Teresian House

History and Implementation

The Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm, founded by Mother Mary Angeline Teresa McCrory,  opened Teresian House in 1974. Although the concept of resident centered care is core to the Sisters' commitment "to treat people in their charge with love, respect, and concern, employing a wholistic approach to care," the initial environment was not always supportive of this vision. One staff member remembered it as "a sterile environment with no warmth. It was a typical health related facility. In the midst of the 70's, there was orange, yellow and green linoleum.  We did have a beautiful large dining room, but there was just the one. It was difficult because residents had to eat at the same time. There was a safety issue, because residents were all coming down in the elevators at the same time and lining up inside and outside the dining room to be served. The lobby reminded me of an airline terminal."

In 1987, Sister Pauline joined Teresian House as Administrator. Under Sister Pauline's leadership, in the early-1990's, Teresian House underwent an organizational and strategic assessment. One outcome of this process was a  Dementia Program Pilot targeting the improvement of quality of life for residents with dementia. Interventions included providing smaller dining environments and staff sensitivity training. These efforts culminated in the mid-1990's with the addition of a newly constructed, adjoining dementia care area for residents called Carmel Garden.

In 1995, Teresian House also began a Resident Centered Care program and Resident Centered End of Life care to target collaborative resident centered care for the entire home. Environmental transformations began in 1997 to remodel the existing structure to 100% private rooms clustered in 10 neighborhoods of 20 residents staffed by a resident centered care team.