Augusta Center for Health & Rehabilitation sits at 188 Eastern Ave in Augusta, ME, and has cared for people in the community for several decades, focusing on serving both children and adults with a wide range of health care needs, so you'll find people there for short-term rehab after a hospital stay, long-term skilled nursing care, memory care for dementia and Alzheimer's, and even early intervention therapy for autistic children, which is kind of unusual for a facility mostly known for adult care, but they seem to offer physical, occupational, and speech therapy for all ages with both in-office and virtual options, giving families flexibility, and some of their therapy programs use simple things like stability balls, animal walks, obstacle courses, and home-based exercises so patients can keep practicing on their own. The staff assigns home exercises for in-between sessions, and for occupational and physical therapy, they do evaluations, tailor a personal plan, and monitor progress along the way. Kids in physical therapy get an approach that's gentle, movement-focused, and meant to be pain-free, while therapy in general uses a mix of stretching, play, and equipment. Virtual occupational therapy helps caregivers stay involved, and speech therapy covers lots of basics like answering questions, gestures, conversation, social skills, swallowing, and stuttering.
Augusta Center has about 67 residents each day and a total of 72 certified beds, and it offers around-the-clock care for people with chronic illness or disabilities, providing post-acute rehab, long-term residential care, hospice, nutritional services, and a variety of social supports. The staff includes licensed nurses, experienced caregivers, and people focused on compassionate treatment, with an emphasis on independence, dignity, and a holistic approach, though in terms of facts, the nurse turnover rate sits at 63.7%, and they report about 4.13 nurse staffing hours per resident every day, so those looking for care might want to think about that. Deficiencies are part of any facility, and this place has experienced 36 total in inspection reports, including ones about infection control, respiratory care, nutrition, food handling, and maintaining a safe and homelike environment.
The setting tries to be comfortable and supportive, and amenities encourage daily activities meant to stimulate and engage people, with a focus on personalized, patient-centered care called the Passport™ approach. Staff speak English and sometimes other languages. Affiliated with National Health Care Associates and Providence Health Plan, the center stays current with information each month and uses credentialed providers. Augusta Center is not always accepting new patients, so anyone interested needs to check availability. It has received a few recognitions like being a certified Great Place to Work and earning a McKnight's Excellence in Technology Award for a partnership with Circadia Health.
Like many places, Augusta Center has daily visiting hours and options for virtual visits, trying to keep families involved, and it's got a simple admissions process with an option for anonymous compliance reporting. The facility doesn't list special awards or specialties beyond what's described here, but it's known for providing both medical and therapy services, including skilled nursing, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and palliative care. Families considering Augusta Center will want to review the facility's inspection history, ask questions, and spend some time to see whether its environment and approach meet their needs and expectations.
