The Nursing Home Podcast

Shmuel Septimus

The nursing home administrator's best friend on the internet. Being an LNHA has never been easy. Covid has only made it even more challenging. Let's do this together🎗. This is where we interview and meet the leaders, innovators, and trendsetters in the nursing home industry. This is your go-to resource to gain practical solutions to everyday problems facing nursing home administrators. Questions/Comments? Email me - shmuel@snfmarketing.com read less
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Episodes

The DOs and DON'Ts of Nursing Home Marketing
27-11-2023
The DOs and DON'Ts of Nursing Home Marketing
Timestamps(00:00:02) Introduction (00:01:01) Healthcare Risk Management Experience (00:02:18) Fair Housing Act Explanation (00:08:15) Prohibition of Disability Discrimination (00:15:57) Understanding Essential Requirements (00:23:15) Rules Around Common Accommodations (00:29:42) Risks & Fair Housing Marketing (00:34:55) Legalities for Assisted Living Services (00:40:17) FSA & Housing Education (00:43:22) Rules Disregard in Senior Living (00:47:41) Risk Tolerance Discussion (00:49:06) Risk Management in Senior Living  So as you mentioned, I did medical malpractice defense for a number of years in New York,and then I moved to Pennsylvania because I was getting married and my husband was fromout of state.And when I moved, I decided to switch hats, and I decided to do healthcare risk management.So I was tasked with starting up a risk management program for FSA.At the time, we started with 12 organizations, nonprofit, faith-based communities, generallyin the Philadelphia area.Since then, we've expanded quite a bit, and we now have 37 sites in six states.And so I give guidance and consultation on risk management issues.So today, we are going to talk about marketing risks, but I'm going to talk about it frommy perspective, you know, from a risk management perspective and a fair housing perspective.Okay.So thanks for that background.So let's get right into it.What is the worst-case scenario if someone says, you know, I'm going to market howeverI want to market?I'm going to say what I want to say, do what I want to do.What have you seen as like a worst-case scenario of someone has done this and this horribleoutcome has happened?Great question.Nothing like the fear factor right from the beginning.So what I'm going to preface that question with is an explanation of why there are risksin this venue, in this area.And so in 1968, Congress enacted the Fair Housing Act, which was what I like to callthe third leg of the stool for civil rights litigation, legislation rather.And so we had the Civil Rights Act, then the Voting Rights Act. And then in 1968, they passed the Fair Housing Act.And that precluded discrimination in housing choices and lending based upon what we callthe protected class status.So started out with race, religion, national origin, color, gender, which now includesgender identity and sexual orientation, and national origin.In 1988, Congress amended the act to include two additional protected class categories.Familial status, meaning that you are not supposed to be able to discriminate againstfamilies with children.And of course, there is a carve-out for our senior living settings.And the one for purposes of our discussion today, which will be very pivotal, is it sayshandicapped, but it's what we would refer to as disability.So you have now protections under the Fair Housing Act, and we just call it FHA for boththe Amendments Act and the original act for all those protected classes, which actessentially as a floor, not a ceiling.So state and local jurisdictions can also add an additional protected class categories,like, for example, maybe marital status, saying that, you know, you can't discriminateagainst somebody because they're unmarried or, you know, because they cohabitatetogether, for example, or source of income is another one that's fairly common.So I think for a lot of senior living communities, they don't necessarily recognizethat they are covered by this act as a housing provider, because I think for a lot ofcommunities, they say justifiably, well, we're not a housing provider because we do somuch more than that. And you do.However, in the eyes of the government, you are a housing provider and you are subject tothe Fair Housing Act.And so there are lots of risks that come along with that.Now, if you choose as an organization just to decide that you're going to market any wayyou want to and you're not going to pay attention to various marketing risks, includingfair housing risks, what's the worst case scenario?The worst case scenario is that you end up being in litigation, sued by potentially afederal government. So it's now the United States of America versus, you know, seniorliving community, A.B.State. You are in litigation with the government.You are being sued for housing discrimination.Almost always that ends very badly for the community.Almost always winds up in a monetary settlement.Many times there is also a settlement compensation fund where the community has toadvertise in multiple places for people that have been subject to what they've just beenfound by the government to be illegally doing.Let's just say discriminating against those with scooters, for example.And so they would have to advertise for anyone that's been impacted by that to give themmoney. In addition, there's almost always what we call a consent decree that comes withthat. It's sort of, if you're familiar with the world of compliance, it's similar toa CIA or a corporate integrity agreement whereby the government puts you into thisconsent decree.And the consent decree not only sets out the exact amount of money that you're going tohave to pay and how you would advertise to those who have been subject to yourdiscriminatory practices to give them money.But there's also usually quite onerous burdens that are placed on the community,including things like they get to and the government will review your actions for aperiod of time. Usually it's about five years.And so they will oversee and have to approve the policies, put policies in place forwhatever the particular topic is, change contracts, sometimes hire a fair housingofficer to perform acts to training and education for the staff on an ongoing basis.And again, being overseen by the government for a period of time.In addition, I would also say that you don't want to be the poster child for that.So again, I happen to mention scooters.And one of the pivotal cases in the world of, you know, communities that have been suedfor improper restrictions on scooters is a community called Twining Village.And I don't like to use them, you know, but that that case is out there and everybodyknows about it. So you don't want to end up having the reputational damage in our worldof, you know, senior living where it's like, oh, that's the Twining Village case.And so, you know, everybody knows based on that case, you know, some of the policiesthat you have to have in place and the no-nos, the things that you shouldn't be doing.You don't want to become the poster child for that, which can very easily happen.Well, so a couple of questions.Thank you for that. I mean, that's quite an overview.So it were someone to actually go ahead and let me just back up.So you're saying that there's the fair housing law, which puts nursing homes together inthat category. So therefore, they have these discrimination laws like you've outlined.So is this, first of all, is this specific to marketing?Are we talking about someone denies a patient because we don't take we don't want patientswith scooters because patients with scooters are dumb or whatever.Yeah. So I'm speaking broadly about senior living communities.Right. So it's anywhere that a person lives.Okay. So if you are running a short term rehab only, then potentially you are excluded fromthe Fair Housing Act because that's not someone's home.The intention is to treat them for a brief period of time with the intention to dischargethem. However, it does apply clearly.All the case law is very clear on this.It does apply to settings like CCRC, independent living, assisted living, personal care,long term care. So all of those things, you know, adult foster care, it does apply to allthose settings. It is questionable whether it would apply in the context of a short termrehab strictly.Okay. So let's back up.If I don't have if I have a regular store and I sell chocolate and desserts and flowers andwhat else? I can discriminate all I want?No. There are other laws.There are other laws that prohibit you from from doing that, that we're not necessarilyspeaking about today. But again, when it comes to housing, we are under the auspices ofmultifamily housing specifically, which means four or more people in a unit or, you know,four or more units, I should say, not four more people.Then you are subject to the Fair Housing Act.So. Okay.So the Civil Rights Act says that you can't discriminate.Right. Suggested.I understand that. So my point is that you have extra laws when it comes to if you'remanaging or you own a home that has multiple families, say for like you said, four unitsor more. So then you have you have extra focus.So now let's assume someone has an assisted living facility, a long term care facility,really can be an apartment building, too.But we're saying