Mary Ayala

Senior Program Director, National Initiatives
Enterprise Community Partners
Columbia, MD
  • 16-C. Preserving Owner-Occupied Homes with a Health Action Plan

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    4:00 – 5:00 p.m.

    16-C. Preserving Owner-Occupied Homes with a Health Action Plan

    Health Action Plans offer affordable housing developers an evidence-based process for embedding health-promoting features into the design of new housing or the repair of existing structures. This session will explore how six community-based organizations used these plans to address the health of older adults while repairing and modifying their homes. You’ll learn how to identify the health needs of older homeowners, ensure their full engagement in the home modification process, and work with design and public health partners to select healthy building materials. Presenters will describe Health Action Plans used to preserve owner-occupied housing in Michigan and Maryland. You’ll take home templates you can use to implement a Health Action Plan in your community.

Beryl Bannerman

Development Associate
HumanGood PA
Lafayette Hill, PA
  • 28-C. Leadership Diversity: Welcoming Young People of Color

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    4:00 – 5:00 p.m.

    28-C. Leadership Diversity: Welcoming Young People of Color

    Increasing the diversity of your leadership team can help your organization improve its workplace culture and bolster its success. This session will show you how to help younger people from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups understand the opportunities available to them in the field of aging services. Learn about LeadingAge initiatives that can help you recruit and retain a diverse team and build the leadership skills of team members once they are hired. Leaders of color will be on hand to share their experiences working in aging services and to offer advice for building a diverse leadership team by opening doors for younger people of color and providing the support they need for a long and fulfilling career in our sector.

Paul Barlow

Vice President of Sales & Marketing
Transforming Age
Bellevue, WA
  • 76-C. Drive Occupancy with Journey-Based Sales Enablement

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    4:00 – 5:00 p.m.

    76-C. Drive Occupancy with Journey-Based Sales Enablement

    Sales enablement is a strategic approach that uses information, tools, and relevant content to help sales teams sell more effectively. This session will illustrate why it’s essential for multisite aging services organizations to develop and implement an intentional sales enablement strategy focusing on the customer experience. Presenters will share best practices for providing high-value content that supports the customer journey at all phases and improves conversion using a playbook that can be assessed, measured, and optimized over time. Learn how to increase occupancy by building monthly content calendars focused on topics that will motivate your audiences, targeting marketing efforts to influencers like adult children, and using owned, earned, and paid media to create an ideal inbound experience for prospective residents.

Andy Barnett

CEO
Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity
Asheville, NC
  • 67-H. Building Housing and Engagement through Partnerships

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    67-H. Building Housing and Engagement through Partnerships

    When Deerfield Episcopal Retirement Community decided to build affordable housing in its hometown of Asheville, NC, it didn’t go it alone. Instead, Deerfield forged an innovative partnership with Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity. Together, the two organizations coordinated the construction of 10 safe, affordable, well-built homes that received global recognition for design excellence. This session will highlight Deerfield’s innovative collaboration, how that collaboration promoted volunteerism and intergenerational engagement, and how the partners plan to continue impacting the Asheville community. You’ll take home actionable strategies for replicating this successful program and exploring the advantages of intergenerational and interfaith collaboration.

Katy Barnett

Director, Home Care & Hospice Operations and Policy
LeadingAge
Washington, DC
  • 121-D. Care in the Community: Policy Changes and Opportunities

    • Monday, October 28, 2024

    8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

    121-D. Care in the Community: Policy Changes and Opportunities

    2024 has been a year marked by monumental Medicaid policy changes that will drive the priorities of state Medicaid programs for years to come. The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) continues to expand. The Medicare home health program remains a program in flux u2013 reimbursement and access challenges persist while demand increases, especially as people desire to age in community. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation launched the Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model, which aims to support people living with dementia and their unpaid caregivers. Federal policy to support family caregivers is gaining more attention than ever before. Learn everything you need to know about the community-based care ecosystem and what’s in store for 2025.

  • 132-I. Is Hospice Meeting Its Promise?

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    132-I. Is Hospice Meeting Its Promise?

    Hospice is a comprehensive, holistic program of care and support for terminally ill patients and their families. In recent years, the program’s original promise has been overshadowed by higher costs, bad actors, and consolidation. Is the hospice benefit still working for most Medicare beneficiaries? This session will answer that question by providing an update on Medicare payment and regulatory policies that shape the ability of hospices to care for older adults. Let the LeadingAge Policy Team brief you on their advocacy work related to hospice benefit reform, program integrity, and payment rules. Stay current on hospice-related activity in Congress and at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

  • 134-K. A New HOPE: Understanding the New Hospice Tool

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

    134-K. A New HOPE: Understanding the New Hospice Tool

    A New HOPE: Understanding the New Hospice Tool rnThe Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) tool, first announced in 2019, is now ready for implementation. During this session, the LeadingAge Policy Team and clinical specialists will walk you through the new HOPE tool so you’ll understand how it compares with the previous Hospice Item Set, and how the Hospice Quality Reporting Program (HQRP) is expected to change. Presenters will help you understand guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that will help you accurately collect required data for the reporting program. They’ll also use fun and challenging HOPE application scenarios to illustrate the tool’s rules. Join us and become masters of HOPE.

  • 135-L. Are You Ready to Implement New Hospice Program Changes?

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

    135-L. Are You Ready to Implement New Hospice Program Changes?

    Are you ready to implement changes to the new hospice program so you can avoid audits and survey deficiencies and ensure operational efficiencies? This session can help. Finance, compliance, and operations experts will examine current and future risks associated with reimbursement, audits, and staffing as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services implements the Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) tool. Don’t miss this chance to review critical steps hospices must take to stay ahead of the changes, such as improving workflow efficiencies to avoid difficulties implementing new regulatory requirements.

