Author: Derek Dunham

Today, nearly six million Americans have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. By the year 2050, that number is expected to double. Beyond that statistic are several million more people who have been assigned another kind of dementia diagnosis. The reality is that nearly every American, at some point in his or her life, is going to have a friend or family member afflicted by a chronic neurodegenerative disease. As a society, we have struggled to understand and cope with these diagnoses. Symptoms often start small, building to a critical level that alienates people from their loved ones through a mental fugue from which they cannot escape.

Most Americans gain their initial understanding of these illnesses through popular culture. As early as 1949, the character Willy Loman displays signs of dementia in the play “Death of a Salesman.” By the 1980s, several films used dementia symptoms as key plot points, as writers and directors explored the family dynamics and challenges that occur as dementia progresses. Since the year 2000, we’ve seen an explosion of documentaries, movies, books and other works that have chronicled the onset of dementia symptoms — both from a first-person account and through the eyes of loved ones. Today, one of Broadway’s most popular shows is “The Waverly Gallery,” a wrenching production that follows Gladys Green as her mind slowly fades while her body continues to struggle on.

In that trying moment, when a family is first faced with a dementia diagnosis, these portrayals are often the first thing that comes to mind. Loved ones conjure up the worst moments of the illness as portrayed in the cultural zeitgeist, leading them to believe that only desperation and sadness lie on the path ahead — except, that’s not really the case.

Generally, Alzheimer’s is first recognized because an individual is experiencing some kind of cognitive impairment that impacts his or her daily life. This means that the disease has already been present for a period of time before being discovered by medical professionals. Following a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, the average person can expect to live an additional three to 10 years. Herein lies the disconnect between popular culture and reality.

Families and friends often have a hard time understanding a diagnosis of dementia because the person may just seem forgetful as he or she ages. The portrayals of the disease in media usually play up the most uncomfortable and sad moments that come with the end of the disease, but a person might be able to live a relatively normal and happy life for several years before true debilitation occurs. This is why it’s so important that dementia be realistically portrayed to audiences.

At Varsity, we often don’t interact directly with individuals who have a dementia diagnosis, but the majority of the team has spent time in communities and with family members who have dementia. As an organization, we recognize the important of portraying the life cycle of a dementia diagnosis in a realistic and relatable way, especially through the marketing and advertising work that we do.

Sometimes, the “fresh perspective” isn’t the one that causes the greatest stir. From our experience, today’s freshest perspective about memory support and dementia is a realistic one that focuses on the life yet to be lived, not the eventual challenges down the road.

Sources:

https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/facts-figures

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alzheimer%27s_disease_in_the_media

One question that we continue to get here at Varsity surrounds the naming, values and visuals of not-for-profit aging services providers. For the last several decades, the gold standard in this space was created by faith-based senior living organizations that had strong ties to churches and other religiously affiliated groups. Over the last few years, we’ve seen the identify of faith-based communities come into question.

Some providers have doubled down on their faith connections, embracing their history and including specific language in their mission, vision and values to communicate their dedication to faith-based principles. On the other hand, other providers have been slowly stripping away the overt references to faith, concerned that they might drive away residents that don’t share those same values (even if they aren’t required to subscribe to said faith in order to reside at the community). The fear that faith-based language and iconography could be costing communities residents is very real. While, on the other side of the coin, the fear of losing donor dollars from strong, faith-based donors ensures that others stay the course and lean firmly on their core values.

This led us to wonder — What effect is faith having on provider perception, and where might this trend be going in the future?

It’s no secret that religious affiliation has been on the decline in the United States. In Pew’s religious landscape study, which surveyed more than 35,000 Americans of all demographics, found that 22.8 percent of respondents identified as unaffiliated with any religious tradition at all. If we were to view that number in light of demographics, we can learn even more. Seventeen Baby Boomers (aged 50 to 64) report that religion isn’t important in their lives, with 34 percent saying they attend religious services only sporadically, and 28 percent reporting they “seldom” attend services at all. If one were to compare the Baby Boomers to Generation X or Millennials, Boomers and seniors would appear positively pious, as religious participation takes a nosedive within these demographics. Based on Pew’s findings, it would seem that being faith-based might not carry the weight it once did when someone shopped for a community.