even senior living facilities and they're going to and then theydiscriminate against someone.So does that mean that they refuse admission to someone?Okay. So that's a great question.So discrimination can take multiple forms.It can be just as you said, refusal of admission or refusal to someone, an applicant tobe denied admission.That can be a form of discrimination.It can also be a form of discrimination, which is very common.Probably the most common form of discrimination is the refusal to grant what we call areasonable accommodation for disability.And that's where the scooters would come in, for example.So if I was disabled and I had a mobility impairment and I required a scooter to enableme to get around and to meet what we call the essential requirements of tenancy.And you, as the provider, refuse to allow me to have that scooter or, for example, thatservice animal, like you have a no pet policy and I wanted to come in with a serviceanimal. Well, that's not a pet, that's a service animal.That's for my disability. That's a reasonable accommodation.So you can refuse and then you could again potentially be sued for that.But in addition to also refusing to admit somebody, which is a form of discrimination,there are a multitude of other forms of discrimination under the act.And it can be I come in and I'm able bodied when I come in.And after I'm a resident at your community for some period of time, I now becomedisabled. And again, I've asked for reasonable accommodation, whatever that may be.And you now refuse to give me that reasonable accommodation or you are discriminatingagainst me and saying, because let's say I had a let's say I had a fall.I lived in independent living and I had a fall.And you say, well, now you're not independent anymore.And so you need to move to assisted living because you had a fall.You can't from a legal standpoint, from a fair housing standpoint, they'd have to be waymore to it than just forcing me to move up through the continuum for something like whatI just described. And then additionally, I would also say that, you know, there areagain, just treating that it's essentially under the Fair Housing Act, we don't want totreat anyone worse, which is the more common thing to do.We also can't treat anyone better because of their protected class status.So if so, again, we serve primarily faith based communities.So if I had a community that was, for example, a Quaker community and they said, becausewe are a Quaker community, we want to give preferential treatment in admission to Quakers.You don't have to meet the same kinds of financial requirements as we require from everybodyelse. You can't do that either.Right. So, again, it's admission, but it's also discriminating against somebody oncethey're there.OK, so there's also what's the line?And I guess this is where the gray area comes in between providing reasonableaccommodations in this type of living setting versus we have a noscooter policy, let's say, because of a certain maybe safety concern that we have due toour building. Or maybe we don't allow service animals, even though it's not a pet, becausewe have residents with advanced dementia and they view service animals as monsters.They're going to eat them up or any other sort of reason, assuming that it's trueor even if it's not true.I mean, you get a good attorney to make something up, but the reasonable accommodationsversus actual practical reasons why that it's not discrimination, but there's anactual ramification of being, you know, let's see your example.Someone was in an independent living and suffered from a fall and now can no longerambulate safely in that setting.And they want to say, OK, now you have to move on.You know, CCRCs, you have to move on to the assisted living.Like, I don't want to go to the assisted living.Well, over here, you can't take a shower.You can't, you know, prepare your food.You physically can't do any more.We're not discriminating because we don't like people who fall, people who are old orpeople who are weak.We're just saying that we feel that this is not appropriate.So is that where, and obviously the other side is that, no, I'm fine.It's just because I fell.Don't tell me I need to move on.Let me get some therapy.Let me go to the doctor.Let me let this thing heal and I want to stay where I am.So is that where, is that why people like you have jobs?Right.So, yeah, perhaps that's why people like me have jobs.But what I would say to you is, you know, there are parameters around certain things.So let's talk a little bit about that.So, again, when we talk about disability, we, there is a requirement under the law thatsays that in order to live someplace, whether that's just in the community at large, youknow, an apartment building or in a senior living setting, the tenant or the residenthas to meet what we call the essential requirements of tenancy, no matter what.Disability, no disability, you still have to meet the essential requirements of tenancy.So what are those?First and foremost is paying your rent and fees on time.Number two is keeping your unit in a safe, clean and sanitary condition.Now, you know, I think that reasonable people may differ as to what's safe, clean andsanitary. Right.Also obeying the reasonable community rules.Okay. Unless, of course, there has to be an exception made because of the reasonableaccommodation because of somebody's disability.But again, generally speaking, you should have a set of reasonable community rules becausepeople have to obey those rules.You also cannot have excessive damage to the unit.Okay. Normal wear and tear is okay.If I scrape the walls because of my scooter, that's okay.But if I decide to, you know, take a hammer and make holes in the walls, that's not normalwear and tear. Also not unduly disturbing the peace and tranquility of others.Okay. And the last one, which is very important, is not being a direct threat to thehealth and safety of others.Now, in my opinion, and this is not in the law, this is not in the essential requirementsof tenancy. When you are in a senior living community, I feel that it is reasonable tosay you cannot be a direct threat, a direct threat.That's very important language.Not speculative, a real direct threat to your own health and safety.Okay. So, but that's not been tested in the courts yet.That's Christina's theory.But I think it's a good one.And so.Hold on, let me talk about that for a second.If someone's, and they're a threat to themselves, and certainly if they're a threat tothemselves, even if they're not, if they're trying to physically harm themselves, they'retrying to slit their wrists, they're trying to jump out a window, they're trying to, Idon't know, whatever, anything else that's unsafe.And the facility has done everything that they can to prevent, stop, intervene, assist.So there's a question, there are those who say that, no, you cannot, let's say, Section12, you cannot send them out to the hospital because that would be discrimination.Is that even a possibility?Well, no, under the scenario that you just described, you're not evicting them.You're not getting them out permanently.You're just sending them out.So I would say, no, that's reasonable.But there have been situations, I like the examples that you use because they are extremeexamples. And I would argue, if I was a provider, that there is no reasonable accommodationthat will diminish that threat.But that's always going to be a question because tying in with meeting the essentialrequirements of tenancy, which everyone has to do no matter what, that's where thereasonable accommodations come in.So if I have a disability and I ask for a reasonable accommodation or you become awarethat I need a reasonable accommodation, then it should be granted because the reasonableaccommodation is generally what's going to help me meet those essential requirements oftenancy. Now, going back just to the example that you used.Someone who's suicidal or homicidal, even.The, you know, I could say I can't handle, I don't have, I'm not equipped to handlepsychiatric issues and I certainly can't, you know, protect my other residents from thishomicidal individual or I can't protect them from themselves because there's so manyways that they could attempt suicide.And so they are not meeting the essential requirements of tenancy because they are adirect threat. There have been occasions and there have been some cases.Where in circumstances like that, the courts have said, well, and it's not specific tosenior living, it's just general housing.Well, you should try a reasonable accommodation first.So, for example, if you send that person out, you know, to be involuntarily, you know,incapacitated in a psych facility for a period of time.And let's say that they have been given medication that would, you know, presumablycontrol their behaviors.Then the resident or the tenant in this case would be able to say, well, my reasonableaccommodation and I should be allowed to stay because I can remain on this medicationregimen and then my behaviors are controlled.But I know of a case from a number of years ago, multifamily housing out in Connecticut,and an individual had psychiatric issues and actually went after the landlord with a bigbutcher knife and threw him down to the ground and started to stab him.That gentleman was arrested and then the landlord sent notice, you know, you're