Minnesota Veterans Home

Last updated

Minnesota Soldiers' Home Historic District
Veterans Home 08.JPG
USA Minnesota location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationRoughly bounded by Minnehaha Ave., Mississippi River, and Godfrey Pkwy., Minneapolis, Minnesota
Coordinates 44°54′45″N93°12′15″W / 44.91250°N 93.20417°W / 44.91250; -93.20417
Built1888
Architect Warren B. Dunnell; Horace W.S. Cleveland
Architectural styleClassical Revival, Art Deco, Romanesque
NRHP reference No. 89000076 [1]
Added to NRHPMarch 2, 1989
Minnehaha Falls hotel, Minneapolis (Later part of the Minnesota Soldiers Home) ~ Stereoscopic View, date unknown Minnehaha Falls hotel, Minneapolis, Minn, by Woodward & Albee.jpg
Minnehaha Falls hotel, Minneapolis (Later part of the Minnesota Soldiers Home) ~ Stereoscopic View, date unknown

The Minnesota Soldiers' Home, later known as the Minnesota Veterans Home in Minneapolis, is an old soldiers' home near Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Contents

History

After the American Civil War and the devastation that it caused, there was sentiment that the United States should provide care for its veterans. The Minnesota Legislature authorized the establishment of the Soldiers' Home in 1887, as a "reward to the brave and deserving". Construction began the following year, in 1888. By 1911, the home had five men's cottages and one women's cottage, along with other buildings such as an infirmary, a dining hall, and so on. The home was originally envisioned as a place of rest and as a monument in appreciation of veterans' contributions. As such, it was beautifully landscaped, and medical care was not provided until after World War I. Even then, medical care was a secondary goal. [2]

In the 1960s, the Soldiers' Home Board of Trustees recognized that the Home should provide health care as a primary goal. This shift was gradual. In 1968, the home was licensed for 56 nursing care beds and 375 boarding care beds, which were primarily non-medical care. The home was operated in a quasi-military fashion at the time. As priorities shifted, medical care became more of a focus. A new nursing care facility was built on the Minneapolis campus in 1972, with another following in 1980. In 1978, the old state hospital in Hastings was converted into a domiciliary residence for veterans. This resulted in a total of 250 nursing care beds in Minneapolis, 250 domiciliary beds in Minneapolis, and 200 domiciliary beds in Hastings. [2]

In 1988, the Legislature reorganized the Veterans Homes, separating them from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Veterans Homes Board of Directors was established to turn the homes into high quality health care facilities while also considering the special needs of the veteran population. The Board has memberships from both the health care field and veterans' organizations.

Present Day

There are now five Veterans Homes in Minnesota. The Minneapolis campus has 300 skilled nursing care beds and 50 domiciliary beds, and the Hastings campus has 200 domiciliary care beds. A home in Silver Bay has 83 skilled nursing care beds, a home in Luverne has 85 skilled nursing care beds, and a home in Fergus Falls has 106 skilled nursing care beds. [2]

The veterans' community, from the days of the Grand Army of the Republic and the United Spanish War Veterans to the present, has been active in supporting the Minnesota Veterans Homes. They promote the homes and provide awareness of the services provided by the Veterans Homes. They also play a role in advocacy by promoting the causes of veterans to make sure their needs are met. The community has also monitored the homes to ensure that residents are receiving quality care. Finally, the veterans' community has provided very generous donations of money and equipment to the Homes. These donations have improved the quality of life for the residents. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Home care in the United States</span>

Home care is supportive care provided in the home. Care may be provided by licensed healthcare professionals who provide medical treatment needs or by professional caregivers who provide daily assistance to ensure the activities of daily living (ADLs) are met. In-home medical care is often and more accurately referred to as home health care or formal care. Home health care is different non-medical care, custodial care, or private-duty care which refers to assistance and services provided by persons who are not nurses, doctors, or other licensed medical personnel. For patients recovering from surgery or illness, home care may include rehabilitative therapies. For terminally ill patients, home care may include hospice care.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nursing home</span> Type of residential care

A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of older people, senior citizens, or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as care homes, skilled nursing facilities (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to indicate whether the institutions are public or private, and whether they provide mostly assisted living, or nursing care and emergency medical care. Nursing homes are used by people who do not need to be in a hospital, but cannot be cared for at home. The nursing home facility nurses have the responsibilities of caring for the patients' medical needs and also the responsibility of being in charge of other employees, depending on their ranks. Most nursing homes have nursing aides and skilled nurses on hand 24 hours a day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old soldiers' home</span> Military veterans retirement home, nursing home, or hospital

An old soldiers' home is a military veterans' retirement home, nursing home, or hospital, or sometimes an institution for the care of the widows and orphans of a nation's soldiers, sailors, and marines, etc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Veterans Health Administration</span> Health service for former United States military personnel

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the component of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) led by the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health that implements the healthcare program of the VA through a nationalized healthcare service in the United States, providing healthcare and healthcare-adjacent services to veterans through the administration and operation of 146 VA Medical Centers (VAMC) with integrated outpatient clinics, 772 Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC), and 134 VA Community Living Centers Programs. It is the largest division in the Department, and second largest in the entire federal government, employing over 350,000 employees. All VA hospitals, clinics and medical centers are owned by and operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and all of the staff employed in VA hospitals are government employees. Because of this, veterans that qualify for VHA healthcare do not pay premiums or deductibles for their healthcare but may have to make copayments depending on the medical procedure. VHA is not a part of the US Department of Defense Military Health System.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers</span> American governmental institution for veterans

The National Asylum for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers was established on March 3, 1865, in the United States by Congress to provide care for volunteer soldiers who had been disabled through loss of limb, wounds, disease, or injury during service in the Union forces in the American Civil War. Initially, the Asylum, later called the Home, was planned to have three branches: in the Northeast, in the central area north of the Ohio River, and in what was then considered the Northwest, the present upper Midwest.

