Borris Lodge was originally built in the 1850’s as a dower house for Borris House (the ancestral home of the McMurrough Kavanagh family, High Kings of Leinster). Sometime later it was the home and surgery of the local G.P. They had a farm at Borris Lodge which supplied the local population at that time with fresh milk, eggs and vegetables. It was later purchased and run as a Bed & Breakfast and Borris Lodge was noted for its pristine prize winning gardens. We sometimes get calls from elderly couples wondering if the Bed and Breakfast is still operating. In the 1980’s it was converted into a Nursing home. In May 2000 it was purchased by us, Helen and Jimmy O’Keeffe as a 31 bedded nursing home. When we purchased there were 21 residents in Borris Lodge. Many improvements, upgrades and extensive renovations were carried out since 2000 and because we were constantly at full bed capacity, we decided in 2006 to extend to 52 beds. There are now 46 single bedrooms and 3 double bedrooms at Borris Lodge which surpass the new environmental standards set by HIQA (The Health Information and Quality Authority). Since July 2009 HIQA is the new independent inspectorate for Private, Public and Voluntary Nursing Homes.

Natural light and space were very important elements in the design, while maintaining a homely domestic environment was of paramount importance for our residents. All new rooms have Telephone, Internet and 14 Channel Television, walk in/ wheel in shower rooms. There are five different day rooms and a central atrium for relaxing and socializing.
The latest technology has been utilized in the new building which includes Geo-thermal under floor heating for the new rooms, each with an independent temperature controller and a Wood Chip Bio-mass boiler for domestic hot water and radiator heating in the old building. We believe our carbon footprint has been reduced by approximately 50%.
Door Security is discreet and obscure but is important in maintaining the residents’ safety.

The Nursing home is situated at the foot of Mount Leinster and overlooked by the Black Stairs Mountains. Centrally located in the village of Borris, one would believe they were in the middle of rural Ireland. The church, shops, hotel, pubs and local Post Office are only minutes away. Beautiful views of the landscape surround the Nursing Home which has its own small woodland walk and mature gardens populated with birds, squirrels and other wild life. While building the most modern extension we were very conscious of the beautiful environment and the old 1850 dower house. We successfully managed to hide the new extension behind the existing structure. On arrival at Borris Lodge one would be unaware of the size and extent of the building and might believe that they are entering an old well preserved stately house. We are very proud of our success in maintaining the surrounding  environment.

Nearly all of our residents at Borris Lodge are from the local community and its surrounds. We are known locally as “The Lodge” and the grounds are often used as a shortcut to commute from one end of the village to the other. The main avenue is 200 metres long and years ago was known as “Little’s Laurels.
We employ 64 staff from the local area, providing a large income for the village. All requirements for the Nursing home are sourced locally from existing businesses in the village which adds to the vibrancy of our community. We are very proud of the facility that we provide in the community and we continue to improve on the contribution that Borris Lodge can make to this community.

Some of our activities include daily walks, passive exercises to music, hairdressing, musical sessions, weekly Mass and any activity appropriate to maintaining the independence of our residents.