35-P. Opening Doors to Aging Services

As the nation’s population grows older, and the number of family caregivers shrinks, the aging services sector has never been more important to the lives of Americans. Many families find themselves struggling to meet the needs of the older adults they love—but they don’t understand the array of services that our sector offers. LeadingAge’s new Opening Doors to Aging Services initiative provides first-of-its-kind research, strategies, tools, and training to effectively introduce the aging services sector to millions of Americans. Join this half-day intensive session for an in-depth exploration of the Opening Doors initiative. You’ll have the opportunity to strategize with fellow leaders, listen to a panel discussion with sector experts, and gain an inside look at a new, consumer-facing campaign designed to introduce the aging services sector to the public.

• Gwen Fitzgerald, Director, Public Messaging
• Susan Donley, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications
• Gail Hoffman, Consultant, Ward Circle Strategies
• Libbie Chapuran, Director of Communications, Vivie
• Jason Boxt, Principal, 3W Insights
• Nat Kendall-Taylor, Ph.D, Chief Executive Officer, FrameWorks Institute
• Donna Satterthwaite, Program Development Consultant, Reframing Aging Initiative, The Gerontological Society of America

1-A. Building Organizational Resilience Through Strategic Foresight

Build your organization’s resilience by getting comfortable with “strategic foresight,” a strategic process that helps leaders in the field of aging services anticipate changes in the future so that their organizations can take strategic action now. During this interactive session, an experienced strategy consultant will guide you through the process of choosing five critical emerging issues that present opportunities and threats to your organization and the field of aging services. You’ll experiment with tools that can help you imagine your organization’s preferred future and select key strategic actions to advance that future. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with other LeadingAge members while reflecting on the future and experimenting with a new approach to strategic planning.

• Olivia Mastry, Founder, The Collective Action Lab

2-A. Aligning Organizational Values and DEI: Challenges and Opportunities

The national focus on social justice has helped bring diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to the attention of aging services organizations. In response, a growing number of LeadingAge providers have launched initiatives to promote DEI. These efforts can present special challenges for mission and faith-based organizations that hold religious beliefs or follow traditions that may appear to conflict with some DEI principles. This session will highlight the ways in which some organizations are working to meet DEI-related challenges so they can live out a commitment to support older adults and team members, no matter what they look like or how they choose to live. Hear from leaders of faith- and mission-based organizations that are intentionally striving for a more inclusive culture. Review their successes and setbacks as they made changes to ensure that their organizational cultures embody a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Marsha Wesley Coleman, Senior Consultant, Praxis Consulting Group
• Mark Ricketts, Senior Advisor, National Church Residences
• Anita Holt, President/CEO, The Forest at Duke
• Nicole Gann, CEO/President, Juliette Fowler Communities – Senior Living
• Danielle Willis, Senior Vice President, Employee Engagement & Chief Diversity Officer, National Church Residences

3-A. Policy Priorities: Technology

The unprecedented challenges created by COVID-19 have underscored the important role that technology plays in the timely delivery of long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) to older adults. Access to this technology—including interoperable electronic health records, telehealth, and affordable broadband connectivity—has expanded considerably over the past two years, thanks to regulatory flexibility, emergency authorizations, and new funding opportunities. Yet, the LTPAC sector still struggles with technology access challenges. This session will examine those challenges and will explore needed legislation and regulations that could ensure that technology can continue to support service delivery well beyond the COVID-19 emergency. Discover the steps LeadingAge has taken to advocate for technology-related policies and learn how members from different care settings and business lines can advocate for the technology priorities most relevant to them.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• Andrea Price-Carter, Director, Workforce and Technology
• Juliana Bilowich, Senior Director, Housing Operations & Policy, LeadingAge

4-A. Pandemic Lessons: Legal Liability in a Health Emergency

Leaders of aging services organizations have a legal responsibility to ensure that their organizations remain compliant with federal laws and regulations. This is especially true during a public health emergency like the coronavirus pandemic. Presenters at this session will offer updates on legal issues that surfaced during the pandemic and will advise you on the changes you should implement to align your organization with the current pandemic landscape. Join us for an examination of current trends in employment law and a review of the latest updates on workplace safety and vaccine mandates. Life plan community executives will also receive updates on legal issues affecting resident contracts, resident and family member relations, and use of social media.

