Local rehabilitation facility to close, hundreds affected

Greenfield -- The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development announced Tuesday a local nursing home facility will permanently close it's doors.

Nearly 400 employees with Kindred Transitional Care and Rehabilitation, Milwaukee will have to find a new job and residents will need to find a new facility, as well.

The state plans to work with employees to offer assistance.  Once the plan is approved it would take at least 120 days for the facility to close.

Kindred Transitional Care and Rehabilitation-Milwaukee sent the following statement to CBS 58:

It is with regret that, for a number of reasons, Kindred Transitional Care and Rehabilitation-Milwaukee will be closing.  The decision was based on several factors including the fact that Kindred Transitional Care and Rehabilitation-Milwaukee's size, age and design is no longer consistent with the current consumer preferences and needs for today's health care delivery system.  As a result, Kindred elected not to renew its lease with its landlord at the end of its lease term next year.  After discussions with all parties it was decided to close the facility.

The health, safety and well-being of our residents is very important to us.  We have notified our residents, their families and our employees of the closing.  We are committed to personally working with each of our residents and their families through every phase of this transition.  We have assured all residents and their family members that we are committed to continuing to provide the highest quality of care and services to our residents.  Throughout this process we will be taking steps to assure the continuity of our caregivers so that residents experience as little disruption to their lives as possible.

Per requirements, the closure cannot occur until after the completion of the approved relocation plan which must be at lest 120 days from the approval of the plan.  We will be working closely with DHS on the implementation of the relocation plan.

We are equally committed to working with our facility's employees in an effort to assist them in their efforts to seek new employment.  Due to the lengthy nature of the relocation plan, there is no plan to reduce staff at this time.  We will ensure that staffing levels remain sufficient to meet the needs of our residents.