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Carberry nursing home set to open by spring

The Brandon Sun - 9/28/2018

Construction has begun on the latest seniors home in Carberry.

"This is a place where people can move in, whether they are still fairly independent right up to the end stages of life," said Gale Freeman-Campbell, Daughters on Call owner and CEO. "It's a place that they can stay until they leave this world."

Freeman-Campbell described the Daughters on Call home as the first of its kind in Carberry.

More than 40 people attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the Carberry home on Sept. 19.

Work on the seniors home has progressed quickly, with the project first presented to council six months ago. As of press time last week, the foundation was already set and the walls were soon to go up.

The home will likely be open by early spring, depending on the weather, Freeman-Campbell said.

"The whole concept is about keeping seniors in their own community," she said.

The design of the centre includes 12 single-bedroom units and four units for couples. The homes are linked by a shared common area.

The home will be staffed by Daughters on Call, who will provide services 24/7.

Staff will look after seniors based on their health care need level, Freeman-Campbell said, and will help with an array of activities including personal care, cooking, housekeeping, medication and more.

Freeman-Campbell said she "cringes" at calling the centre a facility and instead refers to it as a "true home."

"It will be run just like a family home if a mom or dad was to move in with their daughter or son," she said.

The cost to live at the home will be dependent on the level of care required by guests, with a base rate sitting at $3,000 per month.

The group already has two rooms spoken for, and Freeman-Campbell said there has been great interest in the project.

With the services provided by Daughters on Call staff, the centre will be able to provide for any level of required health care and will be able to adapt to the diverse needs of clients, Freeman-Campbell said.

The creation of the new seniors home is centred on ensuring seniors are able to stay in the Carberry community, Freeman-Campbell said.

"People will live longer, healthier and happier lives if they are in a familiar environment," Freeman-Campbell said. "Having that sense of community ... is just very important."

Depending on the seniors centre's success, Freeman-Campbell said there is a possibly they might expand their Carberry footprint.

Daughters on Home has already found success in the Brandon area with the opening of two seniors centres.

Freeman-Campbell said the company is hoping to continue expanding by offering senior health care services to rural residents in the Westman region.

She said more then eight other communities have already expressed interest in developing similar projects.

Carberry mayor Stuart Olmstead said the centre was a welcomed addition to the community.

He said that Daughters on Call home was a needed resource in Carberry as community members age and begin to require more specialized health care.

"This project is very exciting. We've been looking for seniors housing for quite some time," Olmstead said. "Family matters, and I think this is just an extension of that."

Olmstead that the project had received no government money outside of the $5,000 in infrastructure funding provided. He said these funds were provided to ensure the building had the proper infrastructure to serve the needs of those living in the home.

He added that the Daughters on Call home will also serve as an important stepping stone that will help ease the burden on the health care system and ensure people receive the level of care they need.

"We're very happy to see this proceed and we're happy to have this happen and happen so quickly," Olmstead said.

»ckemp@brandonsun.com

»@the_ChelseaKemp

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