Soldiers' Home in Holyoke

Soldiers' Home in Holyoke
The Soldiers' Home campus atop Cherry Hill, as seen from I-91
Geography
Location	110 Cherry Street, Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States
Coordinates	42.1987185°N 72.6404414°W / 42.1987185; -72.6404414
Organization
Care system	Public
Funding	State
Type	Veterans' center
Network	Massachusetts Department of Veterans' Services
Services
Beds	277
History
Opened	April 27, 1952 (dedicated)
Links
Website	www.mass.gov/orgs/soldiers-home-in-holyoke
Lists	Hospitals in Massachusetts

The Soldiers' Home in Holyoke is a full-service veterans center and hospital located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, which maintains 247 beds in its main nursing facility, and a separate domiciliary care building with 30 full-time residents. The facility provides long-term care and outpatient medical services, as well as dental and social services, and programming and events for veterans. Operated by the Massachusetts Department of Veterans' Services, it is inspected annually by both the state and the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs.

In April 2020, at least 68 veterans—nearly 30 percent of the home's residents—died of COVID-19 in the deadliest outbreak at a long-term care facility in the U.S. during the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic.

History

The creation of the Soldiers' Home was a prolonged seven-year process; following the end of World War II, the Commonwealth saw an influx of wounded veterans requiring longterm care. At this time, more Federal facilities were in the process of being set up across the country and the only state facility designated for the task was the Soldiers' Home in Chelsea, which had been set up in 1882. In 1945 the Massachusetts General Court would pass several pieces of legislation, including allowing veterans on Chelsea's growing waiting list to be admitted to other hospitals, the expansion of that facility, and the construction of a new combined residence, community center, and hospital for veterans in the Central/Western regions of Massachusetts. Emphasis was put on the latter's location due to the fact that many veterans from as far away as Pittsfield would have to travel to the Boston area for care.

After a prolonged debate on locations, the number of beds, and the services offered, by 1948 the Holyoke site had been selected. However funding and regulations had led the project to stall, and incoming Governor Paul A. Dever promised to make its construction a priority of his administration. Several years later, the Soldiers' Home was dedicated on April 27, 1952 before a crowd of 15,000, including units from Westover Air Force Base, and former AMVETS national commander Harold Russell. At the facilities opening Governor Dever remarked "the scissors of false economy will never be used to cut the appropriations needed for the maintenance of this outstanding institution erected for the veterans of Massachusetts".

Outbreak and deaths from COVID-19

In April 2020, at least 68 residents of the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke died of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). It was the deadliest outbreak at a long-term care facility in the United States during the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic. Another 82 residents and 81 employees tested positive for the disease. In late March, there were 230 residents at the home; by April 29, only about 100 remained.

Services provided

The Chapin Mansion, a satellite facility operated by the Valley Opportunity Council jointly with the Soldiers' Home provides subsidized housing and services for previously-homeless veterans

The Soldiers' Home provides services to eligible veterans residing in Massachusetts including outpatient services with physicians and nurse practitioners specializing in optometry, ophthalmology, dentistry, podiatry, urology, and hematology. The facility also maintains its own pharmacy.

Programming is also provided including, but not limited to, bingo, group outings, and social functions. Licensed social service workers also work in residents and members of the veteran community with outreach and coordination of services.

Further reading

• Bump, Suzanne M (December 14, 2017). Official Audit Report; Soldiers' Home in Holyoke, for the period July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2016 (PDF) (Report). Office of the State Auditor, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 19, 2018.