UPDATE: Stamford Mayor Asks State for OK to Close Smith House Nursing Home

Update: 11 a.m. Oct. 21:

Stamford Mayor David Martin has announced that his administration met with the state Department of Social Services (DSS) on Tuesday and delivered a letter of intent requesting a Certificate of Need package in order to close The Smith House.

While it is the city’s intent to close The Smith House, only the state can grant, modify or deny the request. The state’s decision will be based on two primary factors: financial operating losses and the availability of comparable beds in the surrounding area.

In a statement on Wednesday, Martin said, “Today my main focus is on the residents, their families and our dedicated staff. I am confident that the city meets the state’s burden on both criteria. The losses are unsustainable and there are sufficient beds in the area to provide alternative living arrangements and ample options to residents and their families.”

This process is governed by state statutes and ensures that residents will not be involuntarily transferred or discharged within or from The Smith House during the application process, according to Martin.

Martin added, “This is a stressful time for residents, their families and our staff. Our employees’ remarkable care will continue without interruption until the last resident is successfully relocated.”

“The state has extensive expertise with nursing home closures and as such, we expect to work hand-in-hand during this difficult process. This is about the residents and their families. We will do everything we can to assist them during this difficult time,” Martin said.

Martin said last week that the nursing home has lost nearly $6 million in the past year, continuing a pattern of financial losses over several years.

Original story: 8 p.m., Oct. 20

It appears that the days are numbered for the city-operated Smith House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

The Advocate reports that in an Oct. 20 letter to residents at the Smith House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Stamford Mayor David Martin said that the city is moving forward with plans to shut down the 128-bed facility that’s been in operation since 1963.

The nursing home has had operating deficits for years including nearly $6 million last year.

“The mounting financial losses, nearly $6 million last fiscal year, are unsustainable and the primary driver of this request,” Martin wrote in a letter to the state Department of Social Services, which must sign off on the closure, according to The Advocate. “It is our belief that there are sufficient available beds in the surrounding areas to ensure continuity of care to residents,” Martin reportedly wrote.

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Smith House Executive Director Robert Mislow reportedly has tendered his resignation and will leave the Rockrimmon Road facility in November.

Martin has scheduled a Stamford Government Center press conference for Wednesday morning to details his plans for the nursing home.

And Martin’s spokesman, Elizabeth Carlson, told the newspaper that “we have submitted a letter of intent to the state of Connecticut in accordance with the Connecticut General Statutes requesting a ‘certificate of need’ package to pursue the closing of the Smith House.”

The Advocate story can be found here.

Photo credit: Smith House.