Oh boy...this isn't good, is it?

Is there any way to overcome an "ugly" building?

I am a Nurse Liaison for a LTC that wants to grow up to a short-term, rehab facility. We have a great rehab department, good nursing department, we have an APRN who comes in once a week and we are looking to bring on some ortho consultants.

The brass tacks of it all is that the building is in SERIOUS need of updates and repairs.

I am new to the company and have worked hard to bring up census. The CMs have been very gracious in offering our facility a chance to move forward from old (bad) history by giving us referrals. I've been able to convert them into admissions.

We had four people leave our facility yesterday AMA. These were all short-term, cardiac and orthopedic rehab patients. The exact patient that they are leaning on me to admit. The thing is, they are all alert, oriented and used to things like phones, private showers, doors on the bathrooms and good food. We can't provide any of that. I feel like a fraud. I don't tell them anything that is untrue. I develop a great rapport with the patients and families in the hospital but they feel like they've been baited and switched when they see the building. I always offer for them to tour before making a decision but a lot of times they don't.

I have no idea the best way to handle this with the CMs. I have worked hard to build a trusting relationship with them and I feel like I've let them down. I can't talk down my facility to them, but if they send them to us and they come back, the message is the same. Right now, I think we are aiming too high. There are plans to renovate when I can get the census sustained enough to justify the investment but I don't want to burn any bridges either because I have NO idea when we will reach that point.

I'd appreciate your honest feedback on how you would respond and how you would like to see things go in this situation.

Thank you.