herebyevicted. You know, after he got out of jail, after he spent some time in jail and cameback, he realized that he couldn't come back to the apartment because he had beenevicted and he sued and he said, you're discriminating against me.And the court in that case actually said, well, you have to try.Let him have his reasonable accommodation.And, you know, but I think that's not, in my view, that wouldn't be a reasonableaccommodation. It's not reasonable to allow someone who has, you know, extremebehaviors like that, you know, again, that's a direct threat that we can't keep otherpeople safe or that even that resident, we can't keep them safe.So that's the extreme example.But, you know, most cases are not as extreme and most cases you're going to have to trythe reasonable accommodation and sometimes multiple reasonable accommodations beforeyou would say you're violating the terms of the resident contract or the lease or theagreement, whatever it is that we have.And now you're going to have to leave or move up to a higher level of care.You're going to have to try a few different reasonable accommodations to be safe beforeyou can generally do that or you'll risk potentially a fair housing claim.Well, that's very messed up, just to realize that for everybody, because to see thatsomeone who physically attempted to murder their landlord was jailed for it and nowevicted, reasonable accommodation, that sounds crazy.But I agree with you on that.I wholeheartedly agree.I think that's fair.But I just felt like I, you know, I had to, you know, kind of raise that to say it's notnecessarily a slam dunk.But generally speaking, yeah, when somebody is a direct threat and it's not speculative,it's not fear that something might happen, it's something did happen.Right. So I want to be clear about something.When it comes to reasonable accommodations, as a provider, you can and should haverules. You don't have to make it willy-nilly, but you are allowed to have reasonable rulessurrounding common accommodations, reasonable accommodations.So, for example, let's use the scooters again.It would be probably very high risk if you just said we don't allow scooters.But it's OK if you said we allow scooters, but we have these rules.A rule, I always encourage my communities to have reasonable rules.A rule might be that you have to sit with therapy and review the rules of the communityto use a scooter first.You know, get educated on it and then sign off that you're agreeing, you understand allyour questions have been answered and you agree to abide by the rules.And those rules might be things like you can only drive your scooter as fast as anon-disabled person can walk.You don't have the right to drive your scooter around like Speed Racer.Right. It may say you have to have a horn and lights if you're going to drive outside.You have to obey the rules of the road on campus.You have to have a flag.You can't park and block fire exits.You can't block mailboxes.If you're going to drive into the dining room, you have to have room.And I want to touch on something that you mentioned a few moments ago, saying mycommunity is older and it's not equipped for these big SUV scooters that people havenow. Under the ADA, which also sometimes can tie in with the Fair Housing Act, thereare also construction requirements.So the ADA went into effect in March of 1991.So did those construction requirements.So if you have construction that occurred after March of 1991 or if your building isolder than that, but you've done any kind of a renovation on your building and the termrenovation is pretty flimsy and loose.It could be even like redecorating can be considered a renovation.You then have to comply with the dictates of the ADA in terms of the physicalrequirements. Like so, for example, it talks about thresholds.You can't have, you know, a big where someone can't come up on the scooter, you know,because of the thresholds or, you know, with their walker, that's an issue.Thresholds, grab bars, lowering cabinets in handicap accessible units.A certain number of your units should be made handicap accessible.That depends on how many units you have.It's a percentage.And simple things like aisles wide enough for people to use their scooters.And arguably in our setting, you know, knowing that many, many people do have mobilityimpairments, it's even more important, you know, to make sure that your community hasabided by the rules and the Department of Justice, you know, and lots of fair housinggroups. And HUD also has put in a tremendous amount of money to talk about people'sfair housing rights and to make sure that providers and architects and contractors areaware of what the physical requirements are for spacing and things like that andthresholds. And they've spent a tremendous amount of money talking about that andmaking sure that people are aware.So it becomes very challenging in these days.Every month a case will come out at least once a month on, you know, again, the ownerof multi-family housing, the owner of senior housing, a municipality, you know, manydifferent types for failing to construct their buildings in accordance with therequirements of the ADA.So you have to be careful about that.But there are reasonable rules.So have them about service animals.You know, you can have about scooters, you know, any other kinds of reasonableaccommodations. You should have, you know, rules around the private duty aides.They're another reasonable accommodation that you should have rules about.Got it. Sometimes we see this, the application of these rules, you know, don't seem soreasonable. I know a particular construction project that was not required to have anelevator, but was required to have handicapped accessible bathrooms on the secondfloor. Go figure.Right. Right.I don't know how, you know, somebody who's disabled, you know, then they would have tohave the right amount of housing on the first floor, you know, handicapped accessible.It wasn't a housing project per se.But, you know, we do see things like that sometimes, but that doesn't negate the rules.But if we can focus the conversation from a marketing standpoint.OK.We want to, you know, we titled this the do's and don'ts of nursing home marketing.So I know that there are things that we cannot say.For example, the nursing homes can't say that they're dementia units because there arelaws. This has nothing to do with Fair Housing, but this is the Department of PublicHealth. They haven't clearly defined a lot of regulations for what's qualified as adementia unit. And there's a whole process to go through.So you can call it memory here.You can call it a lot of other things.They can't call it by that name.I've actually walked in one of the nursing homes I was managing, at least in Massachusetts.I worked with the gentleman whose name is Dr.Paul Rea, and he's the one who wrote the regulations for what's called a dementia unit.And we were thinking of maybe turning one of our units, our memory, our unit thoughanyway was a dementia unit, to just make it an official one.And the cost and just the work that it would take, not just money, but also theinconvenience and the downtime that it would take to get it in compliance just didn'tmake sense. And we changed the wording in our marketing materials and we had the sameresult. So instead, we just decided, you know, it was a company decision, you know,should we do it, should we not do it, so how extensive it was didn't make sense.So question for you is what is the absolute, give me a great example of someone that didsomething horrific in their marketing or something that someone can do like really badin their marketing. And like, I guess I'm a worst case scenario person.And what happened as a result or what could happen as a result?So let me give you some examples of things that are risks in marketing when it comes tofair housing. And I've jotted a few of these down so that, you know, I cover everything.So the first one that I would talk about is models, models or people in your marketingmaterials, photographs of individuals, right?That can be problematic because, for example, we talked about the protected class of race,right? So if you only have photographs, they want to see, the government wants to seediversity. So if you have, you know, all Caucasian individuals, that could be a risk foryou because where are the people of color?You're not allowed to discriminate based on someone's color.What if everybody in your marketing materials is running, jogging, biking, doing yoga?Where are all the people that are on scooters, in wheelchairs, with walkers?So models can be potentially problematic.Another issue would be problematic language in your materials.Another one could be potentially, I know a lot of times marketing, especially in the CCRCsetting, will do what's called a targeting marketing campaign, right?So they want it, they're targeting to a particular income level.All right. And they're sending the materials out to that, to the people in a particulargeographic area that meet those income requirements.Well, there have been cases where that's been considered to be a discriminatory practice.Why? Because you're only sending all your marketing material specifically to potentiallyjust white people.Okay. And you're excluding and you may not have any discriminatory intent with that, butthat's the way it comes out.And in the Supreme Court