Yet many entrance-fee, faith-based senior living organizations provide one critical service that very few others do: security. Namely, these organizations usually have a safety net in place so that, if a resident suddenly runs out of funds, he or she won’t be forced to leave the community. This kind of support is usually funded through giving programs that utilize the faith-based network that a community is tied to as a major source of giving. According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy, 65 percent of Americans who claim a religious affiliation give to charity, compared to just 56 percent of those who don’t identify with a faith tradition. Interestingly, the same study found that 73 percent of all charitable giving went to either congregations or religiously affiliated charities. Secular charities only accounted for 27 percent of giving.

It’s clear that, when it comes to philanthropy, being affiliated with a religious organization is likely to significantly increase the dollars that are coming through the door; however, with the upcoming generational shifts in belief and religious affiliation, we are forced to wonder if this tradition of giving will continue. Will Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials be just as inclined to give to faith-based charities, or will they rebel against them (and the bad press they have been recently receiving) and give to more secular causes? Only time will tell.

As we speak to aging services providers who are struggling with this problem, we find that there are no clear answers. What is right for a community in the upper Midwest may not be good for a community in southern California or on the Florida coast. Understanding local demography and perceptions around faith tends to provide the best insight into the direction an organization should face.

Regardless of which way providers choose to go today, there’s sure to be continued debate about whether faith affiliation is a hindrance or help in our space. We anticipate this discussion continuing for the next decade, when it will be decided by leading-edge Gen-Xers who will vote with their dollars when moving into a community.

Sources:

http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/attendance-at-religious-services/

https://www.philanthropy.com/article/Religious-Americans-Give-More/153973

Do you know what the world’s best-selling album is?

Up until early-September 2018, it was Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” A masterpiece of modern musical artistry, few thought it would be dethroned anytime soon. Then, something unexpected happened: Baby Boomers started buying one of their favorite records — “Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975)” by the Eagles. Suddenly, the King of Pop found himself dethroned by Don Henley and his crew.

It’s been said that musical tastes are solidified in your early 30s. Whatever music you are jamming to during that phase of your life will probably become your sound for decades to come. For Baby Boomers, this means that Paul McCartney, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, the Bee Gees, Queen and the Who (just to name a few) are most likely responsible for the tunes that most Boomers enjoy. This probably isn’t a surprising idea, but for retirement communities, it can open up a whole new world.

Often, we encounter senior living organizations that want to recruit from the youngest demographic of Baby Boomers — and for good reason! They have plenty of income, will probably be stable residents once they move in and lend an air of vibrancy with their presence. Yet, when we look at the events that communities are using to attract these types of buyers, we find a disconnect. Swing music and big-band acts top the event circuit, when in reality, a Chicago cover band might be more in order.

It’s an important question to ask yourself — are you tailoring your events to the residents that you want, or are you creating events for the residents that are showing up? It’s a “chicken-egg” question, for sure. As senior living marketing professionals, we have to keep our communities filled and functional, so taking a chance on an act or event that appeals to a younger crowd — which might take longer to make a buying decision — can be a hard choice.

We’re not saying that you must change your event plans overnight; rather, we’re advocating for you to think of the big picture. In three to five years, how will your community be engaging with Boomers? What music is playing when they come in the door? Are the activities appealing to the right age demographic? It’s easy for us to get stuck in our day-to-day roles and suddenly find ourselves unable to step back and look ahead.

