Garden Village, originally known as Central Convalescent, was built in 1965, owned by three Yakima physicians (Dr. Lynch, Dr. Burrows and Dr. Holt, providing the corporation name of LB&H). Living Care purchased the facility in 1976, keeping the original name. Through the first 31 years of serving the Yakima community, through these two organizations, there were only 4 administrators and one interim administrator managing the operation. Central was purchased by Integrity Care in 1996 and later sold to Memorial Hospital in 1998. Integrity Care continued to manage operations until June of 1999, when the name was changed to Garden Village and they became a member of Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital’s family of services. Managing Garden Village allows Memorial Hospital to discharge the high acuity patients with the reassurance they will receive the same level of high quality services. The hospital also has a Home Health program that allows Garden Village to release residents back to assisted living or their homes, knowing they will receive continued therapy services.

The mission of Garden Village is to improve the health of those they serve. Rehabilitative therapists work closely with nursing to help the residents reach their goals whether it is to return to their home or comfortable alternative Long Term Care Setting. Onsite physical rehabilitative services are provided to a maximum of 33 residents. These services have had great success with neuro-trauma residents in bringing them back to functional state.

Garden Village has a comprehensive care program including Orthopedic, Neurological, IV, and Respiratory Therapies in addition to wound care and hospice services.  Due to the variety of services provided, Garden Village is a desirable clinical education site. Yakima Valley Community College requires their nursing students to work two rotations at Garden Village as part of their curriculum. Garden Village has an in-house Nursing Assistant Certified training program Because of the involvement with the college, Garden Village has benefited in the area of community contact for the residents and recruitment of these students for employment.

A variety of activities are provided for residents such as music, bingo, book club, baking, routine visits to the on-site beauty shop, exercise and karaoke. They also take residents to ballgames, camping, the Yakima Fair and to the Oktoberfest in Leavenworth. Periodic bazaars and bake sales are held to help provide funding for resident activities. Garden Village also opens up meeting rooms to the local Women’s League.

Garden Village, as a part of Memorial Hospital’s family of services, was visited by a Chinese delegation from Linyi Women’s and Children’s Hospital of Linyi City, Shangdong Province in December 2003 as part of a sister hospital program. The delegation was interested in learning about western hospital management systems and exchanging medical information and clinical experiences. Linyi is a rural, remote mountainous area with 10 million people. Their hospital has 200 beds and provides comprehensive medical services.  They don’t provide any long term care services. Representatives hope to send a delegation to their sister hospital some time in the future.

When asked what it means to be a nonprofit organization, Administrator, Doug Bault, said, “It means being able to devote all of our resources and time to the benefit of the senior population in the Yakima community.  We can offer quality services, and, in a few cases, offer services to those who cannot otherwise afford these services.”