• Cory Macdonald, Member, Reed Claymon Meeker Krienke & Spurck PLLC
• Dan Burke, Board Member, Otterbein SeniorLife
• Cory Kallheim, General Counsel, Covenant Living Communities and Services

5-A. Making Advocacy Part of Your Organization’s Mission: How and Why

No policymaker at the federal, state, or local level knows the field of long-term services and supports (LTSS) as well as the leaders of provider organizations do. That’s why each LTSS organization must embrace advocacy as a way to educate policymakers about the value of LTSS and to gain the support they need to fulfill their missions. During this session, you’ll discover how an advocacy agenda can help your organization strengthen its relationships with elected officials; enhance its standing in the community; and engage residents, staff, and families more fully in its work. You’ll get tips you can use to spur key stakeholders—including staff, board members, and community partners—to become advocates and cheerleaders for your organization. Other LeadingAge members will fill you in on how they used their advocacy efforts to create new programs and obtain new resources.

• Walter Ramos, President & CEO, Rogerson Communities
• Joe Franco, Vice President of Programs and Development, The Washington Campus
• Janel Green, Executive Director, Parish Grove

6-B. Managing Executive Transitions through Teamwork

The senior living field is currently experiencing an unprecedented number of executive transitions. As a result, many organizations are navigating the challenging process of replacing long-tenured executives with new leaders who they hope will implement innovative strategies for achieving organizational transformation. How do organizations attract new leaders with new approaches while strengthening, rather than alienating, the existing leadership team? During this interactive session, consultants specializing in executive transitions will answer that question. They’ll be joined by C-level executives and senior leadership team members who will share the lessons they learned during major leadership transitions, both planned and unplanned. Learn how to trade the traditional executive onboarding process for a new approach that encourages the board, CEO, and leadership team to work as partners in accelerating the integration of a new leader into your organization.

• Elizabeth Feltner, Chief Executive Officer, Deffet Group, Inc.
• Deedre Schuckert, President & CEO, Resthaven
• Marvell Adams Jr., Founder & CEO, Caregiver Action Network (CAN)
• Nancy King, Strategic Advisor, NKK, LLC
• Kevin Schwab, Chief Executive Officer, Givens Communities

7-B. Meeting the Growing Demand for Dementia Care through Inclusion

University of Washington researchers estimated this year that the number of people living with dementia around the world will nearly triple by 2050. Given this exponential growth, it is becoming increasingly unlikely that providers of aging services can build enough segregated memory care settings to support every person living with dementia. During this session, you’ll hear from forward-thinking providers who are fostering a culture of inclusion that allows them to better serve more people with dementia while also addressing the social justice implications of segregating people based on a diagnosis that isn’t contagious. Executives from four senior living communities will explain their inclusive approach to dementia care, outline the challenges associated with shifting from segregation to integration in memory care, and help you consider the benefits of “unlocking the doors.”

• Jen Wilson, Vice President of Well-Being, Carol Woods Retirement Community
• Mary Knapp, Director of Health Services/NHA
• Kenya Bryant, Executive Director, Ingleside at King Farm
• Kirsten Jacobs, Vice President, Shared Learning Initiatives, LeadingAge

8-B. Keys to Strengthening the Aging Services Workforce

A person-directed approach honors the lived experience of everyone in an organization, including residents, clients, and staff. Join Kelly Papa, the new president and CEO of Duncaster Retirement Community in Bloomfield, CT, as she explores how a person-directed approach can help leaders in the field of aging services create a culture of belonging in their organizations. Papa will describe an approach to leadership that prioritizes four Cs: culture, compensation, communication, and compassion. She’ll make the case for leaders to be tender but tough and will offer tips for holding staff to high standards while also taking time to listen and be kind. Discover how these intentional practices can help improve recruitment and retention by encouraging staff members to become active participants in carrying out your organization’s mission.

• Kelly Papa, CEO/President, Duncaster
• DeAnn Akins, Founder, OctoFly Dreams, LLC

9-B. Encouraging LTPAC Providers to Adopt Technology: An Advocacy Campaign

A group of 10 organizations, including LeadingAge, is currently collaborating on a major advocacy campaign aimed at seeking federal investments in creating a technology infrastructure and offering financial incentives to encourage providers of long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) to adopt interoperable electronic health record systems. The legislative proposals being advanced by national LTPAC associations and professional organizations include requests for investments in an EHR certification program specific to LTPAC and in tools providers need to engage in the bidirectional exchange of health information with other care partners, including hospitals and physicians. This session will explore the new advocacy campaign, identify champions for its proposals, and brainstorm ways you can participate in convincing your congressional representatives to support its requests.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• John Knapp, Vice President, Advocacy, Premier Inc.