has decided that in fair housing, there is something calleddisparate impact.It doesn't have to be that you purposely discriminate against somebody, but there is anactual disparate impact.So that's an area that you want to be careful about.Lack of an improper, lack of the fair housing logo, it's the little house, or having thelogo, but it's minuscule.You can't see it. If you have the logo and you should have the logo, the fair housinglogo, it's put out by the government.If you have one for leading age and you have one for, you know, whatever local societiesyou belong to and they're all of a certain font and your fair housing is teeny tiny inthe bottom, that's problematic.There is no requirement, by the way, on font, which makes it a little bit more complicated.But you want to make sure that it's the same size as everything else.Exclusionary practices for admission.Again, we don't let people in with scooters or we don't let people in with serviceanimals. Problematic applications, asking lots of, again, this is for independent living,not for nursing or, you know, assisted living or personal care.Asking medical questions, if you're not a type A community, that can be potentiallyproblematic. Asking intrusive questions, asking them to undergo a physical exam.If you don't have, you know, a guarantee of moving through the continuum of care, thatcan be highly problematic.Improper. Oh, I mentioned the improper request of physical exams.Steering, which is a term of art in the fair housing world.Steering means that I come in and I either and government, by the way, and so do fairhousing groups, send testers in to ask these questions and try if they think there'sdiscrimination going on, they will send somebody in who pretends to be an applicant oris looking for housing for their loved one and ask the questions to see what the answersare. Steering means that I come in and I say, hey, you know, my mom is looking forindependent living.She uses a scooter.She needs some help with her medication management.You know, she sometimes gets a little bit confused.And, you know, if you were to say to me, well, you know, she might feel a lot morecomfortable if she goes over into assisted living.That might be a better place for her.We don't really like those kinds of people in independent living.We don't want to look like a nursing home.That's steering. And that is illegal under the Fair Housing Act.Discriminatory denial of reasonable accommodations.And again, being aware of the state and local laws that expand upon the protected classesand making sure that you are not, again, discriminating against additional protectedclasses that your local jurisdiction or state may have in place.So those are a whole series of marketing risks that I would tell you you have to becareful of. Got it.So let's say I have an assisted living and I am targeting a certain group because this isthe group that actually needs the service, can afford the service, will maybe want theservice. Is there no legal way to target that group?If I'm going to put people, let's say, let's see an example of models or even, you know,language. If I'm going to put words on there or pictures or other things that don'tresonate with them, then they're obviously much less likely to, you know, to respond.It doesn't mean that these are the only people that are marketing to.I may have a separate brochure and a separate marketing plan for, you know, for adifferent ethnic group or a different protected class.But right now I want to focus on these people.You know, an open invitation is no invitation.Come over to my house any night you want for a barbecue.That means you're not invited. I'm not even telling you my address.But if I say Tuesdays at 4 p.m.having a barbecue, you know, please bring over, bring over your family.Here's my address. Then you're invited.Right. So the point is, people will resonate to marketing material if they will act on itresonates with them. So if it's, you know, if it's tailored to them, then it'll work.Can I? Is there no legal way to do that?There, you know, well, first of all, I want to be clear.I'm not giving legal advice here.I'm giving you advice from a risk management standpoint.And so, you know, listen, everything that we do is associated with a risk benefit analysis.Right. So I want to be clear about that.So a community can make a determination.What is their risk tolerance?If they really want to market and target towards a particular, you know, group because oftheir income. And it turns out that that they feel like we could be accused ofdiscriminatory behavior because it's going to go to, you know, all white people.That is a question.If you still want to market to that group, I'm not here to say you can't do it or youshouldn't do it. I'm just saying, be aware that that's a risk.Right. So anything that you market on could be a risk.But if you think that the benefit of targeting a particular group of people is going to,you know, bring in the people that you want or that you think would benefit from yourservices, then that would be your assessment of and that would be a risk tolerance toyour community. Right.Got it. Who are the discrimination police that are going to bring this case in front of,you know, they're going to get, you know, secret people coming in undercover and askingfor service.So the DOJ has testers that work for them in the Civil Rights Division.Now, who brings it to their attention so that someone would want to come down?Yeah. So I'm going to tell you, there are a lot of fair housing advocacy groups outthere. There are a lot of law school clinics that also have fair housing, you know,clinic that are staffed by law students.The government gives money.They're like quasi-public, private, public government entities.They get money from the government in recognition of their work and they get money fromthe government to do that.So they are there to enforce fair housing rights.Usually the way it would work is if I am an individual, many times this is how ithappens. I'm an individual.I go, I apply for residency at a particular community.I feel that I've been discriminated against for whatever reason that, you know, mydisability, my religion, the color of my skin, whatever it is.I go to a fair housing group and I make a complaint.If they, they will then investigate my complaint.If they feel that there is some validity to that, they will do their own research.They will start their own investigation.They will have testers.They will go out. They then turn it over usually to HUD.With their findings, if they feel that there is what we call a pattern or a practice ofdiscrimination, they will send it to HUD.If HUD, the Housing and Urban Development Office of the government, feels that it risesto a certain level and they think that there is a discriminatory pattern and practice goingon, then that gets referred over to the Department of Justice.So the lawsuit can either be me, Wildrick versus ABC Senior Living.If I feel that I've been discriminated against individually, I can sue you instate court or federal court.If it's a fair housing group, then a lot of times, you know, that fair housing groupwill bring it on my behalf.So it would be Wildrick and the Fair Housing Alliance versus if it goes to HUD, itwould be, you know, HUD, Housing and Urban Development v.the housing community.And again, in the worst case scenario, it rises up to the level of the DOJ, theDepartment of Justice, and they will bring the claim and it will then be the UnitedStates of America. It will be in federal court and it will be brought against you.So there are they are essentially what you're referring to as the police.They are the enforcers.They are bringing them. But private claims can be brought by individuals or by privatehousing groups. And there are loads of them out there or the government can do it.Well, so now on a professional standpoint, where do you come in the business thatyou're involved in? Which piece of this?Are you the police? Are you the defendants?Are you just educating people to stay away from the cops?Right. So my job as the risk manager for FSA, for the communities that we work with, webring we do lots of education.We do lots of fair housing education, both for marketing and admission staff, as well asstaff within the community that is responsible to move people through that continuum
Staffing; The Biggest Pain Point for Nursing Homes
16-07-2023
Staffing; The Biggest Pain Point for Nursing Homes
