Swing Beds: The Next Stop in Recovery Before Home
Maybe you’re on the road to recovery but not quite there yet. You no longer need full hospital care, but you aren’t ready to return home, either. You need something that’s a step in between, a place with some care and with rehabilitation services. Maybe you need to swing on over to Culbertson’s Swing Bed Program. The Swing Bed Program serves patients with conditions such as hip or knee replacements, stroke, pneumonia, post-surgical procedures, and extended IV therapy.
What is a ‘swing bed’?
This is a Medicare program, so-called because it allows you to “swing” from one level of care to another. You may start as an inpatient, receiving acute care, and as you recover, you can enter the Swing Bed Program. You might not stay in the same bed in the same room.
How is this different from a regular hospital stay?
Swing Bed patients still receive hospital meals and assistance, but the level of care is different. You don’t need the more intensive care involved in being a regular patient of the hospital but are not yet ready to go home and take care of yourself on your own. Culbertson nurses may give assistance with daily self-care or may need to teach you to care for your own medical needs. They will work with you to allow you to return home as soon as possible, decreasing the level of care as your recovery continues.
What if I have a setback?
If something happens that requires traditional hospitalization, you can “swing” back to it. The program’s flexibility allows you to have the right level of care at all times. The care might include physical, speech and occupational therapy or other treatments.
What if I had treatment at another facility and now need the Swing Bed Program?
Culbertson’s Swing Bed Program is open to patients who have had treatment at another facility. Their hospital discharge planner can contact Culbertson’s Discharge Planning at 217-322-4321, ext. 5295