Kim Beasley

Director of Communications and Outreach
A.G. Rhodes Health & Rehab
Atlanta, GA
  • 113-I. Community Partnerships That Advance Person-Directed Care

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    113-I. Community Partnerships That Advance Person-Directed Care

    How can providers of aging services develop mutually beneficial community partnerships that enhance resident engagement, encourage team building, and expand volunteer opportunities? This session will show you how. Representatives of A.G. Rhodes in Atlanta, GA, will describe how they partnered with a youth development organization to create an intergenerational program that could fit any organization’s structure and goals. Presenters will identify factors that make for a thriving community partnership and offer tips for incorporating the principles of person-directed care into volunteer programs. You’ll be surprised by how you can enhance quality of life for residents and employees by being more intentional about forming meaningful partnerships with other community-based organizations.

Seth Beaver

Vice President of Community Operations
Kendal-Crosslands Communities
Kennett Square, PA
  • 86-A. Prison Break: Lessons in Emergency Preparedness

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

    86-A. Prison Break: Lessons in Emergency Preparedness

    In 2023, an escaped convict eluded authorities for weeks as he roamed Chester County, PA, the home of Kendal~Crosslands Communities. The life plan community found itself in the middle of the crisis when SWAT teams descended on its campus after the escapee was sighted nearby. This session will delve into critical aspects of emergency preparedness planning and how it can ensure a community’s safety during unexpected crises. Presenters will discuss the crucial role community leaders play during crises and provide insights into the importance of conducting risk assessments and paying attention to emerging threats. Find out how Kendal~Crosslands Communities navigated its 2023 crisis by establishing a command center, conducting ongoing communications, and depending on resident and staff resilience and teamwork.

Chad Bederka

Associate Principal
Hord Coplan Macht Architects
Baltimore, MD
  • 20-G. Back to School: Planning a Community for Future Consumers

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

    20-G. Back to School: Planning a Community for Future Consumers

    Broadview at Purchase College takes full advantage of its location on a sprawling college campus in upstate New York to offer residents access to myriad learning opportunities. But the life plan community has its own lessons to teach about how to incorporate the needs of tomorrow’s residents into today’s retirement communities. This session will focus on how developers used strategic planning, data analysis, market research, focus groups, and crowdsourcing to design a community that emphasizes intergenerational, life-long learning, and uses amenities and access to Purchase College’s 500-acre campus to enhance resident quality of life for residents from all income levels.

Daren Bell

Director
Ziegler
Chicago, IL
  • 21-H. A Community’s Journey from Master Plan to Implementation

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    21-H. A Community’s Journey from Master Plan to Implementation

    Expanding a life plan community requires a solid master plan that addresses the community’s design, logistics, costs, financing, and management. This session will describe the master planning process undertaken by Emerald Heights, a life plan community in Redmond, WA. Architecture, construction, and finance experts will join the community’s chief executive to discuss the planning timelines they created, financing options they pursued, key strategies they considered, and lessons they learned while bringing their community’s vision to life in the face of substantial challenges. Learn what it takes to look at the big picture while keeping an eye on the details that impact residents and operations.

Fred Bentley

Managing Director
ATI Advisory
Washington, DC
  • 88-B. Value-Based Care: Transforming Aging Services at the Bedside

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    2:30 – 3:30 p.m.

    88-B. Value-Based Care: Transforming Aging Services at the Bedside

    Medicare Advantage, accountable care organizations, and other value-based care payment models are playing a growing role in aging services. However, the aging services model must change significantly before providers can successfully transition from a volume-focused fee-for-service approach to one that supports prevention and population health management. This session will explore the policy, technology, and clinical changes necessary for a successful transition. Presenters will describe technologies that could enable providers of aging services to access real-time data and provide virtual access to specialty care, all at the bedside. They will also introduce you to the models and technologies that promise to transform care delivery, teach you about potential barriers to delivery system transformation, and give you reasons for optimism.

Sloan Bentley

President & CEO
Lutheran Life Communities
Arlington Heights, IL
  • 99-K. Cut Corporate Overhead with Outsourcing

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

    99-K. Cut Corporate Overhead with Outsourcing

    The survival of nonprofit providers depends on managing costs. Saving money starts in the corporate office. Multisite and single-site communities face tough decisions about managing overhead, and few feel comfortable placing the management cost burden on residents. This session will focus on outsourcing as a critical strategy to manage corporate expenses. The presenter will help you understand which corporate functions can be outsourced and how to create seamless partnerships with outsourcing partners that residents and team members will accept. They’ll also identify key outsourcing functions, the performance indicators required to manage those functions, and the challenges associated with this cost-saving option.

Michele Berardi

Senior Director, Communications and Public Relations
Kendal-Crosslands Communities
Kennett Square, PA
  • 86-A. Prison Break: Lessons in Emergency Preparedness

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

    86-A. Prison Break: Lessons in Emergency Preparedness

    In 2023, an escaped convict eluded authorities for weeks as he roamed Chester County, PA, the home of Kendal~Crosslands Communities. The life plan community found itself in the middle of the crisis when SWAT teams descended on its campus after the escapee was sighted nearby. This session will delve into critical aspects of emergency preparedness planning and how it can ensure a community’s safety during unexpected crises. Presenters will discuss the crucial role community leaders play during crises and provide insights into the importance of conducting risk assessments and paying attention to emerging threats. Find out how Kendal~Crosslands Communities navigated its 2023 crisis by establishing a command center, conducting ongoing communications, and depending on resident and staff resilience and teamwork.