Sara Well spent 12 years as a critical care trauma nurse on the acute side. She watched again and again as her facility’s money was put into much less pressing issues than staffing and saw how it impacted not just care and quality outcomes but overall revenue.She saw how archaic many of the systems in place for staffing were, and with her tech background realized that this comprehensive issue was a scalable solution with a huge addressable market. Nurses are often perceived as a cost rather than a revenue driver. They have been historically under-appreciated despite how much their presence and work directly impacts the length of stay which is not always covered by insurance.The flaws already present in the healthcare conveyor belt were exacerbated by the arrival of the pandemic. An estimated 500,000 nurses were lost to COVID fatigue, switching to other less taxing professions. At the same time many new travel nursing and outsource labor companies began to pop up, luring staff away from their traditional in-house positions with the promise of higher pay. These companies then sold the nurses back to the same types of facilities they came from at a much higher cost. Though facilities were able to get staff quickly and easily, it was not cheap and cost them the integrity of their in-house teams.Dropstat seeks to re-empower healthcare organizations, working with them to update and automate safe staffing processes, and give total transparent insight into their labor costs.They see the most important relationship as the triad between patient, provider, and the organization that brings them together.Dropstat uses machine learning and AI to predict a facility's staffing needs 60 days in advance.  are able trace increased costs of standard labor and premium labor costs whether its agency or overtime bonuses. With this data they create patterns and recommendations and feed them back to the client.When asked about the problem of staff leaving for a $2-3 raise Sara had some powerful insight to share. She states that just like those serving in the military, healthcare workers see death and loss on a sometimes daily basis. But while the military has instigated an entire culture of comradery and airtight family dynamics within groups, the same is often not present in healthcare.  Sara concludes that if a facility is able to culture hack and ensure with authenticity that nurses feel loved, valued, connected, appreciated, that they are the key to aiding the aging population, they won't have to worry about losing staff because of pay. FOLLOW SARA AND DROPSTATWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 94: Innovative Solutions to the Staffing Shortage in HealthcareEp. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing HomesEp. 42: Healthcare Workers Need Self-Care During Covid-19
Innovative Solutions to the Staffing Shortage in Healthcare
19-03-2023
Innovative Solutions to the Staffing Shortage in Healthcare
After returning from military service, Eric Alvarez got his start in academia before moving to healthcare and delving into startups. It was this time working with students that led him to the idea of Grapefruit Health. By the year 2026 healthcare will be short by 3.2 million healthcare workers. Eric states that many of the current solutions for this problem greatly reduce performance and output while driving up costs. The year 2030 was always slated to be the year that our clinical aging workforce would max out, with baby boomers retiring at a much higher ratio than newcomers entering the profession. Many clinicians have either transitioned to part time or moved on to a gig economy platform. We have heard from various perspectives on the healthcare staffing shortage on this podcast and Grapefruit Health brings a new solution to address this monumental problem. They have created the world's first and only healthcare workforce composed solely of clinical students. Healthcare facilities often run programs to employ students, but this calls for a training preceptor and ultimately leads to an unproductive workflow. Grapefruit Health employees on the other hand provide assistance with remote, low acuity, high volume, repetitive telephonic tasks.These include medication adherence, senior isolation and loneliness outreach calls, and post discharge follow up calls. All of these tasks are clinical in nature but do not require licensure.About 10% of these telephonic tasks need a pharmacist interaction, in which case the employee will do a warm transfer to a pharmacist. This cuts down time greatly for short staffed pharmacy teams who would otherwise have to make all these repetitive calls themselves. Grapefruit Health offers their services at $5 per interaction and doesn’t charge for unsuccessful interactions such as when a call goes through to voicemail or a patient hangs up. Typically their client organizations have a program that's failing and are looking to supplement it or outsource it. After understanding the situation and what tasks and roles need to be filled, Grapefruit Health can build scripts and employ students and train them for the job in just six weeks.Eric states that students are eager to learn with their clinical education fresh in their mind. Grapefruit Health leaves their employees with great skills and experience and even full time opportunities with the client organizations they worked with once they graduate. FOLLOW ERIC AND GRAPEFRUIT HEALTHWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 89: Take Full Ownership of Your RecruitmentEp. 85: 5 Strategies You Can Implement Today to Boost Your Recruitment Success RateEp. 79: Smart Hiring for Nursing Homes
Retain Your Nursing Home Staff
26-02-2023
Retain Your Nursing Home Staff
Erica has had 30 years of experience as a nursing home administrator and specializes in regulatory compliance. Her nonprofit senior living campus is so excellent at staffing retention that they have managed successfully to never bring in outside agencies. In today's senior care facilities, where administrators constantly struggle to keep staff from leaving, this is an incredible achievement. Erica outlines some of the means by which she and her leadership team have made it happen. Firstly, they have made sure to be visible in the local community. They are involved with two chambers of commerce, hold lots of events, and have great working relationships with the local high-schools.High-school seniors who have completed one year as nursing assistants and want to stay on, will receive 75% tuition reimbursement towards starting a nursing degree at community college. They also hold raffles for those applying and bonuses to current employees for referring someone. For current employees, there is a career ladder in place throughout all departments and excellent tenure. Staff can work to advance themselves and see results for their hard work rather than feeling stuck in a static position. There are also many amenities provided including an excellent break room, and regular socials that help to create a great work atmosphere. Above all, Erica holds that having a work family, all pulling together towards the same mission statement, is essential. Right from the interview she assigns new hires a mentor in their department. By being present at the interview, that person will also be able to decide on behalf of their department whether they want to move forward with hiring. She maintains a strong philosophy of servant leadership and strives to let all her staff know that she cares for and appreciates them.  FOLLOW ERICALinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 88: Hire and Retain the Best CNAsEp. 77: CNAs: Make Them Want To StayEp. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing Homes
Home Care VS Nursing Home
25-01-2023
Home Care VS Nursing Home
Sam Gopinathan only got started in his field after the 2008 recession when he was forced to leave his job as a mechanical engineer. But Sam didn’t get into his current field by chance.  After a life-changing experience of helping to provide relief to a community devastated by a natural disaster, he learned that establishing a connection is a fundamental foundation of caring for others.  He decided to work in home health care because it aligned with his professional goals and personal values. Every day he goes to work he is helping someone with their life.  Sam states that long-term care insurance is the only product that will definitively cover the costs of care when one needs it.  Medicare will only pay for the medical side of things. It covers high acuity events, but not the nursing home stays that many people will need afterward. Unless someone has less than $2,000 in assets, they won't qualify for Medicaid coverage and will instead pay for the latter privately.  So how much care is provided by home healthcare? Sam explains that New Wave Home Care offers a minimum of 4 hours of care and a maximum of 24 hours. They help out with basic necessities like showering, meal preparation, and any other tasks that someone might not be able to complete physically.Having the right amount of care early on can save expenses down the line, such as those that will occur if someone is injured.In regards to payment, Sam states that 80-85% of clients pay via private funds, with 15% of clients using long-term care insurance. Depending on what policy someone has, they can get almost 100% off care expenses.Lastly, Sam examines the benefits of a professional long-term caregiver over a private caregiver such as a family member, friend, or trusted employee. By seeking out help privately, someone can be risking a lot.If you are employing someone privately, you are their employer on all records which can lead to a lot of trouble with lawsuits. It is also difficult to do background checks on a potential caregiver.  In theory, a family member or spouse would be the best solution. Still, the emotional burdens often become a problem made even more complicated if the caregiver is a similar age. With their assurance of expertise and knowledge, and ability to do complex background checks, agencies are the best option.  FOLLOW SAM AND NEW WAVE HOME CAREWebsiteLinkedInRELATED EPISODESEp. 87: Dementia Education; WhyEp. 60: The Best Healthcare Happens At HomeEp. 27: Should I Purchase Long Term Care Insurance?