Source

https://musicmachinery.com/2014/02/13/age-specific-listening/

The 2018 LeadingAge Tennessee Annual Conference & Vendor Showcase is now in the books, and it was a great event. Gwyn Earl and her team deserve major kudos for pulling off a fine event. We, at Varsity, were pleased to host the conference Lounge, as well as to exhibit during the Showcase. In between these times, we took the opportunity to check out some of the sessions and engage with our colleagues in the volunteer state. As is tradition here at Varsity, we’ve wanted to look back on three major themes we picked up from the event and share them with all of you who may not have been able to attend.

1. The need for conscious communication has never been greater.

For us, Dr. Donna Van Natten was an excellent addition to the conference line-up. She specializes in nonverbal communication and led a couple of sessions on that topic. Of course, the Varsity team made for easy pickings as she provided examples of both positive and negative nonverbal cues. While this information is great in the business world, it also has major applications for those working directly with residents. Being conscious of your nonverbal communication — and being able to read the nonverbal communication of others — could make the difference between a good interaction and a great one. When was the last time you thought about how the placement of a chair in the room could help someone make an important decision? Dr. Van Natten has, and her excellent session really made us think about our communication strategies.

2. The death of the dining room

Much discussion was had around changes to the dining experiences created by providers. One of this year’s LeadingAge TN Innovation Awards went to a provider that dramatically changed the dining experience for its residents. Gone was the dining room, institution meal trays and bland plate covers. The provider replaced this service with localized dining stations throughout the community, manned by chefs who prepared foods mere steps from residential areas. Now, residents wake up to the smell of bacon sizzling and warm maple syrup, completely changing how they dine. This is a trend that we are seeing nationwide, with more intimate and customizable dining experiences being provided to those in assisted living and higher levels of care. It’s heartwarming to see the changes developed in the independent living space being transferred to other campus areas, as well as the level of impact this is having on resident satisfaction.

3. Retirement as a destination

If you haven’t been to Nashville recently, you may be unaware of how much it has become a tourist destination. One of our Varsity team members described it as the Times Square of the South. This rang especially true as we heard stories from providers describing how new residents were moving great distances to a community in Tennessee. From the Northeast to Los Angeles, people are retiring to Tennessee in droves. While some of these people may not be moving directly into Life Plan Communities, many are opting for 55+ communities that could easily lead to a provider’s doorstep. Tennessee is an especially attractive place for retirement — warm summers, mild winters, beautiful scenery, thriving food scenes and fantastic entertainment options all combine for a great independent retirement lifestyle. This, coupled with the recent influx of young families to the area, could create a retirement boom as older adults decide to move closer to their younger family members. Many providers with which we work rely on the local community within 20 miles of their property for most of their new residents. However, if a campus is appropriately positioned, with some creative marketing, it could go from a regional provider to a national retirement destination.

Once again, we want to thank all of our friends for a great conference experience in Franklin, Tennessee, and we wish all the best to the providers of that great state as they continue to live “Life on Purpose” as members of LeadingAge.

Aging services marketing is becoming more sophisticated each day. Providers continue to add tools to their marketing toolboxes, including a plethora of new digital marketing options. From IP targeting to marketing automation and display retargeting, each of these tactics comes with benefits as well as costs. How well do you understand them?

Created by our in-house communications team, and based on real-world experience in managing digital marketing campaigns for aging services organizations, we believe this publication will be an excellent tool for you and your team to better understand the digital marketing options available to you.

What do you call a single-family, detached or semi-detached residence at your community? Is it a villa, a cottage, a townhouse or something else entirely? I’ve worked with aging services providers that have built homes that are exactly the same, in two different locations, calling them a villa in one community and a cottage in another. Outside of the physical location of the structures, they were identical in every way.

This led us to wonder ­— are we, as aging services marketers, confusing potential residents because of the language we use to describe our products?

Let’s go back to the basics. What’s the definition of each of these housing types? For the purpose of consistency, we’ll utilize dictionary.com as our point of reference for our definitions.

