St. Peter's Nursing & Rehabilitation Center

A: Our letter should have referred to replacement versus renovation. After extensive evaluation, it became clear that the building’s design does not lend itself to phased or partial renovation. To truly modernize it—private rooms, updated infrastructure, and appropriate care space—would require a full replacement.

A: This was a local decision. We are governed by a volunteer Board of Directors who have ultimate responsibility for quality, compliance, stewardship, safety, etc. After a significant process of discernment, the decision was made by the local Board of Directors. The individuals participating in the discernment (representatives of the Sisters of Mercy, leadership and the Board) are not residents, family members or staff themselves. Rather, they are unpaid volunteers who have been asked to thoughtfully represent those groups by considering the perspectives, needs, and experiences at every stage of the process. 

Our local Board of Directors determines the allocation of capital resources across our continuum of care. The capital needs across St. Peter’s Health Partners far exceeds what is available – two to three times the demand of capital versus what is available. As a result, we are forced to make hard decisions. 

The decision to close was made because:

• The nursing home building is 68 years old.  The cost of replacement is estimated at $60M to rebuild a traditional nursing home design.  To rebuild a nursing home design of the future would cost approximately $90M.
• We also have to consider what the community is telling us through their choices. Over the past year alone, over one thousand bed offers were declined. Patients and families shared a strong preference for private rooms and commented on how the building compares to newer nursing homes in the region.
• At the same time, our census has steadily declined, most recently to 101 residents. While no number makes this decision easy, acting now means fewer residents, families, and colleagues are affected than would have been the case in prior years.

A: St. Peter’s Health Partners has invested in the establishment and growth of the most comprehensive continuum of care for seniors and those with chronic illnesses—more than most health systems not only in New York state, but nationally. The Eddy network of services—from home health, to PACE, hospice, medical equipment, senior living options, nursing homes and more are and remain a key component of our health system.

The reality is that health systems/organizations in general need to maintain a margin in order to stay in business. While procedures provide revenue, we also provide a wide range of services that operate at a loss.  In any given year, some programs operate at a loss while others generate a modest margin. That balance is what has allowed us to continue serving the community through changing conditions over time.

A: There are no current plans for the building. We will maintain the building safely in a closed state while leadership and the Board evaluate potential long-term options.

A: We employ an internal construction team with decades of experience. We also worked with three external design firms when the building was evaluated multiple times over the last 15 years.

A: Yes, several residents have chosen other Eddy skilled nursing facilities, have been offered beds, accepted and moved to date. The Eddy is committed to ensuring that every long-term care bed that becomes available at our six other Eddy nursing homes is offered to a SPNRC resident. In fact, two gentlemen who were roommates at SPNRC had the wonderful opportunity to move to a shared room at Our Lady of Mercy Life Center in Guilderland. Another resident who worked in the Cohoes area for nearly 50 years, will be transitioning to our Eddy Village Green Cohoes location where she looks forward to visiting with friends she hasn’t seen in some time. Residents, families and their representatives choose where they would like to move to. Other nursing homes outside of The Eddy have been responsive and collaborative as well. We will not close until each resident has moved.

A: The occupancy rates in the Eddy nursing homes is 95-98%. The Eddy is committed to ensuring that every long-term care bed that becomes available at our six other Eddy nursing homes is offered to a SPNRC resident. SPNRC will not close until every resident has moved. Our responsibility to residents and families does not end after they move out. For at least a month after each resident transitions to a new nursing home, our team will follow up regularly with residents, families, and the receiving facilities to make sure the transition is going well, to address concerns, and to see if there is anything we can help with.

A: There is an incredible need for inpatient services today. It is important for patients coming to the emergency room to be able to access an inpatient bed in a timely manner. At this time, there simply isn’t capacity in the hospital to dedicate a unit to short-term rehab. We do offer acute rehab services at Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital in Schenectady. Subacute rehab services are provided at three Eddy nursing homes: 

• Our Lady of Mercy Life Center (Guilderland)
• Eddy Heritage House (Troy), and
• Schuyler Ridge (Clifton Park)

A: The Eddy’s mission is exactly that – and it has been for more than 100 years – to provide care that allows people to remain as independent as possible for as long as possible in their homes in the community. When that is not possible, we have a full-range of services delivered in patient homes:

•  Home health: Eddy Visiting Nurse and Rehab Association,
• Medical equipment: Northeast Home Medical Equipment,
• Home-Based Primary Care,
• Eddy Alzheimer’s Services, supporting the caregivers of those with dementia in the community,
• And more! 

We also operate two PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) programs—one in Schenectady and one in Latham, called Eddy SeniorCare. This is an innovative program that combines health insurance (their Medicare and Medicaid) with a full range of healthcare, a day center, transportation, in-home care/equipment/supplies/medications, and supportive services. We’re able to utilize savings from delaying/avoiding nursing home care and reducing avoidable emergency room visits and hospitalizations to fund extensive services at home. Individuals who are not eligible for Medicaid can pay privately instead, at approximately half the cost of a nursing home.

For more information, please call Eddy SeniorCare at:

            Schenectady: 518-382-3290

            Latham: 518-213-7526