Start Your Own Healthcare Business
29-12-2022
Start Your Own Healthcare Business
Lindsay Mclaughlin is an expert multitasker! Managing to juggle running a successful full-time venture, teaching others to do the same, and being a working mom, she wears many hats.Her high-poweredness can be seen in the fact that she recorded this episode with us only a few days after the birth of her new baby! Despite going into nursing school, Lindsay knew for a long time that she wanted to be self employed before her thirties.Developing and running residential assisted living homes allows her to combine her background and skill-set with her long-time ambitions of entrepreneurship. But what are residential assisted living homes and how do they differ from traditional, larger assisted living facilities?Lindsay states that even though she prefers to build most of her homes from the ground up, the buildings themselves look and feel like cozy residential homes. Instead of hundreds of residents, most residential assisted living homes usually only have 8-10 beds, and no more than two-dozen. Rather than a host of amenities, clubs, and excursions to fill residents’ schedules, the homes offer a cozy, close environment where residents can gather in the common area, get to know each other, and feel like they are living in a real house with a found family. Though they can’t provide care to higher acuity patients, such as those who need feeding tubes, residential assisted living homes can take on most patients and provide them with more focused and hands-on care.Lindsay says that the set up of these homes is also very encouraging to the families who may be nervous and reluctant to send their loved one to a large, traditional facility.The smaller setup allows for a more direct line of communication that families can use to receive more personal news and updates. They are also more inclined to feel better about sending their loved one to somewhere that feels like a home. To sum it all up, Lindsay states that anyone looking to get into this sector of the senior care industry has to know what they want realistically before entering the business. The job can be hands-on and emotionally taxing, but it also allows an owner to build a space from the ground up, set their own culture, and run their own show, even if they do not have a large budget going into it.For those interested in this growing field, Lindsay is holding a 2023 flagship event where she gives attendees hands-on experience in running a residential assisted living home. FOLLOW LINDSAYWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 79: Buying Your First Nursing HomeEp. 60: The Best Healthcare Happens At HomeEp. 54: What Is The Green House Model?
Authentic Selling in Healthcare
05-12-2022
Authentic Selling in Healthcare
Nebras Hayek’s incredible career in marketing throughout multiple industries is the result of her high-powered mindset and can-do attitude.  Though she has worked in a number of interesting places, Nebras got into healthcare marketing partly through the connections she made while hosting events for various healthcare related groups.In addition to her intensive day job, she is also an active military combat engineer in North Carolina, a position which on top of everything else demonstrates her love for challenges.  Nebras started out at Gentell as a regional manager covering only a few states but rapidly ascended to assistant vice president of the company, covering all 49 states.  Her significant experience in senior care has shown that progress is best made through building authentic connections and establishing dependability and trust with others in the industry.  Senior care faces a lot of current challenges. While the largest issue may be staffing, census is still a very high priority problem for many facilities.So what can a nursing home do to fix its census?Nebras advises that before judging that a nursing home is struggling, you need to go in, find out what’s actually going on, and only target that specific issue rather than making a lot of large irreversible changes.She states that some major points to be examined and evaluated are the facility’s current Medical Director and the actions of its Admission Directors.Medical Directors are supposed to be representatives and advocates for their facility. They should be ready to fix the problems they encounter or delegate the process of fixing.It is important to check in regularly with Admission Directors and find out what they are doing. Ask what challenges they are facing, who they are marketing to, and what's happening with referrals.  Lastly, when asked about the relevance of social media for both facility and vendors in senior care, Nebras states that, for both of these parties, the more recognition and familiarity the better. This is best done through authentic video content which is more informative than pictures. FOLLOW NEBRASEmailLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 79: Smart Hiring for Nursing HomesEp. 69: Should Nursing Homes Be On TikTok?Ep. 62: Social Media Marketing for Nursing Homes
Take Full Ownership of Your Recruitment
24-10-2022
Take Full Ownership of Your Recruitment
Having served as assistant administrator at a small facility with extensive experience in the senior care industry, Avi Richman understands the extreme challenges facilities face these days in staffingThere is a constant fight over employees and many states cap admissions when a facility is only operating at very low levels of staff. Many facilities attempt to address the problem of staffing through working on their public appearance to prospective employees.Avi states that this method often won’t work because it's almost impossible for most facilities to scale the idea of what they want their vibe and company culture to feel like. The only situation in which this would work would be if the facility concerned was small, and standalone.Avi gives an example of such a facility that deepened their company culture by creating an employee counsel that served as a legitimate decision making body.But is there a sole strategy that will contribute with certainty to the success of staffing endeavors? Avi asserts that facilities need to focus their time and energy on making sure the processes they plan are executed smoothly and to completion from start to finish. It is easy to say that this will happen but very difficult in reality, the only way it will work is if the process is monitored and nurtured 24/7. FOLLOW AVI AND VITA HEALTHCARE GROUPWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 85: 5 Strategies You Can Implement Today to Boost Your Recruitment Success RateEp. 79: Smart Hiring for Nursing HomesEp. 77: CNAs: Make Them Want To Stay
Hire and Retain the Best CNAs
03-10-2022
Hire and Retain the Best CNAs
During her research into health disparities at John Hopkins, Athena witnessed the difficulties that aspiring healthcare workers who were underprivileged and financially insecure had in starting their career. Single parents who were already working paycheck to paycheck could not afford to put themself through a CNA training program. There is also the issue of overcomplication and outdatedness present in CNA training school sign-ups. Websites are hard to reach or do not even exist. Application documents are difficult to fill out and obtain. Many of the people coming up against these problems are truly passionate about helping others and often already have experience and understanding of what they will face. On the other side of the equation, facilities search high and low for CNAs to hire on.In the post pandemic world, many CNAs have turned to other careers and it is often a struggle to find qualified CNAs who will stay on for more than a few weeks. Athena’s company Dreambound addresses both of these problems simultaneously. Dreambound works with 150 schools and training programs in multiple states. If there’s a school that’s currently not on the platform all they have to do is sign up on the website and start getting students.Instead of a complicated application process, prospective students have only to fill out one universal application which will be directed to any of the schools on the platform. For facilities, Dreambound provides a system by which they can choose students to sponsor who will come and work for them afterwards. Athena also states that many schools are looking for clinical sites for their training. By taking this position, a facility will attract a lot more graduating CNAs who will have already trained there and decide to stay on out of the closeness and convenience. FOLLOW ATHENA AND DREAMBOUNDWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 78: CNAs Care About Company CultureEp. 73: Make Your Staff WANT To Stay!Ep. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing Homes