10-B. Policy Update: Medicare Home Health and Hospice

Whether you have a robust program of home-based services, or are considering branching out into this service line, you’ll want to attend this policy update. Representatives of federal agencies and congressional offices will join LeadingAge members in reviewing how administrative and legislative policies governing Medicare home health and hospice services have changed during the coronavirus pandemic. Hear about policy issues affecting financing and payment. Get details about regulations governing surveys, enforcement, admissions, billing, and reporting. Let congressional staff update you on respite care for families of hospice patients, issues associated with Medicare sequester, the use of telehealth in home-based care settings, and the Medicare home-based extended care benefit authorized by the Choose Home Care Act of 2021. LeadingAge members will be on hand to explain how they implemented home health or hospice services and how those services impacted their organizations and the people they serve.

• Alexandre LaBerge, Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
• Marcie O’Reilly, Acting Program Coordinator, Expanded HHVBP Model, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
• T.J. Christian, Senior Associate, Abt Associates
• Zinnia Harrison, Senior Associate, Abt Associates
• Alex Graf, Staff Director
• Katy Barnett, Director, Home Care & Hospice Operations and Policy, LeadingAge

11-B. Building a Diverse Workforce Pipeline One Intern at a Time

During 2021, LeadingAge took several steps aimed at increasing diversity in the field of aging services. One of those steps involved launching the LeadingAge Summer Enrichment Program, a 10-week internship experience focused on recruiting and training a diverse group of students for leadership careers in aging services. Twenty-eight interns enrolled in the 2021 Summer Enrichment Program, which gave them the opportunity to complete a substantive project for a LeadingAge member, work with a mentor, and take part in a variety of leadership development activities. This session will introduce you to the Summer Enrichment Program’s history and design. Meet LeadingAge members who hosted interns, hear from students who participated in the program, and review findings from a program evaluation conducted by the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston.

• Christy Kramer, Vice President, Student Engagement and Workforce Relationships
• Natasha Bryant, Senior Director of Workforce Research & Development, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Erica Thrash-Sall, CEO, Horizon House
• Steven Nash, President & CEO, Stoddard Baptist Home Foundation, Inc.
• Tina Sandri, CEO, Forest Hills of DC u2013 Inclusive Senior Living
• Michele Potter, Executive Director, Asbury Methodist Village
• Kaylah Jenkins, Assistant Administrator, The Forest at Duke
• Raaed Syed, Student, Rutgers University
• Beryl Bannerman, Development Associate, HumanGood PA

12-C. Expanding Service Reach to Underserved Populations

Nonprofit providers of aging services do a good job of meeting the needs of older adults who can afford to pay for a full menu of services and supports. They also work hard to serve older adults who live in publicly subsidized housing. During this session, you’ll meet leaders whose organizations are also finding ways to reach older adults who don’t qualify for federal subsidies but can’t afford higher-priced service options, elders who identify as LGBTQ+, and people living with low-incomes or experiencing homelessness. Discover why these providers decided to broaden their missions, learn how they are filling gaps in their surrounding communities, and explore your organization’s potential to follow the same path.

• Cecily Laidman, Senior Living Consultant
• Lee Syria, President and CEO, EveryAge
• Joon Y Bang, CEO, IONA Senior Services
• Robert Lagoyda, Director, Education, LeadingAge
• Carol Hubbard, PACE Executive Director and CEO, St. Paul’s Senior Homes and Services

13-C. Staffing Shortages: The CEO and CNA Perspective

The coronavirus pandemic shed new—and much-needed—light on the valuable work that certified nursing assistants (CNA) carry out each day as they provide services and supports to older adults. The pandemic also shed new light on the CNA staffing shortages that have plagued the field of aging services for many years. This session will examine the CNA workforce crisis from a variety of perspectives. You’ll hear from CNAs who are committed to caring for older adults but are leaving their jobs for a variety of compelling reasons. A CEO will describe the resources and support his organizations offers to help CNAs remain on the job. The leader of a CNA membership organization will explain how providers and caregivers are finding common ground as they work together to tackle workforce challenges. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain new perspectives on staffing shortages—and solutions.

