Blackberries, Internet telechats with grandkids, a chance to go home:

Not Your Father's Nursing Home: Aging Baby Boomers May Return To A New Kind Of Campus Life As Senior Living Evolves

ALBANY, NY (05/11/2008)(readMedia)-- Baby Boomers who came of age on college campuses roiled by political tumult and sexual revolution may spend their golden years on a new kind of campus as nursing homes and other senior living facilities adapt to changing consumer demands, longer lives, and advances in health care, according to a leader of New York's nursing home industry.

"Today's nursing home residents want individualized care and lifestyle choices," said Richard Herrick, president of the New York State Health Facilities Association (NYSHFA). "They want more than bingo and pureed entrees. They want DVDs, Blackberries, and Internet video chats with their grandkids. And as senior facilities move more toward campuses with many lifestyle options, consumers are getting the choices they want."

Herrick's reflections were prompted by National Nursing Home Week (May 11-17). New York's nursing homes are planning different events around the state to give the public a look at these evolving facilities. (For information on events around the state, Contact Saleem Cheeks at 518-618-1512.)

How uses and perceptions of nursing homes are evolving

Herrick acknowledged that some people still see nursing homes as "old folks' homes where people go only for their final journey." But reality is much different.

For one thing, he said, "90 percent or more of people in nursing homes were referred by hospitals, and half of them will return home." Some of these are accident victims of any age; others are middle-aged people recovering from joint-replacement surgery "who can't wait to go home and get back on the golf course."

There was much less emphasis on this temporary, recuperative care as recently as the mid-1990s, Herrick said. The trend partly reflects reimbursements from both private and government-funded health insurance

programs, which encourage hospitals to provide acute care and move patients to nursing homes for recuperative care.

As more patients return home, Herrick added, perceptions of nursing homes are evolving. Of those who have been in nursing homes or had loved ones receive care there, 85 percent have positive feelings about those experiences and would recommend their facility to others.

Herrick said nursing homes have worked hard to earn that approval – by improving food, activities, the atmosphere and other services, for example.

"Hamburgers, French fries, prime rib, spaghetti and meatballs are among the offerings at today's facilities, and some will even send people out to get Subway sandwiches for their patients," Herrick said.

Demographic changes: Challenges and opportunities for nursing homes

As nursing homes have adapted to meet new demands, they have also adapted to new pressures created by demographic changes of an aging population, Herrick said.

Life expectancy has increased since 1900 from about 47 to 78 years by 2008, and the pace of gains is accelerating, Herrick said. As a result, the average age of nursing home patients is in the late 80s – despite the increase in younger, temporary patients, he added. One result: More pressure on nursing homes to care for patients with Alzheimer's Disease – simply because more Americans are living long enough to get it, Herrick said.

Many consumers in their 60s and 70s don't need the high levels of health care that nursing homes offer, but do want to join their peers who live in retirement communities or senior housing facilities, where senior-friendly golf courses are nearby and extra fees provide relief from chores like lawn care and cooking.

The market has responded to these changes in demographics and consumer demand by expanding the kinds of facilities available to aging consumers – and, in some cases, creating a new kind of senior campus in which all these facilities are available.

"This business model allows consumers to move from one facility to another without leaving their friends or suffering major lifestyle disruptions as their care needs increase or decrease," Herrick said.

What to look for in a nursing home

Herrick offered some advice to consumers considering their senior-living options:

  • Visit the facility and walk around. "Ask the same questions you'd ask for any home you might rent or buy," Herrick said.
  • Taste the food.
  • Look for evidence of a commitment to cleanliness.
  • Talk to the staff and ask yourself a fundamental question: "Are they friendly and caring?"
  • Check to see if the facility has access to the same things the individual enjoys at home now – access to television and DVDs, the Internet, and so on. "No one wants to give up the things they are used to," Herrick said.
  • Understand the different levels of care that different housing options provide. Among all the senior-living options, nursing homes offer the highest levels of health care.

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