Health Care
Little Falls Hospital
Little Falls Hospital, a proud partner of Bassett Healthcare, is Herkimer County's sole provider of acute inpatient and 24 hour emergency care. It is a not-for-profit, licensed, 25-bed, Critical Access Hospital with a 34-bed nursing home. Little Falls Hospital is located in southern Herkimer County, and also offers a swing bed program, outpatient specialty clinics, rehabilitation, and laboratory, imaging and emergency services.
As a partner of the Bassett Healthcare System, many of the specialty physicians currently seeing patients at Little Falls Hospital are on the Bassett staff including those covering the specialties of cardiology, ENT (ear, nose and throat), orthopedics, and Radiology. The Emergency Room is staffed 24-7 with board certified physicians. The hospital also operates three primary care centers located in Dolgeville, Newport and St. Johnsville.
In addition to enhancing the health and well-being of the communities it serves, Little Falls Hospital contributes significantly to the area's economic health with a payroll of over $27 million and an estimated total annual economic impact of over $47 million.
For further information on Little Falls Hospital, call (315) 823-5326 or visit their website at www.lfhny.org.
Valley Health Services
Evolving from a 32-bed to a 160-bed long-term care and rehabilitation facility since its founding in 1984, Valley Health Services is a major health care provider and vital community asset. The privately owned, not-for-profit organization is located in Herkimer, New York and provides care to a largely rural population.
A comfortable, healthy environment with qualified staff who place an equal emphasis on mind, body and spirit defines the care at Valley Health Services which includes:
• Skilled nursing, long-term care
• Short-term inpatient rehabilitation and subacute care
Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy
Speech Therapy, Wound Care, IV Therapy
• Outpatient rehabilitation
Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy
Cardiac Rehabilitation, Speech Therapy
Lymphedema Management, Osteoporosis Magagement
• Adult Day Health Care (two locations: Herkimer and Little Falls)
• Palliative Care
Valley Health Services is in compliance with regulations set forth by the New York State Department of Health.
In addressing the fiscal responsibility of the facility, the annual audit has consistently revealed no exceptions.
Valley Health Services has enjoyed community support since its founding. Over 80 volunteers support the staff and residents.
Eight men and women from the surrounding area comprise the voluntary board of directors who collectively contribute over 1,000 hours annually to provide governance of the healthcare institution.
Bassett Healthcare Network
Bassett Healthcare Network is a rural health care network of primary and specialty care professionals – including the 269 member Bassett Physician Group – practicing at six hospitals, 29 community-based outpatient health centers, nine school-based health centers and two ambulatory surgery centers, one of which is here in Herkimer. As a regional referral center, nearly all medical and surgical specialties are offered at Bassett Healthcare Network Herkimer including:
• Audiology • Cardiology
• Digestive Diseases • Endocrinology
• ENT • Family and Internal Medicine
• General Surgery • Gynecology
• Neurology • Oncology/Hematology
• Ophthalmology • Pain Management
• Radiology •Urgent Care
The Mohawk Homestead
The Mohawk Homestead (62 East Main Street, Mohawk, New York, 13407) was established in 1895 as a non-profit home for elderly women. It presently admits elderly men and women and is directed by a board of trustees who serve without pay.
The home, once a private residence, is a spacious brick house of the late Victorian period. It has been extensively added to, and has a capacity for 39 residents. It stands on a spacious lot, with ample lawn space, shaded by many maple trees, allowing for outdoor enjoyment in the summer. It faces the main street, and on the front is an enclosed porch, heated the year 'round, a favorite with many who like to watch the busy passing traffic. A large activity room and beauty parlor was built in 1983. A beautician is available for all residents.
A beautiful parlor with antique furnishings and a sun-room with southern exposure are open to the residents at all times. Meals are served in an attractive dining room, the menus being planned to be both nutritious and appetizing.
The Utica-Little Falls bus line maintains a regular service through the village making the home easily accessible to those who may depend on this form of transportation.
Rooms for the residents are completely furnished. If a resident prefers to bring his/her own furnishings from home, this is done. Residents may have TV sets. Cable and telephone service is available.
All occupancy is now on a per diem basis. There is no longer any plan for life occupancy and there is no initial fee to be paid on entering.
The home is staffed with competent help twenty-four hours a day, offering courteous and efficient care in a pleasant and congenial atmosphere to all residents. An activity coordinator provides a varied program planned for the pleasure and needs of all residents. Local groups and individuals are welcomed with musical programs, entertainment, games or visits. Ecumenical church services are held weekly with clergymen from the valley officiating. The Homestead is open to visitors at all times. For information about admission call (315) 866-1841.
The Homestead is an adult home licensed by the Department of Social Services.
Folts Homes
Folts Homes is a senior retirement community, nestled in the historic village of Herkimer, New York, at 104 North Washington Street, and offers multiple levels of care for older adults – all on one campus. The seamless system includes seven independent apartments in a Victorian mansion, an 80-bed adult residential home (Claxton Manor) with spacious private rooms, adult day health care services, and the Folts Health Center which is a 163-bed skilled nursing facility specializing in the care of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia-related disorders. As the needs of residents change over time, they are able to make a smooth transition to the appropriate level of care within the Folts Homes complex. Additional specialty services offered include short term and long term rehabilitation; physical, occupational and speech therapies; respite care, therapeutic recreation, a chaplaincy program, and a child care program for employees and the community.