Dementia Education; Why
25-07-2022
Dementia Education; Why
As a clinical psychologist with over twelve years of experience in the senior living space, Dr. Jennifer Stelter has a lot of experience with dementia. Dr. Jennifer is critical of the idea that pharmacological methods are the only way to address mental health conditions and she strives to provide knowledge of non-pharmacological tools and coping skills that can be used firstly. Together with her business partner Jessica Ryan, biologist, and aromatherapy educator, she created the dementia connection model which employs these types of tools for addressing dementia onset. Dr. Jennifer states that while dementia training should be part of any clinical psychology studies, it is instead left all down to nursing homes. Since most dementia training is just regulatory compliance, it will often be carried out without much real thought or planning and will not be effective. When there is a lack of education in this area staff will not know how to empathize and interact with residents with dementia which leaves them more inclined to become overwhelmed and quit.  In order for a dementia training to be effective, it must be engaging and ideally use sensory based exercises to put employees and caregivers in the position of those with dementia. Exercises that push people to think on their feet are also very important because this is an essential skill when caring for people with dementia. In a post pandemic world, these trainings should be up to date, after all there is evidence that COVID-19 can be a factor of dementia onset. Dr. Jennifer and Jessica will be opening their Dementia Connection Institute which provides in-person and virtual CE seminars and presentations, and staff trainings in all the tools and strategies of their model to staff and caregivers. FOLLOW DR. JENNIFER, AND JESSICA, & THEIR PRESENT AND  UPCOMING DEVELOPMENTSDr. Jennifer's LinkedInJessica's LinkedInThe Dementia Connection Institute  RELATED EPISODESEp. 84: Understanding Our Nursing Home ResidentsEp. 72: Are We Treating Our Seniors Worse Than Horses?Ep. 70: Memory: It's All In Your Head
Is Long Term Care Broken?
05-07-2022
Is Long Term Care Broken?
Having worked on the front lines with hundreds of nursing homes to develop effective infection control strategies, Dr. Buffy got a firsthand look at the way in which these facilities were targeted during the height of the pandemic.She was moved by the stories she heard and problems she observed, to write her best selling novel Broken which highlights the difficulties faced by nursing homes in implementing infection control. Most of these difficulties stem predictably from staffing and budget challenges. All nursing homes are required to have at least a part time infection preventionist on staff, but many take on the role while also holding other positions and with little training or hands on experience. Dr. Buffy’s company, IPCWell, helps in these common situations by working with facilities to teach and support their infection preventionist in developing efficient and effective methods that will function inside a facility’s means and budget. However, a considerable amount of difficulty is also brought about by the barrage of continuously changing rules and regulations.Responsible regulations are always needed for the functioning of any industry. However, Dr. Buffy states that their sheer volume is crippling for senior care and makes it nearly impossible for facilities to operate inside. This came to a head in 2020 when, instead of helping nursing homes suffering from no PPE and with overworked staff who were risking their lives, the government invested $80,000,000 in targeted infection control surveys. In an effort to show that this money was being put to use, even the smallest action not following regulations word for word was cited. Dr. Buffy states that instead of punishing nursing homes, this funding and attention should be put towards helping them and advocating for them. The last chapter of Broken  explains how anyone who has a relative in a nursing home can advocate for their facility.  FOLLOW DR. BUFFYTo purchase BrokenTo follow her on LinkedInTo visit the IPCWell website RELATED EPISODESEp. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing HomesEp. 38: Administrator Vs The SurveyorEp. 33: Infection Control - Out of the Binder
Understanding Our Nursing Home Residents
02-05-2022
Understanding Our Nursing Home Residents
Jennifer has been a practicing physiotherapist for 14 years, and shares about her experiences and what she has learned in this space, as a podcaster, author, and speaker.She served as her dad’s caregiver for many years while he was housebound and through this experience can empathize and understand the struggles of residents and their families.Most times, going into long term care is no one’s choice and therefore its essential for residents to feel independent and at-home.Jennifer approaches every interaction with residents with the understanding that she is in their home and in their space as opposed to them being in her space because she is the therapist.As a physiotherapist her job is to assess patients mobility, balance, and strength and she strives to enable and empower their independence while also minimizing their fall risk. She advises physicians to try and tailor their sessions and treatments to the resident and their goals rather than rushing through and only thinking about the problem, not the person. In order for an at-home environment to be established, residents must feel trust and rapport with their physicians and caregivers. This rapport can only be gained if caregivers and physicians stay present with residents and remember that their role is to guide and inform, not to be authoritative and make decisions against the resident’s desires. Jennifer states that compassion and empathy only takes moments and even small gestures can go a long way towards making residents feel comfortable in their surroundings.  FOLLOW JENNIFERRead Her Book - Communication is Care: 9 Empowering Strategies to Guide Patient HealingHer Podcast - The Healthcare Provider Happy HourHer LinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 72: Are We Treating Our Seniors Worse Than Horses?Ep. 56: Phone Calls Help Alleviate Loneliness in Nursing HomesEp. 54: What is the Greenhouse Model?
You Said What?
25-04-2022
You Said What?
After the loss of his grandparent, who received terrible treatment in rehab after surgery, Ryan resolved to address some of the issues in post-acute care by buying a software company already active in that space and using his expertise to build it up. VoiceFriend addresses the problem of inefficient communication faced in facilities where the many different stakeholders, including residents, families, and employees make for a quagmire of related issues. With varying levels of technological proficiency among these stakeholders, there have to be many different methods in place for communicating and conveying information. This type of chaotic system means that information and things said often slip through the cracks or can only be found again after a lengthy search which wastes time and effort. While there are other tools designed to improve this problem, they often only cover a section of facility communication or don’t work well with software already in place. Ryan explains that VoiceFriend is not a tool but a system designed to serve as the core communication platform of facilities by which all other means of communication already in place pass through. The software can convey messages over a wide variety of platforms including text, phone, and even Amazon Alexa.Recipients can set their own preferences to reflect how they would like to receive communications. VoiceFriend’s simplicity and ease of use are great strengths and by integrating it, a facility can dramatically streamline its communication and enhance processes already in place.  FOLLOW RYAN AND VOICEFRIENDWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 81: Nursing Home Communication Ep. 67:  Can Nursing Homes Be Less Chaotic?Ep. 37: What Should I post on Linkedin?
