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Initiative with Eldergrow at Wayne, N.J., SNF Brings Nature Indoors
WAYNE, N.J. (May 23, 2023) — Residents at Arbor Ridge Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center in Wayne are embracing their inner green thumbs thanks to the skilled nursing facility’s new partnership with Eldergrow. The Seattle-based company brings nature indoors with mobile gardening programs designed to promote hands-on enjoyment and learning.
At Arbor Ridge, Eldergrow’s Therapeutic Horticulture Garden program combines a sensory garden full of colorful and fragrant plants with in-person enrichment classes. The bi-monthly classes – on topics ranging from horticulture, to culinary, to garden arts – are facilitated by Eldergrow educators, who also assist with garden maintenance.
“Many Arbor Ridge residents have a lifelong love of gardening and are now delighting in the opportunity to spend time enjoying the mobile garden and participating in the therapeutic horticulture classes,” said Kani Burgos, regional director of market development at Marquis Health Consulting Services, which supports Arbor Ridge and was instrumental in facilitating the Eldergrow partnership. “It’s a perfect example of how life enrichment activities can promote both wellness and fun.”
Therapeutic horticulture is shown to offer significant mental and physical health benefits for seniors, including reducing depression and improving balance, among numerous others. In a study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Health, scientists reported planting and cultivating a garden can “improve brain nerve growth factors related to memory, and can improve functioning in the hippocampus, which is critical for memory, and cortical regions of the brain.”
“We are thrilled to partner with Arbor Ridge Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center,” said Eldergrow’s Orla Concannon, founder and CEO. “Therapeutic horticulture supports the facility’s focus on programming aimed at boosting physical and mental wellness for residents by bringing nature – and its many benefits – indoors all year long.”
Arbor Ridge is undergoing the second phase of a multi-million-dollar, top-to-bottom renovation and modernization; Phase 1 was completed in summer 2022. The 120-bed skilled nursing facility maintains a four-star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). More information on Arbor Ridge and its programing can be found at arborridgerehab.com.
Founded in 2015, Eldergrow enhances the quality of life for older adults by creating meaningful connections to nature. Eldergrow’s Therapeutic Horticulture Garden and D-I-Y Culinary Herb Garden programs are centered around its indoor, mobile gardens which are beautifully handcrafted in the U.S.A.
Brick-based Marquis Health Consulting Services provides administrative and consulting services to skilled nursing facilities and senior housing communities along the Eastern Seaboard. The organization’s operational guidance enables its client facilities to overachieve their quality and customer service goals by embracing a progressive, multi-specialty approach to healthcare.
PHOTO CAPTION: Arbor Ridge resident Young Lee (left) embracing her green thumb with Eldergrow educator Monica Moscovici during the skilled nursing community’s recent Therapeutic Horticulture Garden program launch.
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About Arbor Ridge Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center
261 Terhune Drive, Wayne, NJ 07470
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Media Contact:
Sandy Crisafulli / David Wilderotter
Caryl Communications
201-796-7788
sandy@caryl.com / david@caryl.com