Villa — a country resident or estate; in British parlance, it can also denote a semidetached dwelling house, usually suburban

Cottage — a small, usually one-story, modest dwelling that could be owned or rented, sometimes as a vacation home

Townhouse — a house in the city, especially as distinguished from a house in the country owned by the same person; one of a row of houses joined by common sidewalls

Condominium — an apartment house or other multi-residence complex in which the residences are individually owned but with shared responsibility for common areas

Bungalow — a cottage of one story; popular during the first quarter of the 20th century, usually having one and a half stories, a widely bracketed gable roof and a multi-windowed dormer, frequently built of rustic materials

Mew(s) — a place of retirement; chiefly British; a street having small apartments

Carriage house — a small home, usually part of a larger estate, adjacent to a main house

I’ve found all of these terms used to describe residences in one community or another. Objectively, many of these residences were very similar, the only major difference being whether they were detached residences or not.

Put yourself in the shoes of Boomer or seniors that are attempting to compare options and services. They may be trying to decide whether your 1,700-square-foot villa is comparable to another community’s 1,700-square-foot cottage. Or maybe they are considering a 1,200-square-foot carriage house or townhouse. Do the descriptors “cottage” or “bungalow” equate to “small” in their minds, or does “villa” make them think of a memorable trip to Tuscany? The sheer brainpower it takes to sift through all of the options could be staggering.

Throughout the years, branding has shown us that the best-selling products are those that can be described simply and that can easily show their value. Can you say that about the residence mix at your community? Perhaps your community isn’t even the challenge, but other campuses surrounding yours are using different language in an attempt to position themselves in the market. How could this trend be helping or hurting your marketing efforts?

This post is somewhat rhetorical. We don’t have a succinct answer to the problem; rather, we want to ask the question and start a conversation. How much does the language we use matter? Does it create confusion in the marketplace simply because we want to make a product sound more appealing? What will we be calling our senior living residences of the future?

All I know is that, as long as I’m not living in a tiny house, I think I’ll be okay.

Over the last week, we’ve heard reported the deaths of several celebrities who chose to take their own lives. One of the highest profile of these was Anthony Bourdain, famed chef and world traveler. He was 61 years old, squarely placing him in the Baby Boomer demographic. From early reports we’ve received, few people knew of Bourdain’s struggles with mental health. This highlights an issue in the world of aging services, and it is one we often do not like to talk about — the mental health of our Boomers and seniors.

An April 2016 issue of The Week magazine sums it up concisely, with a headline blaring “U.S. suicides have reached 30-year high, led by Baby Boomers.” The article notes that Americans age 45 to 64 have shown a massive increase in suicides, with women’s rates jumping 63 percent, while men climbed 43 percent. The author further notes that the Boomer generation has always suffered from abnormally high suicide rates, so it should come as no surprise that this trend has continued as they age.

Scientists and researchers, noticing this alarming surge in self-harm, started to research the root causes affecting Boomers. In a 2015 article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Dr. Katherine Hempstead and Dr. Julie Phillips released the results of their study on this phenomenon. Their review of the data showed that suicide in the Boomer population tended to occur for a combination of three reasons.

1. External circumstances, such as the loss of a job, a personal financial crash or legal distress. They further discovered a correlation between the Great Recession of 2008 and Boomer suicide rates, which makes sense, as Boomers were unduly impacted by the 2008 financial crisis.
2. Boomers are feeling a loss of power as their generation leaves the boardroom and the workforce, which has been such a defining factor in their lives. Aging out of the workforce also means lower income, which for many Boomers can lead to credit and financial difficulties.
3. Last, and most pointedly to us, is the issue of retirement. As people age into their 50s and 60s, they suddenly realize that they haven’t saved properly for retirement. The stress of financial instability and the thought that some might never retire can certainly cause some extreme feelings of helplessness.

