Elevate Eldercare

High school junior Eli Grundy has been immersed in eldercare for as long as he can remember, thanks to his parents: One of his moms is the administrator of the Spearly Center, a unique skilled nursing community in Denver, and the other works for the Alzheimer's Association.

At age 12, Eli followed in his moms' footsteps and started as an activities volunteer at the Spearly Center – so when he turned 16, the decision to earn CNA certification was the logical next step.

Eli sits down with CFI's Penny Cook to talk about his decision to serve elders at such a young age, as well as the steps providers and policymakers can take to make the profession more attractive for his generation.

Learn more about the Green House-Pioneer alliance under CFI: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/

Explore the Spearly Center: https://junipercommunities.com/community/juniper-village-at-the-spearly-center/

Save the date for the first annual CFI conference, July 23-26 in Pittsburgh: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2023-conference/

"Elevate Eldercare" often welcomes academic researchers from across the aging field, but Anne Basting is the first English professor to sit down behind our mics.

Basting is a firm believer in the power of art and creativity as a medium of communication and connection for people living with dementia. From putting on a production of the ancient story of Ulysses at a long-term care community to conducting storytelling sessions for elders over phone lines during COVID, Basting sees the extraordinary potential of people to keep learning, growing, and creating at any age.

Join us for a powerful conversation on empowering elders, families, and caregivers with the universal language of art.

Learn more about the Center for Innovation: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/

Explore Anne Basting's bio and projects: https://www.anne-basting.com/

Connect with TimeSlips: https://www.timeslips.org/

Watch Anne's TEDMED talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liqQDDfhFXQ

The new year year kicked off with another report analyzing the failures of the nursing home system during COVID-19, this time from the HHS Office of the Inspector General. But while understanding the mistakes of the past is important, the time for retrospective reports has long since passed – and policymakers have the tools to effect real change today.

Join CFI communications director Alex Spanko and health care policy expert Anne Montgomery for a conversational look at a variety of evidence-based solutions to the problems that plague eldercare in America, from HUD lending changes to a federally authorized person-centered care pilot program.

If you've ever felt anger or frustration at the way nursing homes are run or overseen, tune in for fuel for your next conversations with lawmakers, policymakers, provider peers, and other changemakers!

Read the OIG report: https://oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/OEI-02-20-00491.pdf

Read CFI's response to the OIG report: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/press-releases/as-oig-calls-for-significant-changes-to-nursing-homes-small-homes-are-the-answer/

Every Green House community is different, from the people who call it home to the surrounding neighborhood and landscape.

At Londonderry Village in Palmyra, Pa., outside of Hershey, the Green House homes come with the wafting smell of chocolate, an intergenerational play park, and people-powered vehicles known as trishaws.

We sit down with Londonderry Village president Jeff Shireman to discuss how he transformed his vision for Green House homes in the fields of Palmyra into a decades-strong reality – including a fiscally responsible board that won't allow anyone to move out for financial reasons, and dedicated caregivers empowered to make elders feel truly at home however possible, whether it's kibbitzing over tea, ordering in takeout on birthdays, or taking a trishaw ride through the snow.

Explore Londonderry Village's intergenerational play park: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/blog/community-intergenerational-playground-sparks-joy-and-builds-memories/

Learn more about the Center for Innovation: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/podcast/

The Moving Forward Coalition launched with a clear but ambitious goal: Operationalize the host of recommendations from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's (NASEM) 2022 report on the state of nursing home care.

This week, we welcome Moving Forward leaders Alice Bonner and Isaac Longobardi to talk about the group's mission and work, and how everyone in long-term care – from residents to caregivers to family members to policymakers to academics and everyone in between – can get involved and make their voices heard.

