Published November 2005

Nonprofit Bethany
committed to patient care

Photo by Linda Thomas Bethany Executive Director Tom Gray with licensed practical nurse Jana Wanamaker in front of a medical cart equipped with a laptop computer. Bethany is one of the few nursing homes in the state to electronically chart patients’ care.

By Linda Thomas
Special to SCBJ

Each day, Tom Gray walks the hallways of a Bethany nursing home and asks residents how they’re doing. Occasionally, he puts on a chef’s hat and cooks for them — crab cakes are his specialty.

“I could be sitting in my office all day finding ways to save pennies, and trust me, I do that, too,” said Gray, executive director for Bethany of the Northwest. “But when I talk to the residents and staff, that’s when I’m inspired to keep looking for ways to make their lives better.”

Health needs of an aging population have changed radically since Bethany began in Everett almost 75 years ago. One thing that remains is the nonprofit’s commitment to helping the elderly.

Four Lutheran pastors opened Bethany’s first “home for the aged” in 1931. They wanted to establish a place where older people could receive nursing care in a wholesome, Christian environment.

Bethany of the Northwest has grown to become the third-largest skilled nursing care provider in the state and one of the main sources of affordable senior housing in Snohomish County. It’s also a significant contributor to the local economy, with almost 400 employees.

“It used to be, people went to nursing homes to die,” Gray said. “They were the poor houses where nobody wanted to end up, but if you look around, you’ll see the purpose of nursing homes has changed.”

Bethany has an agreement with Providence Everett Medical Center to care for people who might not be ready to return to their homes after they’ve been discharged from the hospital.

Because of the high cost of health care, hospitals focus on emergency care or surgery. Rehabilitation and follow-up services often are done by skilled nurses at facilities such as Bethany at Pacific. The building at 916 Pacific Ave. has up to 40 beds for transitional care.

“Some floors have the look and feel of a hospital,” Gray said. “We are now doing a lot of services and tests that used to be done in the hospital.”

Bethany’s medical carts are equipped with laptop computers, and it’s among the few nursing homes in the state using electronic charts to keep track of patients’ needs.

Although Bethany of the Northwest’s expenses rival those of a hospital’s, nursing home reimbursement to care for the poor, disabled or elderly lags behind.

The gap between what nursing homes receive from the state to treat Medicare patients and the actual cost of the care is about $110 million, according to Deb Murphy, chief executive officer of the Washington Association of Housing and Services for the Aging. Her estimates are based on 2003 cost data. More than two-thirds of nursing home patients are low-income.

The reimbursement issue is a complex one for Bethany of the Northwest and other nonprofit nursing care providers. Gray believes it will be a greater challenge than all of the obstacles in health care over the past 75 years.

And he cautioned, “We haven’t even seen the effect the aging baby boom generation will have on nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.”

While Gray doesn’t know if the state of Washington will come through with a better funding plan in the future, he is certain Bethany will not reduce the number of nursing hours spent on each patient.

“It’s all about the people,” Gray said. “We’re here to treat them with respect.”

Bethany’s development director, Jim Frerichs, added that despite the financial challenges ahead, the corporation will stay true to its nonprofit roots.

“We are loyal to our shareholders who, in our case, live here,” said Frerichs. “This is their home, and we’re invited in to take care of them.”

Linda Thomas is a free-lance writer based in Seattle.

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