How we're different

Colorado State Veterans Home at Rifle

 Here are a few of the things that set us apart from other nursing homes:

Veteran camaraderie

The Colorado State Veterans Home at Rifle serves only veterans, veterans’ spouses and Gold-Star Parents, creating a unique atmosphere among long-term care facilities. Residents enjoy camaraderie with other veterans and respect from staff and volunteers, who value the contributions these service men, women and their families have made to our country.

Comprehensive daily rate

We offer one comprehensive daily rate, with no extra charges for:

• Medications
• Primary care physician services
• Oxygen
• Wheelchairs
• Other medical supplies
• Physical, speech and occupational therapy
• Transportation to medical appointments; and more!

Western Slope location

As the only state veterans home on the Western Slope, the Colorado State Veterans Home at Rifle is located in the Colorado River Valley at 5,453 feet. Rifle enjoys a mild climate year round, with plenty of clean mountain air and beautiful blue skies.

Our Home, rooms and amenities

Resident rooms offer privacy walls, individual windows with views of the mountains and surrounding landscape, individual heating/cooling controls, angled bathroom mirrors and free cable television and wireless Internet access. Other amenities include picnic areas, courtyards, gardens, wheelchair-accessible swings, community computers, a library, aquariums and aviary. Spa-like bathing areas come with music and towel warmers. Dining rooms offer restaurant-style menu choices, and Betty’s Place provides popcorn, ice cream and other goodies!

Meaningful activities and resident involvement (“culture change”)

The Colorado State Veterans Home at Rifle has embraced the long-term care “culture change” movement. Caregivers, other staff, residents and family members can receive training designed by culture change pioneer The Eden Alternative. Based on this training, the staff strives to make our community more like home and to reduce or eliminate residents’ feelings of helplessness, loneliness and boredom.

Some of the culture change approaches used at our Home include:

Family environment

Our friendly, family-like atmosphere mirrors our small, rural environment. We strive to ensure that our community offers loving companionship, meaningful activity and spontaneity where all are able to give as well as receive love, share laughter and live full and meaningful lives.

Our activities

Activities create special memories. Birthdays are celebrated with a choice of cake and favorite meal. Computerized Wii system games offer “virtual” games of bowling, baseball or boxing. Other popular activities include gardening, fishing, wildlife viewing, sporting and restaurant outings, dances, bingo, poker, yoga, spiritual/Bible studies, live music, military personnel visits and volunteer opportunities.
 

Resident involvement

We encourage residents to express their preferences in neighborhood and resident council meetings.

For a list of The Eden Alternative’s 10 principles, please click here .

Customer satisfaction

In surveys conducted over the past five years, family members of residents in the Colorado State Veterans Home at Rifle have reported a high degree of satisfaction levels with the care their loved ones are receiving. For example, among more than 5,000 participating nursing homes from across the country, Rifle’s family members consistently have rated their “Overall Satisfaction” at levels that exceed state and national averages.
 

In addition, the Rifle Home won “Excellence in Action” awards in 2007 and 2009 for combined family and resident satisfaction results that were in the top 10 percent among 5,000-plus nursing homes nationally that participated in the survey.
 

These surveys were conducted by My InnerView, a national long-term care evaluation firm with the largest set of senior care satisfaction data in the nation.
 

Nursing attention

Colorado’s State Veterans Nursing Homes strive to ensure that nursing staff coverage meets the needs of our residents. According to data reported by Medicare’s Nursing Home Compare Web site, Colorado’s State Veterans Homes consistently have exceeded national averages for the number of registered nurse (RN) staff hours per resident per day.

Staff longevity

Among the thousands of nursing homes that report their quality-of-care care data to the long-term care evaluation firm “My InnerView,” year after year Colorado’s State Veterans Homes have scored well above average on stability of registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants. Caregiver stability, defined as being on the job for one year or more, can help residents bond with caregivers and contributes to a home-like environment.