Let's Talk Legal
21-03-2022
Let's Talk Legal
Jana has represented many healthcare clients and serves as the outside general counsel for a large healthcare entity. The False Claims Act was created to address fraud being perpetrated against the government. To free up government time and resources, private individuals referred to as relators were permitted to bring those suits. Relators have to be an original source with inside information. In healthcare-related cases, they are often disgruntled, former employees or family members. Jana has handled many false claims cases and asserts that the most important first step in making sure that a facility is aware and compliant with the regulations under the False Claims Act is to install a Comprehensive Corporate Compliance Program.This type of program can be drawn up by a lawyer and details all the regulations that a particular facility will need to follow and what they can do to follow them to avoid causing claims to be made against them.Common claims in a healthcare setting often involve billing for services that weren’t provided or are insufficient. If an operator or administrator catches wind of this, they should investigate immediately and if a violation is found make a voluntary disclosure to the government and pay any difference that might be owed. In a worse scenario, the government will find out about the violation first and send a Civil Investigative Demand requesting the production of certain documents or an inner view of an employee. In this situation, the facility should act fast to hire experienced counsel and contact the government to negotiate a settlement rather than being taken to court. Fox Rothchild has offices all over the country and can provide all sorts of services to healthcare facilities in the areas of corporate employment, real estate, compliance services for if a facility is involved in litigation or receives a subpoena or Civil Investigative Demand.   LEARN MORE ABOUT JANA AND FOX ROTHCHILD LLPWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 81 - Nursing Home Communication Ep. 76 - Employee Liabilities Ep. 38 - Administrator Vs The Surveyor
Taking Nursing Home Design to a Whole New Level
16-11-2021
Taking Nursing Home Design to a Whole New Level
As an occupational therapist with an MBA who has, at one point, been responsible for 120 facilities at one time, Jean is an expert in both the care and business sides of senior care. With his groundbreaking new designs and programs conceived to influence the lives, thought processes and social engagement of residents, he has become recognized as an incredible innovator in the space. Jean’s buildings are structured to engage all five senses. Through natural lighting or LED-controlled “Sky Ceilings,” they allow those with memory-related conditions to tell the time. With a design based on the nineteen twenties, thirties, or forties, residents experiencing Retrogenesis and mentally reverting back to their youth can feel at-home in their surroundings. Jean is passionate about the vision of his buildings from a clinical perspective and also understands that this cannot be accomplished without adequate financial backing. He tells investors the true story, that by creating these spaces he is reducing clients’ pain and helping them to live longer and healthier lives and that this in-turn makes for significant cash flow. With his penchant for innovation, Jean has been planning and developing various new programs and ideas. Currently he is evolving his informational senior care, Alzheimer's, and dementia focused video platform Okrah.Jean first had the idea for this concept after producing his own documentary on one woman’s experience of Alzheimer's and realizing how little media existed around that important topic.FOLLOW JEAN, THE LANTERN GROUP, AND OKRAHLinkedInThe Lantern Group OkrahRELATED EPISODESEp. 75: Flooring; The Biggest DifferenceEp. 72: Are We Treating Our Seniors Worse Than Horses?Ep. 70: Memory: It's All In Your Head
Smart Hiring for Nursing Homes
11-10-2021
Smart Hiring for Nursing Homes
Adam Lewis is the CEO of Apploi, a hiring software company centered around healthcare. With a background in HR, he has spent lots of time working with healthcare companies to identify and remove roadblocks in their job application processes. Two of the largest problems often encountered in healthcare recruiting are: how to attract more candidates into the application funnel and how to successfully move them through said funnel. To start with the latter of these issues, Adam states that out of all industries, healthcare takes the longest amount of time to recruit personnel with the average span being 40 days. This is often the result of an application being too lengthy and complicated. In order to make this process more frictionless, the application should feature fewer questions upfront and be mobile optimized so as to be accessible to nurses, CNAs, and LPNs who will likely be filling it out on their phones. The job postings themselves should also be created with the needs of current healthcare workers in mind. Rather than going by the old method of copying and pasting the needs of a position, employers must be more creative to grab the attention of job seekers in this modern competitive market. Job postings should narrate the experience of company culture, the perks that employees will receive, and the value that they will be regarded with.  FOLLOW ADAM AND APPLOI!WebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 77: CNAs: Make Them Want To StayEp. 73: Make Your Staff WANT To Stay!Ep. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing Homes
Buying Your First Nursing Home
04-10-2021
Buying Your First Nursing Home
Jeffrey is the founder and CEO of Cambridge Realty Capital, a real estate company centered around the nursing and senior care market that has made over 500 transactions in that space.From his own experience, he states that those looking to make their first nursing home real estate deal and become an operator often possess experience in the industry but lack the funds.For this reason, it is essential for first-time deal-makers to find a good investing partner to make the purchase with them.Firstly though, they must be sure to make an economical deal with the seller that is written down in the form of a tangible document.This will allow them to show the deal to different parties without being worried about people going behind their back. Maintaining this control is the most important part of making a deal.  Next is the question of loans and finding a good lender to work with.HUD Loans, supplied by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, are an excellent resource but require the assistance of a HUD Lender who can interface with the department.Lastly Jeffrey states the market is very lucrative and for those experienced in the administrative side of senior care, it's always a good time to break into the business. FOLLOW JEFFREY AND CAMBRIDGE REALTY CAPITALWebsiteLinkedIn RELATED EPISODESEp. 52: Investors Focusing on the Senior Care Space - LinkedIn Best PracticesEp. 40: Did The Coronavirus Make Nursing Homes Rich?Ep. 39: Administrators Speak Up; Time For a Change!
CNAs Care About Company Culture
09-09-2021
CNAs Care About Company Culture
Quanisah Bernard is a talented and experienced CNA and, with more than fourteen years of the profession under her belt, has a deep knowledge of the ins and outs of CNA culture.After graduating from high-school in 2006 she started working at a nursing home in the dietary department. Soon after, she took a month-long CNA class which kicked off her journey as a CNA. Since Quanisah had entered her first facility right after high-school she felt as though it was a second family. Rather than treating her as a cog in the machine the administrators noticed her talent and proceeded to foster her skills and give her some chances to shine and be recognized. It was only when the management changed and became less focused on providing this important acknowledgement and care to their employees that Quanisah decided to leave. Though she had begun to think about the lack of a good salary, she states that it was this particular shift in company culture that forced her hand. Though at this time, when senior care facilities are under intense pressure, it is difficult for them to pay employees a higher salary, it is important that they follow through with all financially related promises. Quanisah states that even though the assurance of a raise or bonus may reflect well on a facility, not following through will cause CNAs to leave and let their colleagues know not to work there either. Lastly, she explains that getting involved with colleges would be a great way to find and attract potential future CNAs who will be looking to apply for internships and positions at facilities.   RELATED EPISODES Ep. 77: CNAs: Make Them Want To StayEp. 73: Make Your Staff WANT To Stay!Ep. 71: Combating Staff Turnover & Burnout In Nursing Homes