NEW DETAILS: Greene County nursing home employees who lost their jobs offered new ones at local facility

May 28—A Montgomery County-run acute care center will offer every employee that lost their job at a Greene County-operated nursing home that recently announced its closure.

Last week, Greene County commissioners voted to close Greenewood Manor, which had been struggling financially since the pandemic started. The nursing home will close July 30. There are 46 employees and 35 residents there currently. Every Greenewood Manor employee will be offered a job at the Stillwater Center, an acute care facility run by Montgomery County.

Members of the Montgomery County Human Resources Department joined Montgomery County-run Stillwater Center's Michelle Pierce-Mobley in Xenia today to meet with some of the 46 employees at Greenewood Manor.

"I know closing the doors of that facility was an extremely tough decision for (Greene County Administrator Brandon Huddleson) and he was also concerned about helping the people currently working at Greenewood find new employment," said Montgomery County Administrator Michael Colbert. "So I asked our HR Department to provide career options to those employees and asked Michelle, who is the Director of Stillwater Center, to be on hand to answer questions about the Center. We are always looking for qualified candidates and the Greenewood Manor staff already have the skills we require at Stillwater Center."

Greene County commissioners decided to close Greenewood Manor, which is certified for 85 beds, because the population of the home was "too small for economical and efficient operation," according to the resolution commissioners approved.

COVID-19 made this problem even more evident, Greene County Administrator Brandon Huddleson said. Greenewood Manor only started losing money after COVID hit, he said. The nursing home was down about $350,000 after a year.

"It takes a tough situation and makes it more bearable for us," says Greene County Administrator Brandon Huddleson. "Montgomery County is providing career options for these long-term care workers. Hopefully Stillwater Center, and Montgomery County as a whole, can utilize the skillset of these dedicated staff members. That makes it a win-win for both counties."

Employees who take a job with the Stillwater Center will still be able to stay on the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS).

Forty residents would have made Greenewood Manor self-sustaining, Huddleson said. Before the pandemic, about 50 residents lived in the nursing home. Huddleson said this was a hard decision, but it had to be done because the county did not want to dip into its general fund to support the nursing home.

Huddleson said about half of the 35 residents are either going home or to another facility in the next few weeks. Huddleson said the private facilities in the area have offered an outpouring of support.

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