Rehabilitation services at Folts Homes are custom designed to meet the individual needs of each resident. Care plans are developed for inpatients to accommodate short and long-term stays, and to facilitate either a return to home and/or an extended stay at the optimal functional level. Outpatient physical therapy treatments are offered for orthopedic, neurologic and soft tissue disorders, as well as wound care for patients of all ages. With a certified wound care specialist using laser, ultrasound and electrical stimulation, positive results are reached in healing wounds from superficial to severely compromised.
Specializing in care and services for individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, Folts Homes offers a monthly support group for resident family members and all caregivers needing assistance and support in treating, caring for, and coping with this debilitating disease. This support group meets the first Monday of each month and is open to the community at no cost.
Folts Homes is presently committed to adding another level of service at Claxton Manor for senior adults called “Assisted Living.” This type of senior housing will be for adults who need help with activities of daily living (such as dressing, bathing, eating, medication management or using the bathroom), but they do not need the full-time nursing care provided in a traditional nursing home. Assisted living costs less than nursing home care; but if needs change, a person can move easily from assisted living to the Folts Health Center located on the same campus.
For more information regarding Folts Homes services, contact the Director of Admissions at (315) 866-6964 ext. 324, or visit online at www.foltshomes.com.
The Arts
If one of the prerequisites for fine art is atmosphere, then it is easy to see the area's beauty helped inspire a vast wealth of artistic treasures. It could be one of the reasons Mstislav Rostropovich, world-renowned cellist and former conductor of the National Symphony 
Orchestra, once maintained a summer "dacha" just outside the Village of Mohawk.
Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts
In Canal Place, Little Falls, we have our own Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts. MVCA has a gallery that features local artists and their works in many different mediums.
Munson-Williams Proctor Arts Institute
The single largest artistic resource in the area is the Munson¨Williams Proctor Arts Institute in Utica. Students and visitors alike are afforded the opportunity to both appreciate and create works of art through its Museum, School of Art and Performing Arts Division. The museum is home to a variety of American and European art, including Pablo Picasso and Thomas Cole. Located next door to the MWP, is Fountain Elms, the Victorian ancestral home of the institute's founders. The MWP's Great Artist Series brings the world's greatest performers to the stage of the magnificently restored Stanley Performing Arts Center.
In addition...
For other musical tastes, there is the Chamber Music Society of Utica, the Mohawk Valley Choral Society, and the Glimmerglass Opera House in Cooperstown. Lighter musical fare can be enjoyed at venues such as the Kirkland Arts Center Coffeehouse, and the Utica Memorial Auditorium, which regularly features some of the biggest names in pop, country and rock music. Jazz enthusiasts frequent Tiny's in Utica for legends like Maynard Ferguson and Chuck Mangione, who lives just a few hours away near Rochester. The Players of Utica, one of the oldest community theatre groups in the country, regularly present productions as does the Ilion Theatre Club.
• The Old Forge Arts Center, Old Forge
Higher Education
Herkimer County Community College
Herkimer County Community College is a two-year unit of the State University of New York (SUNY) offering over 40 two-year associate degree programs and several one-year certificate programs. Many programs can be completed entirely online. The College’s academic programs include Criminal Justice, Cybersecurity, Radio-TV Broadcasting, Business Administration, Music Industry, Medical Coding/Transcriptionist, Physical Therapist Assistant, Website and E-Business Development and more.
With an enrollment of approximately 3,000 full and part-time students, HCCC’s diverse student body represents most states throughout the U.S. and numerous foreign countries. Over 600 students live in campus housing, which offers townhouse and suite-style apartments.
A recent major expansion of the College’s Library building includes enhanced student space, a new Bookstore/café, Academic Support Center and renovated Library providing students, faculty and the community with the most modern research capabilities available.
More than 40 student clubs and organizations and an active student activities calendar provide endless opportunities to be involved on campus. The College’s outstanding athletic program has won 31 NJCAA national championship titles and 27 NJCAA Academic Team of the Year awards. Wehrum Stadium features a lighted synthetic grass playing field and the ability to host regional and national tournaments.
For more information, call the Admissions Office: 315-866-0300 or 1-888-GO 4-HCCC, ext. 8278
Or visit our web site at: www.herkimer.edu
Transportation
Highways
Herkimer County's industrial corridor is served by the New York State Thruway (1-90) in an East-West direction. Access to the Thruway which allows tandem trailer traffic, is available at exits 29A in Little Falls, 30 in Herkimer and exit 31 in nearby Utica. Fourteen state highways and numerous inter and intra city arterials provide quick, uncontested vehicular movement. Taking advantage of this fine highway system are over thirty-five common carriers providing local and long distance trucking services to and from Herkimer County. Nearby Syracuse is served by at least I00 similar firms including I0 of the nations top 12 common freight carriers.
Bus
Commuter bus service is provided at many stops between Little Falls and Utica by Birnie Bus Service 1-800-734-3950. Access to inter and intrastate coach service via Trailways/Greyhound (1-800-858-8555 and Central NY Coach Lines respectively, is available at Utica's Union Station (315-797-2550).
Air
Syracuse's Hancock International Airport about an hour West of Herkimer County or Albany International Airport, about an hour east of Herkimer County offer air service to your travel destinations.
Water
The NYS Barge/Erie Canal serves as a direct link between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean. Local harbor points include Little Falls, Ilion, Frankfort, as well as Utica.
Rail
Freight service (including piggy back) is provided by CSX at its Utica terminal. Passenger service is available through Amtrak (1-800-377-6914), also out of Utica. Both services provide direct access to all parts of North America and are within five minutes of the county line. A branch line of the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway also runs through West Winfield, which is in the southern part of the county.
