LPN celebrates
Bradford Village’s 60th anniversary
story and photo by James Coburn
On Friday, March 31st, Bradford Village will celebrate 60 years of compassionate service.
The Elderly Brothers will entertain residents and guests at Bradford Village. The open house is open to the public. There will be food at a cook-out and activities with gifts to give out to people, said Nicole Hagar, LPN.
A Brookdale community, Bradford Village opened in 1957 as a mission of the Disciples of Christ. About 15 years ago, the Oklahoma Christian Home was sold. Today many residents call Bradford Village their home at 906 N. Boulevard in Edmond, said Hagar, a graduate of Mid Del Technology Center.
“We’ll be celebrating 60 years of business and caring for the elderly and the sick,” Hagar said.
She has been an LPN for nearly two years and has been since her graduation. She had been a CNA for four years before going to LPN school.
“Usually on holidays, dining services make extravagant meals for the residents. Usually we have outside entities come in and do dancing or some type of performance,” Hagar said. “More than likely it will be something along those lines.”
Hagar said her great-grandmother was a resident at the facility when it was the Oklahoma Christian home 20 years ago. Her love for geriatric care has been with her ever since.
“I love working with elderly people,” she said. “Elderly people have a lot to teach me in-turn during my process of caring for them. I’ve learned a lot from the elderly and really would have it no other way.”
Hagar did her clinical studies in pediatrics, but geriatric care is her niche. It’s where she belongs, Hagar said.
She had heard a lot of good things about Bradford Village before joining its team. An administrator she had worked with before was working there.
“I had seen Bradford Village advertised and I had some colleagues that worked here before. I had heard nothing but good things,” she said. “As soon as I put in an application I got a call to come interview.”
She cares for both long-term care and patients in skilled nursing. Hagar admires their motivation to rehabilitate in skilled nursing, she said.
“I admire the encouragement and the drive to rehabilitate and get out,” she said. “As far as my long-term care residents, I admire their enjoyment. I admire their longevity here because a lot of these patients have been here for several years.”
“I admire their interaction with the staff members. It’s nice to see their enjoyment. It’s nice to see how much they enjoy being here and their participation with the activities and festivities we have going on here on a weekly basis.” Nurses live by knowing that Bradford Village is the residents’ home. And they are treated with the dignity and respect of being at home.”
Residents chose what they want to eat from menus provided to them at every breakfast, lunch and dinner. They have the option of using the dining services or eating in their rooms, Hagar said.
“Each one of them have TVs and Cox Cable to use for what they want to watch,” Hagar said. “Social Services comes through and asks the residents what their hobbies are individually. So we can provide for that if they do have certain hobbies.”
One of the ladies loves to color, Hagar said. She is provided Crayons and the nursing staff will print her pictures.
“She paints as well. So we provide all that for her,” said Hagar, who enjoys crafting. “We try to help people who have hobbies.”
The nursing staff is resilient and strong, she continued. They are all fans of holistic care. Hagar said the nursing staff has a passion not only to serve their patients, “but provide them with the full experience of enjoying where they are and getting better, all in that process.”
The nurses do their best to provide a wholesome environment for the residents, she added.
“The team work is fantastic. We’re very big on team work,” Hagar said. “We all help each other; there are no strangers, and we’re all very responsible individuals as far as punctuality and the administration of nursing care.”
She likes to motivate others to learn about their own health, so they can get better. When she was a CNA, she saw other people do this and had the confidence within herself to rise to the occasion.
“I had one patient who was an older man. He enjoyed me so much that he basically said I changed his outlook on people for the better,” she said. “He was deep into the dying process when he told me that so that was something that I’ve carried with me ever since.”
