Otterbein SeniorLife is the largest provider of small-house nursing care in the country, following the principles of The Green House Project. Want an inside look at this unique style of skilled nursing? The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) recently visited one of our small house neighborhoods to report on what makes these skilled nursing communities so special.
What is a Small House Neighborhood at Otterbein?
This isn’t your typical nursing home. Our small house communities look like regular houses that fit into the neighborhoods around them. Each neighborhood has five houses with 12 private suites in each. And each house is a home where elders can choose their schedules, what and when they’d like to eat, and more.
Each house can provide nursing care as well as rehabilitation and therapy. And there’s a smaller resident-to-staff ratio, so elders receive personalized attention and get to know their caregivers.
Otterbein’s Small House neighborhoods are located throughout central and western Ohio.
What are the benefits of a small house neighborhood?
Besides a home-like environment, small house neighborhoods offer numerous health and safety benefits.
Because of the smaller size, with fewer residents and fewer caregivers, there’s a much lower risk of transmitting infectious diseases like COVID. These charts show the results of a nationwide comparison of Green House communities with traditional nursing homes.
Compared to the national average at traditional nursing homes, Green Houses had fewer than half of the number of COVID cases and fewer than a third of the deaths in 2020. From January through July 2021, Green Houses had just over a third of the number of cases as traditional nursing homes, with just over a fifth of the deaths.
Learn More about the Big Difference at our Small Houses
To find more information about our small houses, plus get a handy comparison chart showing the difference between traditional nursing homes and small houses, download our free guide.