Home health is a nursing specialty in which nurses provide multidimensional home care to patients of all ages. Home health care is a cost efficient way to deliver quality care in the convenience of the client's home. Home health nurses create care plans to achieve goals based on the client's diagnosis. These plans can include preventive, therapeutic, and rehabilitative actions. Home health nurses also supervise certified nursing assistants. The professional nursing organization for home health nurses is the Home Healthcare Nurses Association (HHNA). Home health care is intended for clients that are well enough to be discharged home, but still require skilled nursing personnel to assess, initiate and oversee nursing interventions.

Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System(SRHS) is one of South Carolina's largest healthcare systems. SRHS draws patients primarily from the areas of Spartanburg, Cherokee, Union, and Greenville counties, located in the Piedmont region of South Carolina, and Rutherford and Polk counties, located in western North Carolina. Spartanburg General Hospital was organized under the authority of the South Carolina General Assembly in 1917 and officially became the Spartanburg Regional Health Services District, Inc., a political subdivision of the State of South Carolina, by the charter granted by the secretary of state of South Carolina on May 1, 1995. 

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jubilee Mission Medical College and Research Institute</span> Hospital in Kerala, India

Jubilee Mission Medical College and Research Institute is a private, non-profit Christian minority medical college, hospital and research institute located at Thrissur in Kerala, India. The establishment is administered by the Jubilee Mission Hospital Trust, a charitable organisation under the Catholic Archdiocese of Thrissur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center</span> Old soldiers home in Tuskegee, Alabama, USA

The Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center began in 1923 as an old soldiers' home in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was originally called the Tuskegee Home, part of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VA Butler Healthcare</span>

VA Butler Healthcare is a Health Care Center operated by the Department of Veteran Affairs. Serving over 22,000 veterans in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. The hospital is located on a 90-acre campus on New Castle Road in Butler Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sky Lakes Medical Center</span> Hospital in Oregon, United States

Sky Lakes Medical Center is a 176-bed hospital located in Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States. Sky Lakes is also a teaching hospital affiliated with Oregon Health & Science University Medical School through the Cascades East Rural Family Medicine Residency Program. It is a community-owned medical center that serves the healthcare needs of an area of approximately 10,000 square miles (26,000 km2) in Oregon and northern California. The hospital was founded in 1965 and incorporated in 1968.

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System is a health care organization that provides care to Massachusetts’ Veterans. It is part of the VA New England Healthcare System, one of 21 Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) within the VA. The VA New England Healthcare System includes VA medical centers in Boston and all six New England states. The VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System includes a medical center in Northampton and community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) in Greenfield, Worcester, Pittsfield, Springfield and Fitchburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Independent senior living</span>

Independent senior living communities are housing designed for seniors 55 and older.

Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic was formed in October 2018 by the joining together of Mercy Catholic Medical Center—Mercy Fitzgerald Campus in Darby, Pennsylvania; Mercy Catholic Medical Center Mercy Philadelphia Campus; Nazareth Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Saint Francis Healthcare in Wilmington, Delaware; St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, Pennsylvania; and their associated programs and services.

As of 2017, approximately 1.4 million Americans live in a nursing home, two-thirds of whom rely on Medicaid to pay for their care. Residential nursing facilities receive Medicaid federal funding and approvals through a state health department. These facilities may be overseen by various types of state agency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Health</span>

Catholic Health is a non-profit comprehensive healthcare system formed in 1998 under religious sponsors in Western New York, United States. The organization provides health services through their hospitals, primary care centers, diagnostic and treatment centers, home care agencies, long-term care facilities and other programs. The system brings together more than 9,000 associates and 1,300 physicians to the Western New York market. Its Sisters of Charity Hospital in Buffalo, New York is a clinical affiliate of the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, one of the largest medical schools in the United States.

The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (MDVA) is a state agency that provides services to current and former members of the United States military. The department provides care and housing through five veterans homes located in Fergus Falls, Hastings, Luverne, Minneapolis and Silver Bay. The department also assists veterans in obtaining healthcare, education, special veterans benefits and burials. The agency works with the United States Federal Veterans Administration Hospitals and Clinics including the Minneapolis VA Health Care System as well as coordination with the Minnesota National Guard and the American Legion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soldiers' Home in Holyoke</span> Hospital in Massachusetts, United States

The Soldiers' Home in Holyoke is a full-service veterans center and hospital located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, which maintains 247 beds in its main nursing facility, and a separate domiciliary care building with 30 full-time residents. The facility provides long-term care and outpatient medical services, as well as dental and social services, and programming and events for veterans. Operated by the Massachusetts Department of Veterans' Services, it is inspected annually by both the state and the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System</span> Hospital in Minnesota, United States

The Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System (VAHCS) is network of hospital and outpatient clinics based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. It belongs to the VISN23 VA Midwest Health Care Network managed by the Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Minneapolis VAHCS provides healthcare for United States military veterans in areas such as medicine, surgery, psychiatry, physical medicine and rehabilitation, neurology, oncology, dentistry, geriatrics and extended care. As a teaching hospital, it operates comprehensive training programs for multiple treatment specialties. The Minneapolis VAHCS also hosts one of the largest research programs of any VA health care system and maintains research affiliations with the University of Minnesota.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Minnesota Veterans Homes History". Minnesota Veterans Homes. Retrieved November 11, 2008.