WCCC Down to 27 Residents

The Worth County Convalescent Center is down to 27 residents, Administrator Karen Fletchall reported. There have been several deaths at the facility recently, which accounted for the downturn in numbers. Fletchall said that she has been busy contacting people and marketing the facility in an effort to bring the numbers back up including preparing a bulk mailing.

Scott Houk was reappointed Board President and Martha Rush was appointed Vice President as the board reorganized. With the low number of residents, finances became an issue as board members looked at ways of cutting expenses. One thing looked at was phone expenses; they require a lot of bandwidth to operate.

In addition to the low residents, savings were down as the facility made the first of three payments for the heating and cooling system. The first is for around $90,000 while there are two smaller payments that will be due later. Work has begun on the rooms. The Dining Room is charged and operational.

Fletchall inquired among employees about the SIMPLE plan, reporting that there was a lot of interest. However, board members said that the facility could not afford the plan.

The facility got a visit from the DHSS regarding cultural changes and making the facility more like a home. Sam Plaster of the agency met with Fletchall and had positive comments about how the facility was working to meet that goal.

Five WCCC residents went to the Golden Age Games at Missouri Western. They played Fly Swatter Volleyball and had a good time doing it.

49 students who were going to the Worth County Prom stopped at the facility for a Promenade before the event. There were a lot of positive comments from both the students and residents.

The Easter Cantata, which performed at the Grant City Baptist Church, also performed for the residents Saturday afternoon.

There will be an Easter Egg Hunt at the facility on April 23rd at 1:30. There will be refreshments, a coloring contest, and an egg hunt for kids. Residents will judge the coloring contest and the winners will get bikes donated by area Wal-Marts. The Grant City Chamber of Commerce will be doing cookies and treats.

The board accepted the bid of Grant Parman to mow the facility for $59.

Board member Mike Hall looked into a 3-heater system for a possible new water heating system for the facility. Hall said there were some advantages over the current system. In the event of one heater failing, the other two could serve as backups. He said it would be a lot more efficient than the current system. He estimated that it would cost $12,000 to $15,000 per heater to buy. Currently, the facility has a heater go down every year and a half; he said it would save a lot of replacement costs. The board is waiting for the current heating and cooling project to be done and see where they are at financially before taking action on the hot water heater. At the suggestion of new board member Kathy Miller, the board agreed to look into having a spare on hand so that they wouldn't have to wait a week for a new hot water heater to arrive.