This begs the question: What can we, as aging services providers, do to help keep our residents mentally healthy? The best place to start is to simply talk openly and honestly about the issue. Remember — Boomers come from a generation in which mental health issues were stigmatized. The first step in bringing about awareness is to engage your residents on the topic. Ask them how they are doing, and listen to their responses with empathy. When they do share a concern, respond with reassurance and hope. If there is an available resource for support, put them in contact with that help. Finally, after your initial conversation, stay engaged. By building a long-standing relationship with a resident, you’re more likely to notice changes in his or her mental condition.

Coming to grips with Boomer suicide can be difficult. For younger people, Boomers often appear to be on top of the world. They have money, great careers, families and can soon retire from the workforce to pursue their passions. However, just under the surface, are issues that people don’t realize — a failure to adequately save funds, the death of loved ones, declining health and more. We, as a society, must face down our stigma of mental health among aging populations and provide them with the support they need.

Anthony Bourdain said, “I have the best job in the world. If I’m unhappy, it’s a failure of imagination.” Did his imagination fail him, or did we, as a society?

Sources:

http://theweek.com/speedreads/620136/suicides-have-reached-30year-high-led-by-baby-boomers

https://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(14)00662-X/pdf?code=amepre-site

Your elderly widower neighbor, Mr. Johnson, has always been a jovial and social member of the community. About a year ago, he had a stroke that took its toll, but after a couple of months, he seemed to bounce back and was living in his home as usual again.

Last month, you noticed a pink slip taped to his door that was warning of his electric being shut off for nonpayment. Come to think of it, you haven’t seen him in a couple of weeks. That’s when you realize that his mailbox is stuffed to the gills and overflowing. You knock on his door, and he comes to greet you, smiling as always.

When you inquire about the slip and the mail, he tells you that his children are handling all of those items for him now, so he’s just leaving them in place until his daughter comes to visit next week. When you ask him if he needs any help around the house, he politely rejects your offer, saying that he has it under control. He points to his cat and remarks how chubby he is getting from being well-fed. He assures you that everything is fine and seems to genuinely appreciate your visit. You walk away from the house, feeling confident that Mr. Johnson is okay. Little do you know, he’s in an abusive situation because of self-neglect.

Elder abuse is a serious topic that aging services organizations have invested millions of dollars in preventing. They’ve trained their staff and volunteers to look for signs of abuse and actively report any issues that may arise. The culture around abuse has changed for the better, and older adults are living longer, happier lives because of it. Yet, there is still one area of elder abuse that we can’t seem to get our hands around: self-neglect.

A 2014 survey conducted by the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers found that self-neglect among seniors was the most common form of non-financial elder abuse/neglect. Everyone knows to look out for signs of physical, sexual and even financial abuse among those they care for, but self-neglect can be a bit harder to spot and is easily written off as a personal or lifestyle choice rather than a form of abuse.

So, when does self-neglect rise to the level of truly being abuse that should be reported by a caregiver? Here are six signs to watch out for, as reported in the study:

1. A decline in personal hygiene, such as unkempt hair, failure to bathe regularly and inability to keep up with basic grooming habits
2. Failure to take medication on time and on schedule
3. Malnutrition or dehydration
4. Unsanitary living conditions
5. Inability to meet financial deadlines, such as unpaid bills, shut-off utilities, etc.
6. Weight loss, especially in light of food insecurity in the home

These signs all seem like they’d be very obvious to an outsider providing care, yet in practice, the signs can be much harder to spot, as the opening story illustrates.

We encourage everyone who is working in the aging services space to always remember to be on the lookout for signs of self-neglect, as they can occur both in the home and in retirement communities.

Sources:

http://www.asaging.org/blog/elder-self-neglect-growing-and-largely-hidden-problem

Life Plan Communities (sometimes known as CCRCs) have blossomed in popularity in recent decades. By providing a continuum of care that offers security and peace of mind, these organizations are appealing to a wider range of ages than ever before. Many of our partners are marketing to individuals in their early 60s while still caring for residents nearing their centenary celebration (and beyond). This trend creates a unique situation where people of very different ages and generations are residing in these communities.

