When Jim’s Parkinson’s disease advanced to be too complex to continue living at home, Bailey-Boushay House (BBH) was his first choice for advanced nursing care.
After all, Jim spent decades fundraising and volunteering at Lifelong, a thrift store in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, where the proceeds fund food, housing, and health for individuals with HIV/AIDS and other chronic conditions.
“Through Lifelong, I had many friends who leaned on Bailey-Boushay House for support services and eventually nursing care,” Jim says. “Whenever one of our community members became a resident, we were all at peace knowing that they would be well-cared for.”
Living and connecting at BBH through COVID-19
Jim moved into Bailey-Boushay House early in the pandemic when residents could not leave their rooms and gathering on Zoom was the only way to see other residents. Still, he managed to make a friend. Each morning, Jim’s neighbor from across the hall, Lydia, would call out to see how his morning was going.
“Those first few months, my morning chats with Lydia meant everything to me. They made me feel good about the start of another day, even though I was stuck in my room,” Jim says.
The BBH care team was also a social-emotional lifeline. Even though strict COVID-19 precautions limited the care team’s ability to communicate and spend time with residents, Jim says he could feel their warmth and support through masks, face shields and gowns.
Because symptoms don’t always appear right away, BBH staff continue to do health screenings and use PCR tests which go to a lab to be analyzed.
Thanks to those safety standards, Jim and other residents are participating in activities and social therapy programs. A collector of HardRock Cafe t-shirts from his travels to France, Italy, Greece and around the U.S., Jim is working with the recreational therapy team to make a quilt out of his shirts.
“As a resident, I can fully speak to the loving care that the staff provides to every patient. Everyone on this team gives 110% and addresses any new need or problem we might have,” Jim says.
30 years strong – Our commitment to compassionate care endures
Jim’s sentiment is exactly what founding members of BBH were hoping for when they designed the philosophy of care and determined the expertise needed to lead a truly patient-centered nursing facility.
From the beginning, support from donors, community members and clinical providers quickly propelled BBH to realize its vision and become a nationally recognized leader in compassionate expert care for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. Over the years, that high-level care has allowed BBH to expand nursing care to people like Jim with other complex diseases like Huntington's, ALS, Parkinson’s, and cancer.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Notice of Privacy Practices | Site Map | Home |