A Gardendale nursing home that previously announced it would relocate residents and lay off workers can now continue operations after a federal judge issued an order allowing it to stay open.

Magnolia Ridge is owned and operated by Genesis HealthCare, one of the largest nursing home chains in the country. The company filed for bankruptcy in July.

“Our team at Magnolia Ridge is deeply committed to the people who call this center home,” said Larry Huffman, the nursing home’s administrator, in a statement to AL.com. “This decision allows us to continue doing what matters most: caring for our residents with stability, compassion, and consistency.”

The nursing home in September announced it would have to relocate over 100 residents and layoff 103 employees. But Magnolia Ridge this week said it’s accepting new admissions and readmissions.

The 148-bed facility was issued a termination notice by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in September following multiple citations dating back to March from the Alabama Department of Public Health, according to court documents.

The notice said “that the conditions in your facility constituted immediate jeopardy to residents’ health and safety and substandard quality of care.”

But in October, a federal judge in Texas said during a hearing in bankruptcy court that she couldn’t rely on the findings from the federal report that alleged poor patient care at the facility, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal.

One example from the report cited a woman who nearly bled to death when staff gave her blood thinners after a surgery. She survived after being hospitalized, but later died of sepsis after the staff failed to administer prescribed antibiotics.

The report also said another resident with impaired memory was left unsupervised after a dentist appointment, and staff members repeatedly drove past him while he wandered along a busy road.

However, that resident testified that he went across the street to buy a greeting card for Mother’s Day while waiting for a ride from the nursing home, and said he wanted to stay at the facility, the Journal reported.

“I heard testimony about the patient who was bleeding and it was stopped. That’s the only thing of that magnitude that I heard,” Judge Stacey Jernigan said during the hearing, according to the Journal. “We all know people die in nursing homes frequently.”

The judge agreed with Genesis lawyers that the findings in the report were hearsay because Stephanie Davis, the author and a regional enforcement officer for CMS, did not have firsthand knowledge of the accounts and relied on investigations from Alabama health inspectors.

“What you heard from Ms. Davis are levels and levels and levels of hearsay,” Genesis lawyer Daniel Simon said in court.

AL.com has reached out to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for comment. The Alabama health department referred questions to CMS.

The judge also determined that patients would be harmed by having to relocate.

During a September visit by a federally-appointed patient care ombudsman, Suzanne Koenig, patients at the facility reported distress at the thought of moving from Magnolia Ridge.

“Emotional distress was evident but effectively mitigated through communication, supportive interventions, and continued engagement by staff and leadership,” the ombudsmen’s report said.

Koenig interviewed residents and their family members who said they were anxious about the prospect of losing relationships with their peers and staff members. Many were also concerned about finding a new facility that would accept Medicaid.

“Residents consistently expressed satisfaction with the care provided and reported that staff remain supportive, attentive, and communicative,” Koenig’s report said.

The ombudsman ultimately opposed decertifying the facility, according to court records.

At the time of the visit, which occurred after the termination notice was sent, Koenig said a number of patients had already been relocated. She reported admissions were down from 103 patients on Sept. 3 to 56 patients on Sept. 22.

Those transfers were requested by residents or their families because of the possible closure, the report said.

Magnolia Ridge said that with the judge’s decision to block its closure it is hoping to welcome back residents who left and now wish to return, as well as new patients in need of short-term rehabilitation and long-term care.

“Magnolia Ridge Center will continue working closely with state and federal partners, residents, and families to maintain a safe, supportive, and clinically strong environment,” the press release said.

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