• Lori Porter, Founder & CEO, National Association of Health Care Assistants
• Rick Gamache, Chief Executive Officer, Aldersbridge Communities
• Shannon Cunningham, CNA/Restorative Aide, Linn Health Care Center
• Rabecka Gill, CNA/Restorative Aide, Linn Health Care Center

14-C. Easing the Transition to Life Plan Community Living

How do life plan communities attract older adults who would rather stay at home a while longer but want assurances that healthcare will be there for them when they need it? Some communities are implementing Early Advantage Programs that offer future residents the opportunity to experience a life plan community without leaving home. Program members pay an entrance and monthly fees in exchange for immediate access to life plan community amenities and guaranteed admission to the community once they’re ready to move and subject to their position on the program’s waiting list. During this session, life plan community executives will describe how they successfully introduced this new option and the benefits that Early Advantage programs offer their organizations. Presenters will also explore the challenges associated with keeping prospective residents engaged so they continue to value their Early Advantage status.

• Kevin McLeod, President & CEO, Carolina Meadows
• Ashley Allman, Vice President of Marketing & Development, Westminster Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay
• Jen Liebe, Early Acceptance Coordinator, Carol Woods Retirement Community
• Kenneth Reeb, VP of Finance, Carol Woods Retirement Community
• Mike Hopper, Chief Accounting Officer, A.V. Powell & Associates LLC

15-C. Lessons for Leaders: How to Thrive in a Managed Care Environment

The future of care delivery will be determined by managed care models from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAO). CMMI’s new strategic direction indicates that we will see more “accountable care relationships” by 2030, including accountable care organizations, direct contracting, and bundled payments. MAOs, which control care for 42% of Medicare-eligible beneficiaries, have their own strategies for moving more of their contracts to population-based alternative payment models while adding new supplemental benefits to those contracts. Together, these payers will have a significant impact on future revenues and opportunities available to aging service providers. Presenters at this session will help you understand how payers are approaching care delivery for older adults, explain how these models will affect your organization, and discuss strategies to help you thrive in a managed care environment.

• Nicole Fallon, VP, Integrated Services and Managed Care, LeadingAge
• Lindsey Sand, VP of Population Health, Vivie
• Jeannee Parker Martin, President & CEO, LeadingAge California
• Tyler Cromer, Principal, ATI Advisory

16-C. Advancing Broadband Connectivity in Affordable Housing

Accessing the internet is a “prerequisite to full and meaningful participation in society,” according to the Federal Communications Commission. Yet, only 23.02% of affordable housing providers offer free internet connectivity to their residents, according to a recent LeadingAge survey. These findings suggest that, especially during the pandemic, older residents of subsidized housing may have little or no access to healthcare and other supports and limited interaction with family and friends. This session will provide an overview of a new resource from the LeadingAge Center for Aging Services Technologies that reviews different approaches to providing low-cost internet connectivity in housing communities and helps providers select their best broadband options. Find out about opportunities to establish and support a connectivity infrastructure in your organization; discuss case studies from providers that have implemented affordable broadband connectivity, programming, training, and support to residents; and learn from their experiences.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• Scott Code, Vice President, CAST, LeadingAge
• Donnald Heckelmoser, President & CEO, Barton Communities
• Richard Foor, VP of Information Technology, Givens Communities
• Juliana Bilowich, Senior Director, Housing Operations & Policy, LeadingAge

17-D. Strategic Partnerships to Achieve Greater Impact

Provider organizations in the field of aging services often work together to ensure that older adults have access to a full continuum of care and services in their local communities. Partnerships can take many forms. Some organizations engage in community networks, joint ventures, or informal affiliations. Others collaborate on discrete projects with local service providers and businesses. How does a provider find a good partner? Invite collaboration? Help the partner relationship grow? During this session, a panel of LeadingAge members will answer these questions, outline the partnership options they considered and why, describe the challenges they faced in designing and implementing partnerships, and explain how partnerships helped their organizations remain strong, competitive, and effective.

