Regional Director of Wellness and Wellbeing

Juniper Communities announces that Melissa “Missy” Ebner has joined Juniper as Regional Director of Wellness and Wellbeing. Missy brings a wealth of experience in nursing care, especially with seniors to her position. From a clinical perspective, her role will be to oversee the entire portfolio of clinical care and support for the residents, provide clinical oversight, and staff training. She is a licensed Registered Nurse (RN) in every state where Juniper currently has communities.

“We are very excited to have Missy join the Juniper family,” expressed Lynne Katzmann, CEO of Juniper Communities. “She comes to Juniper with a wonderful background and deep experience in the clinical complainants of senior living. She will be a great resource for our community wellness teams and to the home office team in this changing healthcare environment.”

Missy’s interest in working with senior living communities is that they offer residents more freedom than skilled nursing settings. “The seniors can be taken care of in a homelike environment and you can become a friend, not seen as a nurse or caregiver,” she explained. “Juniper’s staff is wonderful at treating the residents as a parent or grandparent, this doesn’t always happen in institutional settings.”

Juniper Communities owns and operates Personal Care, Assisted Living, Memory-Care, Skilled Nursing and Independent Living communities in NJ, FL, CO and PA.

“Nobody is as forward thinking as Juniper. They are far ahead of the curve in the industry and where healthcare is going. The staff I’ve observed go above and beyond, always doing more even though no one is looking,” Missy described of her building level observations.

Missy Ebner has worked in the healthcare industry since 1987. She received her LPN from the James Martin School of Nursing in 1987 and her RN from Excelsior College in 2005. She is a resident of Willow Grove, PA and born and raised in Pennsylvania. She has been married to Henry Ebner for 26 years and has three children, Corey, Shane and Cassidy.  Something her family and friends know about her is that she loves to shop the Outlets, and loves a good bargain!

Celebrate Little Things: December Events

This month is all about celebrations! Not only will we be celebrating holidays such as Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Eve, but we will also celebrate the little things that make life worthwhile. Little things such as the reassuring touch of a friend’s hand, a kind word from an acquaintance and a warm smile from a stranger.

In our all too busy lives we sometimes forget to honor the simple things in life that bring us peace and joy. Most experts recommend that we allow 10-20 minutes of relaxation and stress relief each day. Making time for that can even be a stressful experience! During this busy month of baking, shopping, visitors and juggling tasks take time to remember what is really important.

Here are some tips to keep holiday stress in check: Acknowledge your feelings - you are not alone as holiday stress is not uncommon. Be realistic with expectations - you can only do so much, learn to say no. Ask for help when needed - everyone wants to be needed and may feel more included by being able to contribute. Plan ahead to minimize unplanned expenses and tasks. Take a breather - take a walk at night and do some stargazing, listen to soothing music, or get a massage. Above all enjoy all the holidays have to offer by sharing time with others.

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our Pictures with Santa where the entire community is invited to bring their good little girls and boys of all ages for a snack and a photo with Santa courtesy of Juniper Village on December 3^rd at 10:00 am; or our Winter Wonderland to celebrate the magic of the season with good old-fashioned merriment you stroll the town square while singing along with the carolers and tempt your palate with delicious hot chocolate and other tasty treats on December 11^th from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm!

Look through our calendar and join us during the busy month of December for our annual cookie exchange and holiday celebrations. Take time to Celebrate Little Things with those you love!