Wendy Strain

Director of Consulting
Polaris Group
Tampa, FL
  • 84-G. Operationalize ADR Management to Protect Your Resources

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    84-G. Operationalize ADR Management to Protect Your Resources

    Nursing homes and post-acute care providers face heightened scrutiny when Medicare and other payers issue Additional Documentation Requests (ADR) or conduct targeted medical reviews and post-payment audits. Delays in responding to these requests can lead to improper payment findings against the provider. This session will help leaders shift from reactive, one-claim-at-a-time ADR responses to a structured, collaborative approach. Presenters will outline common review triggers, explain how documentation gaps and fragmented communication pose financial and compliance risks, and review each step of an ADR, from request through appeal. Learn how to operationalize ADR and denial management to support quality and financial stability.

  • 108-L. Identify and Address Risks Before the Survey Team Arrives

    • Wednesday, October 28, 2026

    11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

    108-L. Identify and Address Risks Before the Survey Team Arrives

    The survey environment for long-term care providers is growing more complex as federal and state agencies refine guidance, raise expectations, and adjust priorities. This complexity often turns annual recertification and complaint surveys into disruptive, high-stress events that expose gaps in practice, documentation, and oversight. Using QAPI as a framework, this session will equip organizational leaders with the tools to stay survey-ready every day. Presenters will review emerging national and state survey trends and highlight common citations and surveyor priorities. They’ll show you how to focus on high-risk processes, develop performance improvement projects, and monitor corrective actions. You’ll get the support you need to build day-to-day practices that identify and address risks before the survey team arrives.

Kelly Stranburg

Vice President of Healthy Aging and Longevity
Westminster Communities of Florida, Inc.
Orlando, FL
  • 116-H. Measuring the Impact of Resident Engagement

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    116-H. Measuring the Impact of Resident Engagement

    Older adults increasingly seek purpose, autonomy, and connection in their daily lives. Engagement activities in senior living communities must reflect these desires by moving beyond entertainment to include experiences that support physical, emotional, social, intellectual, and spiritual well-being. This session will explore shifting engagement preferences and introduce you to tracking and assessment methods for measuring the impact of engagement activities, demonstrating their value to stakeholders, and empowering staff to deliver more intentional, resident-centered experiences. You’ll leave with actionable strategies to reframe your engagement efforts, strengthen the link between programming and resident well-being, and communicate success in ways that resonate with stakeholders.

Brad Straub

President
Greystone
Irving, TX
  • 32-I. Build a Team That Outperforms Expectations

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    32-I. Build a Team That Outperforms Expectations

    Extraordinary outcomes depend on extraordinary teams, whether you’re leading an expansion, repositioning an existing campus, stabilizing occupancy, or launching a major operational initiative. This session tells the story of a life plan community that built a cross-functional team to deliver a successful expansion that many believed would not resonate with its intended audience. Presenters will describe how they improved performance across operations, culture, sales, brand, design, and development through strategic decisions, bold pivots, and mindset shifts that propelled a small nonprofit community to outsized success. You’ll walk away with a replicable framework for building team chemistry and enhancing execution, along with practical tips for shifting culture and inspiring optimism.

Janet Stringfellow

President & CEO
Volunteers of America Florida
St. Petersburg, FL
  • 14-B. Serving Aging Veterans: Let’s Close the Information Gap

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    14-B. Serving Aging Veterans: Let’s Close the Information Gap

    Nearly half of U.S. veterans are 65 or older. Yet most aging services professionals lack training to address this population’s unique needs, and aging-focused resources rarely address them. This session aims to fill those gaps. Presenters will explain how military culture, trauma, service-related injuries, and the complexity of benefit eligibility shape veterans’ needs as they age. They will also discuss cultural and trauma-informed approaches to supporting veterans across housing, health, and social-service settings, including a pilot program that helps high-acuity veterans with low incomes age in place. You’ll gain insights into the program’s implementation and early outcomes and take home lessons you can adapt to your care and service settings.

David Swartley

President & CEO
Unitas Communities
Lititz, PA
  • 31-H. Affiliation Strategies that Balance Autonomy with Collaboration

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    31-H. Affiliation Strategies that Balance Autonomy with Collaboration

    Affiliation can help nonprofit senior living organizations achieve long-term sustainability, foster innovation, and remain true to their core mission and values amid today’s operational challenges. This session will explore the affiliation process that united two life plan communities under a shared governance structure while preserving their individual identities. Presenters will outline steps for building a successful affiliation, including establishing a robust legal and governance framework, drafting bylaws that reflect shared values and priorities, and addressing board composition and responsibilities. Whether you’re considering affiliation, engaged in partnership talks, or refining an existing relationship, you’ll learn how to build an affiliation that promotes stability, improves services, and ensures long-term success.