Think about it for a second — people who are neighbors in your community may easily have an age difference of 20 to 30 years. Certainly, the cultural and generational differences between these individuals are going to play a role in how they interact with and perceive your campus. This isn’t likely to change, either. In the future, we could easily find ourselves working in communities that have Millennial, Gen X and Boomer residents all under one roof. Whenever you gather people with such diversity, conflicts will naturally occur. One of the issues that we’ve identified as a growing trend is resident-on-resident ageism.

Ageism seems to be a problem that starts subtly but can grow into a cancerous blight on the spirit of your community. It may first emerge as something that looks like convenience: Older residents dine earlier or use the pool at different times than younger residents. What begins as a solution to scheduling can deepen into a major divide. Soon, younger residents don’t want to go to dinner too early because they are avoiding dining with “those old people.” More than once, we’ve heard an able-bodied, young resident question a sales person as to why he or she allowed a frail, older resident to move in. Suddenly, your younger residents have become condescending to people older than them, not because of overt disrespect, but from living a separated life within the community.

Unfortunately, more often than not, we as marketers and community operators are responsible for some of these issues. When creating marketing materials, we eschew individuals who use mobility devices in favor of younger, more active residents. Why wouldn’t we? That’s the market we are trying to attract, right? Yet, we’ve heard from current residents of the alienation they feel when they see shiny new pamphlets that fail to accurately represent the community.

Once, we were on a photo shoot, taking pictures of model residents. A current resident approached us and dressed us down for lying to our consumers, saying that these “young” people were fake and not an accurate depiction of life in the community. Here, we find an older resident displaying negative behaviors toward someone she perceived as being younger and who didn’t represent her life or values.

Another great example can be found in resident “ambassador” programs. These initiatives are a great idea and often come from a desire to connect new residents with established community members who can help them transition into community life. Yet, when we are picking these ambassadors, what do we do? Of course, we pick the young, active members of the community. What message might this send, though?

Here in the Varsity office, we have several team members whose own families reside at retirement communities. One mother was serving as a resident ambassador for her community. She loved the position, and it gave her an outlet for energy; yet, within the last six months, she hasn’t been called upon as much to help out. When she inquired why, she learned that several other residents had expressed concerns that she was too old for the job and that her age wasn’t a good representation of the community. One can only imagine how dejected and unvalued she felt.

We all must realize that this kind of subtle discrimination and ageism happens in a myriad of ways in communities every day. Rarely does it come from a truly negative place; rather, it’s natural for mankind to create groupings that form out of mutual interests. Unfortunately, these groups also immediately create an “other” — people who are outside of the crowd and who don’t feel welcome.

Sadly, there’s no magic bullet to fix this kind of issue. As we’ve demonstrated, it can even be challenging to realize that resident-on-resident ageism is happening in the first place. We encourage you to take a look at your programs and policies and ensure that they aren’t endorsing subtle resident-on-resident ageism. What may be challenging changes now could prove to be a boon to your organization in the future.

Over the holidays, the Varsity team was saddened to learn of the passing of our colleague, Sal J. Molite Jr.

Sal had served as the president of Edenwald Communities in Towson, Maryland, since 1988. His passion and dedication for the aging services industry was well known, and he was respected as a leader, serving as a mentor to many. He served as the chairman of MANPHA and was honored with the prestigious Chairman’s Award.

Edenwald was as much a part of Sal as he was a part of the community. His desire to keep the campus modern and fresh has been an important part of the organization’s success. Sal treated his team members like family and always reminded them of the importance of the mission. His favorite question was, “Why are we here?”

A family man, Sal was a devoted husband to Diane and dedicated father to Chris Nick. His proudest accomplishment was becoming a grandfather to Grace, Zachary, Dominic and Rocco.

We at Varsity extend our deepest condolences to Sal’s family and the Edenwald organization. He was a true friend and colleague that always made us strive to do better.

Requiescat in pace