Rural Nursing Homes’ Staffing Shortages Elicit Calls for Help

The Newport Health Care Center is calling it quits.

The family-owned, 50-bed nursing home in rural Newport, Vt., is closing its doors in March, unable to fill numerous jobs, including 10 licensed nursing aide slots. The average age of its 43 employees is 51; and 17 have reached retirement age.

“Part of what helped me make the decision” to close “was knowing I was going to be losing those people and I saw no way to replace them,” said facility administrator Bruce Weddington. “I’ve got nobody in this building that can do what they’re doing. I can’t find somebody to ...