Jacob Swint

Vice President of Strategic Growth and Operations Support
National Church Residences
Columbus, OH
  • 85-H. Primary Care Partnerships: How They Work, Why They Matter

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    85-H. Primary Care Partnerships: How They Work, Why They Matter

    Is your senior living organization aiming to improve residents’ health outcomes but unsure how to proceed? This session will offer a practical solution: establish a partnership with an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) and a primary care medical group to deliver enhanced clinical services to residents. Presenters will describe how their multisite organization’s primary care team partnered with an ACO to establish a Medicare Shared Savings Program. You’ll learn about the partnership’s operational and financial benefits, including better care, fewer avoidable hospitalizations, longer resident stays, and lower turnover. Discover how these partnerships work, why they matter, and the steps providers can take to implement them effectively.

Aisling Taft

Social Worker
Vermont Veterans’ Home
Bennington, VT
  • 109-A. Supporting Human Connection through Intimacy Policies

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

    109-A. Supporting Human Connection through Intimacy Policies

    Many organizations recognize the importance of honoring residents’ rights, yet few have clear guidelines for supporting intimate expression, especially when decision-making capacity is impaired. This session will introduce you to a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to developing an intimacy and sexuality policy. Presenters will highlight how one nursing home worked with a medical ethicist, staff, residents, and families to develop a framework that safeguards vulnerable adults while affirming their fundamental human need for connection, companionship, and intimate expression. You’ll take away information to help you support residents’ intimacy responsibly and compassionately, honor individual rights, and enhance overall quality of life, all while complying with regulations.

Jennifer Terray

Director of Nursing
LiveWell
Plantsville, CT
  • 117-I. From Fear to Action: Addressing the Root Causes of Dementia through Cognitive Wellness

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    117-I. From Fear to Action: Addressing the Root Causes of Dementia through Cognitive Wellness

    Dementia ranks among the most feared chronic conditions of later life. Yet emerging evidence suggests that up to 45% of dementia cases worldwide could be delayed or prevented by addressing its root causes. This session will focus on a Cognitive Wellness Clinic embedded in a senior living community specializing in dementia care. Presenters will describe how the clinic conducts early cognitive wellness assessments and provides clients with personalized recommendations to modify dementia-related risk factors and adopt lifestyle strategies that build confidence, engagement, and well-being. You’ll gain practical strategies for adapting this model within your organization and positioning aging services providers at the forefront of brain health innovation.

John Thorhauer

President and CEO
Glencroft Center for Modern Aging
Glendale, AZ
  • 137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    Looking for a housing option that meets older adults’ needs while attracting young workers to help them live independently? This session will introduce an intergenerational housing model that addresses the aging services workforce crisis, the affordable housing shortage, and the loneliness epidemic affecting young and old alike. Presenters will describe a unique intergenerational community model that provides affordable housing to older adults and hires young people who have “aged out” of the foster care system to work in the community. They’ll review market trends driving the growth of intergenerational living, its potential to strengthen your workforce, and architectural guidelines to help you bring this housing option to your campus.

Erica Thrash-Sall

CEO
Horizon House
Seattle, WA
  • 71-J. How to Succeed Even When Expansion Presales Disappoint

    • Wednesday, October 28, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    71-J. How to Succeed Even When Expansion Presales Disappoint

    A solid reputation, high occupancy, and a long waitlist won’t guarantee presales success for your next major expansion. That’s the lesson of this session, which will tell the story of a successful life plan community whose expansion stalled unexpectedly. Instead of giving up, the organization retrenched to update its brand, reposition all lead generation materials, and turbo charge sales. The retrenching culminated with a three-month plan to reach its financing goals. Representatives from the community and the firm will discuss how they assessed the root causes of underperformance, developed collaborative action plans aligned with financial goals, refreshed the community’s brand to showcase its unique selling points, and made other adjustments and tough decisions. This cautionary tale with a happy ending could help you succeed in the face of future disappointments.

Cynthia Thurlow Cruver

President
3rd3rd
Vashon, WA
  • 42-D. Underdog Strategies for Single-Site Life Plan Communities

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    42-D. Underdog Strategies for Single-Site Life Plan Communities

    To affiliate u2026 or not to affiliate? That is the question many single-site life plan communities are asking. This session will appeal to mavericks who prefer to remain independent yet recognize they must improve at every level to thrive in a consolidating market. Leaders from successful single-site communities will share how they resisted affiliation by strengthening operations, culture, and finances. They’ll also recommend strategies to keep communities stable and future-ready. Whether you’re committed to independence or considering affiliation, this session will offer fresh perspectives on how a strong single-site brand can enhance market perception, attract mission-aligned staff, and build trust among residents, prospects, and referral sources.

Jamie Timoteo

Partner
Plante Moran
Chicago, IL
  • 40-C. Strategic Growth and Entrance Fee Alignment

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    40-C. Strategic Growth and Entrance Fee Alignment

    Every life plan community strives to develop growth plans that support the organization’s mission while maintaining profitability and marketability. Presenters of this session will argue that independent living entrance fees pose significant risks to achieving those goals. They’ll outline the widening gap between entrance fees and replacement costs, evaluate the long-term risks of outdated pricing strategies, and offer approaches to adjusting those fees while overcoming internal and external resistance to price increases. You’ll gain additional strategies including phased development plans and creative financing to help you strengthen your financial position, ensure operational success, and align projects with the preferences of current and future consumers.