McKnight's Podcast

Liz Fandel, chief marketing and innovation officer of FellowshipLIFE, shares thoughts about the changing expectations of senior living residents and prospective residents, ways that providers are marketing to them and their families, ideas for improving those efforts, and more.

Providers who’ve been waiting on the sidelines in a lending environment that felt nearly impossible are already coming to the table, ready to make new deals, after the Federal Reserve made its first rate cut in four years on Sept. 18.

That’s the report from Tami Antebi, the New York-based senior vice president and head of healthcare for global bank BHI.

“They’ve been looking forward for the last year for these cuts to come,” Antebi says during this episode, recorded live at the National Investment Center for Seniors Care & Housing’s 2024 Fall Conference in Washington, DC.

“It’s a really positive improvement. A lot of deals that didn’t make sense before are going to be making more sense,” Antebi tells McKnight’s Long-Term Care News Senior Editor Kimberly Marselas. “Things that they couldn’t do, like construction, people may pick up and do those types of deals.”

But not everything will change at once, Antebi notes. Take a listen to discover which loan products might be more affordable most quickly, and how to work with lenders as the deep freeze on many traditional bank loans begins to thaw.

Darcy Santos, national director of resident programming for Five Star Senior Living, has spent the past five years fostering meaningful connections with residents and teams across the country through Five Star’s EPIC Living program. The holistic program, inspired by four dimensions of wellness — emotional, physical, intellectual, community — helps older adults manage changes and prevent common age-related health issues.

Long-term care providers and others have felt the sting of False Claims Act litigation more than they ever cared to through the years, but now there’s a new, even more potent “whistleblower” program that could produce even more aggressive legal problems for providers.

It’s called the Corporate Whistleblower Awards pilot program and it started quietly in August. Despite the “pilot” in its name, one expert warns the label merely means federal officials are in the process of honing it to make it even more polished and lethal by the time it comes to determine whether to make it permanent.

Paul Werner, a principal attorney with Buttaci, Leardi & Werner, explains that the new pilot is being conducted under the auspices of the Criminal DIvision of the US Department of Justice. It is “quite a bit more” than the False Claims Act, he says, for a couple of reasons. First, it doesn’t limit its scope to federal healthcare payers and second, it focuses on allegations in a criminal — as opposed to civil — light.

“I think anything the government openly describes as a ‘bounty program’ should be concerning to anybody,” Werner tells McKnight’s Executive Editor James M. Berklan in this McKnight’s Newsmakers podcast.

A veteran provider defense attorney who has dealt with various federal agencies for years, Werner delves into nuances of the new program especially pertinent for long-term care providers. He details who might be most likely targeted, and how, as well as how providers can steer clear of prosecution. He also discusses when the first accusations probably will be announced, making this a must-listen episode for anyone working in the sector.

Debra Whitman, executive vice president and chief public policy officer at AARP, discusses her new book, “The Second Fifty: Answers to the 7 Big Questions of Midlife and Beyond,” and the messages it has for senior living providers and others. Among the insights she shares are those related to her experience with assisted living through her father-in-law, tackling workforce issues, older adults' financial security — or lack of it, and the benefits of bringing several generations together.

Ole Lindbo, regional director of operations at The Springs Living and National Center for Assisted Living state leader for the state of Washington, shares how The Springs Living and other providers are observing National Assisted Living Week as well as discusses what attracted him to senior living, the ways he has seen the field change over the course of his career, the biggest opportunities and challenges facing providers, and his thoughts on what the future holds.

Libby Care Center of Cascadia in Libby, MT, didn’t necessarily have a wide choice of psychiatrists to turn to when leaders decided to focus on lowering antipsychotic use among residents.

So CEO Rachel Toland and her team turned to telehealth, a solution that has helped to bring in resources more quickly, manage behaviors without unnecessary medications, improve a key quality indicator and keep residents in their local community.

“It really allowed us to be able to manage patients or residents that we in the past maybe wouldn't be able to consider simply because getting those services would have been difficult,” Toland told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News Senior Editor Kimberly Marselas.

That’s just one of the many quality initiatives undertaken by Libby, one of two winners of the 2024 Gold – Excellence in Quality Award from the American Health Care Association/ National Center for Assisted Living.

Libby, which advances to Gold after winning silver and bronze in 2023 and 2022, respectively, is also focused on staff training and consistency of care for residents.

In this episode, Toland shares how Cascadia supports efforts to imbue quality in a building’s culture, unfolds her team’s roadmap to success and reveals their plans to keep pressing forward.

In this episode, we explore the transformative potential of technology in augmenting staff efficiency in long-term care facilities. As the industry navigates staffing challenges, innovative solutions are being deployed to support caregivers, streamline operations, and enhance resident outcomes. Jim and Bharat welcome Dr. Dustin Feld, Head of Technology Innovation at MEDIFOX DAN to discuss practical applications of technology in areas such as onboarding and care coordination. Additionally, they address critical issues surrounding data privacy and regulatory compliance and provide guidance on what to look for when implementing new technologies to ensure they enhance, rather than replace, staff roles.

PHOENIX — Never has networking been more important for skilled nursing operators, especially given the seismic shifts happening thanks to a rush of post-pandemic mergers and acquisitions.

Hersch Krohner, founder and CEO of eCap, recently talked with McKnight’s Long-Term Care News about his vision for his organization’s skilled nursing events and the future of the industry as regional operators begin to dominate.

“Face-to-face networking has always been a pillar for leaders to really engage, interact and build relationships,” Krohner told McKnight’s Senior Editor Kimberly Marselas at eCap West this summer. “By creating an environment [where] people can really connect and interact in a more organic way, by having that in-person interaction … that’s never going to be replaced by something like an email or a Zoom, and especially when times are tough.”

Learn more about eCap’s events, attendees and opportunities in this quick and engaging episode.