Wicomico Nursing Home Adds 28 Hires, Plans $1M Upgrades

Wicomico County, Maryland - Wicomico Nursing Home has hired 28 new employees, and County Executive Julie Giordano wants to spend about $1 million on repairs and new equipment at the county-owned facility.

The nursing home has 63 residents and 118 active employees on its payroll. Of the 28 new hires, 19 are full-time and nine are part-time. Four more full-time workers are set to start in the next several weeks, which would bring the number of recent hires to 32.

According to the county, the new staff includes nurses, nursing assistants, office staff and support workers. Giordano's office said the facility is in a much stronger position under its current leadership than it was under the previous administration.

Giordano said the staffing numbers push back on claims that the nursing home is in crisis.

"These numbers tell a very different story from the narrative some have attempted to create," said County Executive Julie Giordano. "We have 118 active employees, 28 recent hires, and four more full-time employees preparing to join the team. That is progress. While there is always room for improvement, these numbers do not support the repeated claims that our nursing home is in a state of crisis. We owe it to our residents, their families, and our dedicated employees to focus on facts rather than political rhetoric."

The repair plan came out of a needs assessment the county did with the nursing home's new administrator. Giordano plans to bring a budget amendment of about $1 million to the Wicomico County Council, which would have to approve it.

The money would cover a new roof and a new HVAC unit for heating and cooling. It would also pay for new kitchen equipment, new floor cleaning equipment, and new draperies, privacy curtains and pull-down window shades in the living spaces.

"One of the things I have consistently emphasized is that if we are going to have a county-owned and operated nursing home, then we have a responsibility to ensure the facility is properly maintained and equipped to serve its residents," Giordano said.

Giordano also gave credit to the new administrator for working closely with county government. She said that kind of teamwork was mostly missing under the previous administration.

The county is looking at federal help too. Giordano welcomed President Donald Trump's administration's recent announcement of a $275 million Nurses in Nursing Homes initiative, which offers money incentives to eligible nurses to help nursing homes fill jobs.

County officials have started early talks with Congressman Andy Harris' staff about how that program, and other federal options, could help Wicomico Nursing Home and its workers.

"We are encouraged by President Trump's commitment to addressing the workforce challenges facing nursing homes nationwide, and we appreciate Congressman Harris' staff for working with us as we begin exploring these new opportunities," Giordano said.

"Are there challenges? Absolutely. Every nursing home faces challenges, and we are not pretending otherwise," Giordano said. "But there is a tremendous difference between identifying challenges and working to solve them versus using those challenges to create fear and score political points."