By Jack Cumming
If you’re of a certain age, you remember a time in the 1960s when the question, “What do women want?” was heard throughout the land. Women were asserting themselves, wanting equal rights and equal recognition. Many men of that era were puzzled. They couldn’t understand why women were restless.
Resident Realities
Today, it’s residents who leave providers puzzled. I thought of that not long ago when Bob Kramer posted a LinkedIn response to an earlier post by Dan Hutson. Both are men I respect. Bob Kramer founded the National Investment Center and has mentored many who are prominent in the industry. Dan Hutson is a much-admired thinker and writer on senior living.
The posts were about residents. Neither Bob nor Dan is a resident, though both may be age-eligible. Dan and Bob are right about many things, including the perspective that residents, in essence, hire senior living operators to provide the residents with benefits, including better lives than they would have otherwise. That simple turn of phrase, “Many baby boomers and Gen Xers will be hiring a senior living community in the coming years…”, is a change from how many in the industry think.
“Oh, To Be Seen and Heard”
It’s not marketing that fills those units, builds occupancy, and brings a revenue entitlement. Marketing is needed to midwife the transaction. But the better insight is that the providers are the servants of the residents, not their masters. What did women want? They wanted equality. What do residents want? They want equality. We can start there.
If residents want equality, and if providers are willing to give them equality, what would equality look like? It begins with mutual respect. Not long ago, I encountered an instance in which a key employee complained about a resident engagement application. Residents had taken the lead in bringing the application to the CCRC. Residents also play a key role in maintaining the platform and keeping it current.
Did the employee take her concerns to the residents who might have worked with her to resolve her issues? No, instead, she went to an employee in the distant corporate office with her concerns. Her reaction about where to turn reflects the corporate culture as it impacts that community. What do residents want? They want to be seen. They want to matter. They don’t want to be a nuisance that the corporate office keeps under control. That brings me to the question:
“What kind of residents would Dan and Bob be if they took the leap and moved into residence in a Life Plan Community (CCRC)?”
Unseen and Overlooked
Dan and Bob are both active advocates for senior living. It’s unlikely that they would quickly change their motivations if they were residents. They are also highly visible within the industry. How might they react if they were as invisible as most residents are? We don’t hear much from John Erickson, the developer, who is now a resident in one of the Erickson communities.
I can’t imagine that either Dan or Bob would be content to have “resident” be their primary identity. Perhaps that’s why neither of them has made the move. Bob Kramer closes his post by observing:
“Imagine a community that fails to nurture strength, purpose and belonging. The residents would feel they’re not able to learn anything, do anything new, contribute anything, or make a difference in somebody else’s life. It sounds miserable, because without those opportunities, what is there to live for?”
A Resident’s Response
Bob, speaking as a resident, I can assure you that many of us find our meaning outside of the CCRC that houses us. But not all of us. Some of us do live in communities like Goodwin Living, where residents are respected and included. John Knox Village in Pompano Beach, FL, is reputed to be another.
If you are working in senior living, you may welcome what Dan Hutson and Bob Kramer are sharing in this exchange. If senior living is no more than a livelihood opportunity for you, then you’re missing the calling that justifies the undertaking. Even though Bob and Dan don’t appear to be considering residency, they clearly view senior living as a calling. Treating residents as people just like you is a good place to start.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35
A Bright Future
As mentioned, there are a few communities that do treat residents as full citizens. Jill Vitale-Aussem is known for advocating for residents in her book, Disrupting the Status Quo of Senior Living: A Mindshift, and in her leadership. The emergence of co-housing, cooperative, and even condominium communities recognizes the wish of many residents to live full lives up until the time they can’t.
The Village Movement, too, reflects growing popular skepticism of the impression of senior living as a place where residents lose dignity and self-worth merely by becoming residents. The future is bright that residents in the not-too-distant future will have more meaningful residency choices than is the case today.
