Wartburg Promotes Paula Ress to Vice President and Administrator of the Skilled Nursing Facility and Paulette Watson as Vice President of Nursing

Wartburg has announced the promotion of Ms. Paula Ress, a healthcare professional with over 32 years of experience, particularly in nursing home administration, to Vice President and Administrator of Skilled Nursing Facility and Adult Day Services. In her position, Ms. Ress will continue to provide strategy and leadership in Wartburg’s award-winning skilled nursing facility, the rehabilitation center and the Adult Day Services program.

Ms. Ress joined the Wartburg family in 2004 as Nursing Home Administrator. She has recently led the development of a short-term rehabilitation wing in the skilled nursing facility for complex medical conditions such as cardiac and cardio-pulmonary rehabilitation therapies. In addition to her current responsibilities she will oversee the new outpatient facility scheduled to open in our rehabilitation center in Fall 2015.

During her tenure at Wartburg, Ms. Ress has led the team that has ensured each patient in our state-of-the-art rehabilitation center, opened in 2013, maximizes their recovery with innovative therapies and a highly-skilled staff. Wartburg’s rehabilitation center gets patients home faster and healthier with lower re-hospitalization rates and shorter lengths of stay.

“It is a pleasure to work with residents, family members and the staff at Wartburg for the past 8 years. I am honored to be part of an organization that is committed to providing premier innovative programs and services to those entrusted to our care to ensure each person lives their best life,” said Ms. Ress.

Ms. Watson has led Wartburg’s Department of Nursing with a staff of over 200 employees since 2004. As Vice President of Nursing she will continue to ensure all practices are aligned with Wartburg’s overall strategic plan and all nursing staff follows best–practice standards.

“Leadership is not about a title or a designation, it’s about impact, influence and inspiration. I am truly proud to be a part of a great team of staff and leaders who work tirelessly to ensure our residents’ and patients’ quality of care and life is maintained at the highest standard. This makes my journey even more rewarding,” said Ms. Watson.

Ms. Ress and Ms. Watson were both instrumental in ensuring a deficiency-free survey by the Department of Health in 2014 as well receiving a 5-star rating from Medicare Nursing Home Compare. And these are just a few of the reasons U.S. News and World Report has named Wartburg one of the “Best Nursing Homes in New York State” in 2015, for the fifth consecutive year.

“There are only a few times in a career when you get an opportunity to recognize leaders like Ms. Ress and Ms. Watson and this is one of those times,” said David Gentner, President and CEO of Wartburg. “Collectively, they have dedicated 19 years to Wartburg and more than 50 years of service to the field of aging. Both Paula and Paulette have earned this title and we are all proud of this day.”

Wartburg is an award-winning provider of comprehensive senior services, including independent living, assisted living, Alzheimer’s/dementia care, skilled nursing, rehabilitation and hospice care. Its 34-acre campus in Mount Vernon serves seniors and their families in southern Westchester and the northern Bronx and now the NY Metro Area. Wartburg’s nursing home has been recognized by U. S. News & World Report as among the “Best Nursing Homes in New York State for four consecutive years, in 2014. Over the past few years, Wartburg has launched an ambitious building expansion program, including the Friedrichs Residence, with 61 independent living apartments, and a Rehabilitation and Adult Day Services Center, both opened in 2013.