Okay, so yesterday I went to check out this place called Helia Healthcare of Energy. It’s a nursing home, you know, one of those places where they take care of old folks. I’ve heard some mixed things about it, so I figured I’d see for myself what the deal was.
First off, getting there was no big deal. It’s in Energy, Illinois. A pretty quiet little town from what I could tell. I just punched the address into my GPS, and boom, I was there. Parking was easy, plenty of spots right out front.
Walking in, the place seemed pretty standard for a nursing home. They had a reception desk, some comfy-looking chairs in the waiting area, and the usual bulletin boards with activities and stuff. I was greeted by a lady at the front desk. She was nice enough, gave me a visitor’s badge, and told me to have a seat while she got someone to show me around.
While I was waiting, I did a little people-watching. Saw a few residents being wheeled around, some family members visiting, and nurses going about their business. The vibe was calm, I guess. Not too noisy or anything.
- Resident care seemed to be a priority.
- Staff members were interacting with residents.
- The environment was clean and kept up.
After a bit, this guy came out, introduced himself as the facility administrator, and offered to give me a tour. He took me around to the different wings, showed me the dining hall, the activity room, and a few of the residents’ rooms. Everything looked clean enough, I suppose. Nothing fancy, but it didn’t seem run-down either.
I asked the administrator a bunch of questions about their care philosophy, staff-to-resident ratio, and all that jazz. He answered everything pretty openly, which I appreciated. He explained that Helia Healthcare of Energy is a “for-profit” facility and they’re certified for Medicare, which I guess is good if you’re into that sort of thing.
The Rundown
Honestly, it seemed like an average nursing home. I mean, I’ve heard they have some kind of age-friendly care for folks with things like Rheumatoid Arthritis and Type 2 Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, and Macular Degeneration, but I didn’t see any of that going on, so I can’t say for sure. It’s tough to really judge a place like this on just one visit. You’d probably need to spend more time there, maybe talk to some of the residents and their families, to get a real feel for things.
But yeah, that’s my experience with Helia Healthcare of Energy. Take it for what it’s worth. If you’re looking for a nursing home in the Energy area, it might be worth checking out. Just don’t expect anything too extraordinary, you know?
