Medline hosts roundtable on assisted living issues

NORTHFIELD - Medline, a global manufacturer and distributor of medical supplies and clinical solutions, recently hosted a roundtable discussion with assisted living executives to discuss the state of the industry and opportunities for enhancing their daily operations.

"The future of assisted living is going to change, but the one thing that will stay constant is the shift to a more consumer driven market that is seen with skilled nursing facilities. Assisted living operators need to figure out how they can keep that consumer-center approach, but still ensuring they are able to cater to higher acuity residents and be able to keep them healthy and out of the hospital," says Shawn Scott, senior vice president, corporate sales, Medline.

The group targeted three operational areas greatly impacting assisted living organizations:

• Workforce hiring: Providers across the continuum of care are facing a workforce shortage. A concern expressed from the assisted living experts is recruiting staff who not only have the proper skill set, but who can also deliver compassionate care. To address this challenge, it will be critical to put caregiving professions on a pedestal and visit schools to position it as a rewarding profession.

• Quality improvement: An assisted living facility's readmission rate is the main data point hospital partners look at, but there is no common method for data tracking. Operators expressed a growing need for enhanced technology platforms.

• Staff education: According to the CDC, one-fourth of Americans aged 65 and older fall each year and an older adult is treated in the emergency room for a fall every 11 seconds. Education initiatives around falls and other topics like infection control and skin care are critical for ensuring staff perform at their very best. Education around infection control, falls management and skin care are a high priority.

"Some of the challenges resulting from the resident demographic shift have helped us become more focused on quality of care, quality of life and understanding how they tie together. Too often, senior management does not hear enough of the things we can improve on, so this meeting was a tremendous opportunity to make sure we're focusing on resident satisfaction," says Pat Giorgio, president and CEO of Evergreen Estates. With 25 years of experience owning and operating assisted living communities, Giorgio was named the 2016 recipient of the Jan Thayer Pioneer Award by the National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) for her contributions to the senior care profession.