We'll take a particular dive into the four main themes of the coalition's work:

1. Resident-Directed Care: A holistic care model that puts goals, preferences, and priorities first
2. Workforce: A workforce pipeline built with federal, state, and other resources
3. Financing: Incentives to build small homes and improve direct care wages
4. Accountability: Accountability for all parts of the eldercare system, including both providers and government actors

Learn more about how you can get involved with the Moving Forward Coalition: https://movingforwardcoalition.org/

Learn more about CFI and our 2023 conference: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2023-conference/

The past year brought significant momentum for real eldercare reform, and the year ahead promises even more progress toward our goal of overhauling the long-term care system in the U.S. and abroad.

We've gathered a group of CFI leaders – CEO Susan Ryan, chief culture officer Penny Cook, strategic advisor Ann Montgomery, and communications director Alex Spanko – to discuss the trends that will shape the LTC sector in the year ahead, from a predicted nursing home sell-off to the fate of strong reform proposals on the federal and state levels.

Join us as we break out the crystal ball and plot a course for 2023 and beyond!

Learn more about the Center for Innovation: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/

Dr. Michael Wasserman's unique combination of professional experience makes him one of the most incisive voices in the long-term care reform space: As both a trained geriatrician and the former leader of California's largest nursing home chain, Wasserman can speak to both the medical and financial problems baked into the eldercare system.

He joins Penny Cook to share his vision for a person-centered care revolution in geriatrics, passionately arguing that a one-size-fits-all approach to health care – and particularly eldercare – has done more harm than good. As Wasserman puts it, if you've seen one 90-year-old woman, you've seen one 90-year-old woman; each elder has their own set of health challenges, goals, and support systems, and geriatricians must understand each person before they can provide truly high-quality care.

Read the American Geriatrics Society's definition of person-centered care: https://agsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jgs.13866

Learn more about the Center for Innovation: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/

It's been a momentous year for The Green House Project and Pioneer Network, as the two organizations formally united under the new Center for Innovation banner.

Three CFI leaders – CEO Susan Ryan, chief culture officer Penny Cook, and chief learning officer Marla DeVries – look back on a year that saw the culture change movement gain even more power and influence among operators and policymakers.

The executive team also dives into a 2023 that's shaping up to be the most impactful yet for the Green House and Pioneer missions, from the 20th anniversary of the first Green House homes to the first CFI conference in Pittsburgh to a new e-learning platform set to debut early next year.

The entire CFI team wishes you a warm, happy, and healthy holiday season, with special greetings to the caregivers who continue to work around the clock, no matter the date, to support elders and people with disabilities.

For more information on the new CFI: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/

Go inside the new e-learning platform and sign up for updates: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/elearning/

Reach out to Penny Cook with questions, comments, and suggestions for the new alliance: pcook at https://thegreenhouseproject.org/

Part of the enduring stigma surrounding dementia is the collective misconception that a diagnosis means the end of someone's life – or at least the end of a person's ability to contribute to society.

Bobby Redman turns that notion on its head, living on her own and serving as an advocate for the entire community years after her diagnosis with frontotemporal dementia. In this episode, Redman shares the strategies that she's developed to not just survive but thrive as an independent person with dementia, from both low- and high-tech supports around the house to her work with Dementia Australia.

Ending stigma and discrimination isn't easy, but Redman provides a clear blueprint for the future.

Learn more about the Center for Innovation, the new home of The Green House Project and Pioneer Network:

Explore resources from Dementia Australia: https://www.dementia.org.au/

In Lynne Sewell's telling, her husband Rick seems almost larger than life, trotting the globe with his family as his job in technology took him from their home in Australia to Europe, Asia, and North America – winning friends and professional admiration at every stop along the way.

But when Rick was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and aphasia, their lives entered a challenging new phase. Lynne joins "Elevate Eldercare" to share stories from her years as a caregiver and fierce advocate for her husband.

With both humor and vulnerability, Lynne tracks her winding journey through the care system and offers advice for others in similar situations – ultimately proving that while caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia is often frustrating and lonely, there are people around the world with their own universal experiences to share.

Learn about Australia's approach to dementia support from Dementia Australia: https://www.dementia.org.au/

Learn more about the Center for Innovation, the new home of The Green House Project and Pioneer Network: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/pioneer-alliance/