Noland Health Services has opened a long-term acute care facility within Ascension St. Vincent's Birmingham to serve patients who need long term acute care and are not well enough to return home, go to a rehabilitation facility or a nursing home. Many of these patients are COVID survivors who still need ventilators or additional therapy.

"After being in bed for weeks with respiratory issues, some no longer know how to walk. Others still might not be able to breathe on their own, because of muscle weakness or injury to their lungs," said Jeffrey Garner, MD, the medical director of the Noland Hospital at Ascension St. Vincent's Birmingham.

As a long term acute care hospital, Noland typically provides several weeks of additional care for medically complex patients. That may mean working to wean patients off ventilators, providing wound care or services such as respiratory, occupational or physical therapy to help patients recover from a range of illnesses, surgeries or injuries.

The facility opened in January in what had been regular hospital space for St. Vincent's. It features all private rooms in newly renovated space.

"While it is located in St. Vincent's, Noland's patients also can come from other hospitals," said Robert Russell, Administrator of the facility.

The new hospital is the company's sixth site, with other locations at Regional Medical Center in Anniston, Jackson Hospital in Montgomery, DCH in Tuscaloosa, Southeast Health Medical Center in Dothan and Ascension St. Vincent's East.