Masonic Village at Burlington will hold a ribbon cutting for its newly renovated Keystone Rehab Center on Wednesday, July 26, at 11:30 a.m. as part of its year-long 125th anniversary celebration. There will also be tours for residents and medical professionals in Burlington County and beyond.
The short-term rehab unit – open to all seniors in the community – fast tracks patient recovery with cutting-edge therapies to help patients heal, regain strength and mobility, and reduce pain.
“It’s on the first floor, so we felt it would be ideal for rehab because it’s right by the entrance where the ambulances come in if people are coming from the hospital, so it’s very convenient for them …” said Cindy Shemansky, assistant executive director and administrator of the Masonic Village’s skilled nursing and rehabilitation center.
Keystone Rehab Center has 34 private rooms and an occupational therapy household hub area for patients to re-establish activities of daily living. Its physical-therapy gym includes bikes, parallel bars and weights.
“The neighborhood is actually large enough where, if they (patients) have to practice walking with a walker or even wheelchair-level training, it’s large enough where they’re able to do that without having to leave the neighborhood,” Shemansky explained.
The rehab center also has a bistro dining room, bariatric beds and an outdoor courtyard with paved walking paths and a gazebo.
“If occupational therapy wants to work with some (patients) with gardening techniques, there will be some raised planter beds that they can work with on the outdoors,” Shemansky pointed out. “It also has access right by the chapel so they can go outside.”
The center provides post-surgery orthopedic care; pain management; stroke and cardiac rehabilitation; wound care; fall management; and more, and its 34 rooms will increase capacity by 30%.
Cindy Berger suffers from an autoimmune disease and had to learn how to walk again at the facility’s current rehab, but now she lives in one of Masonic’s independent-living apartments. She praised Masonic’s staff and the friends she made there.
“This place has been wonderful for me,” she said. “The people here are very nice. I’ve joined a lot of clubs and activities … They take care of all my needs here. I don’t know where I would go that anywhere (else) would do that.”
Masonic Village services include independent and assisted living, short- and long-term care, rehab, memory and respite care, and home-care services. Surrounded by 450 acres of maintained grounds, it’s been in existence since 1898 and offers recreational, social and educational events on site.
“When people are in rehab, typically they’re quite depressed because they’ve had a medical setback, and we would like to create a vibrant, beautiful, bright environment,” said Anda Durso, Masonic’s executive director, of Keystone Rehab Center.
For more information on Masonic Village at Burlington, visit https://www.njmasonic.org.