• Steve Jeffrey, Co-Founder, ForgeWorks and President, The Colligo Group
• Sharon Adams Brooks, Opus Marketing, 2Life Communities
• Donna Silbert, Chief Strategy Officer, Parker Health Group, Inc.
• Steve Bahmer, CEO/President, LeadingAge Southeast
• Jim Pieffer, CEO/President, Presbyterian SeniorCare Network

18-D. Inclusive Leadership: Leveraging Our Roles to Create Cultures of Empathy, Trust and Belonging

Building a more inclusive culture within the field of long-term services and supports starts with the leadership of LTSS organizations. During this session, executives at LeadingAge member organizations will review the characteristics of an inclusive leader and explore what it takes to become such a leader. You’ll receive guidance to help you reflect on and evaluate your own strategies for fostering an inclusive organizational culture for both residents and staff. Learn how to become a leader who is self-aware, empathetic, compassionate, and curious. Inclusive leaders live out your organization’s values, addresses your own cultural biases and the biases held by residents and employees, is committed to attracting and hiring new talent from diverse and ethnic candidate slates, provides development opportunities for employees at all levels to grow to their full potential, and creates change by encouraging and championing dialogue about diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.

• Ian Brown, Board Director, Avery Pointe
• Tanya Axenson, SVP/HR and Chief Diversity Officer

19-D. Intergenerational Engagement: An Antidote to Isolation and Loneliness?

The coronavirus pandemic shined a bright light on the growing epidemic of isolation and loneliness among older adults, who are more likely to live alone and to have fewer social connections than members of other age groups. This session will examine how intergenerational engagement can serve as an antidote to this epidemic. LeadingAge members will explore the features and benefits of a variety of intergenerational models that bring young and old together to develop meaningful, long-term relationships. They’ll highlight models that house older adults and younger people under the same roof, interventions that rely on elders to nurture vulnerable children, and educational programs that engage older people in schools located on senior living campuses. Learn how intergenerational models are evolving, the keys to their successful implementation, and the role these models can play in reducing age segregation and disrupting ageism.

• Christie Hinrichs, President/CEO, Frasier
• Kevin Anderson, President & CEO, Wesley
• Renee Moseley, Associate Director
• Jacquelyn Thornton, Executive Director, Two Sparrows Village, Inc

20-D. The Rise of Telehealth: Best Practices and Lessons Learned

Telehealth adoption has grown exponentially in the U.S. over the last two years due to the COVID-19 health emergency and thanks to a significant relaxation of restrictions on telehealth use and reimbursement. As a result, telehealth has become and is likely to continue to be an accepted, effective, and convenient vehicle for delivering healthcare. During the pandemic, many providers of long-term and post-acute care have used different types of telehealth to reduce resident transfers to hospitals, improve access to much-needed healthcare services during lockdowns, and contain exposure to and spread of COVID-19. This session will explore the rapid adoption of different types of telehealth among these providers. Panelists will review their best practices and the lessons they learned while ramping up their telehealth implementation. They’ll also share how they plan to sustain that implementation in the future.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• Scott Code, Vice President, CAST, LeadingAge
• David Finkelstein, CIO, RiverSpring Living
• Frederick Hindman, Assistant Executive Director
• Patrick Palma, National Director, Clinical Informatics Data, Covenant Living Communities and Services

21-D. Job Design for Home Care: Perspectives of Employers and Aides

Home-based care is a rapidly growing sector that has become increasingly popular among individuals, families, providers, and payers. Given the sector’s growing importance, leaders in the field of aging services must begin assessing how home-based care jobs and workplaces are designed and how workplace strategies might need to change to reflect labor market innovation. This session will focus on new research from the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston documenting how different home care business models organize and support home-based care. Two home care providers will identify the key attributes of a positive workplace environment and will outline the strategies they use to recruit and retain home-based caregiving professionals. A home care aide will describe her work experience and LTSS Center researchers will outline next steps for a larger study to better understand how work is organized and performed in different home-based business models.

• Natasha Bryant, Senior Director of Workforce Research & Development, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Robyn Stone, SVP, Research/Co-Director, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Marla Lahat, Executive Director, Home Care Partners
• Andrea Cohen, Founder, HouseWorks
• Pearletta Cashman, Direct Care Provider, HouseWorks

22-D. Policy Update: Affordable Housing Policy and Operations

The affordable senior housing sector has just completed a year filled with ups and downs, including the stress of fighting the coronavirus pandemic and the possibility of securing historic new federal investments in housing for older Americans. Representatives of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Capitol Hill staffers will be on hand during this policy update to help you make sense of it all. They’ll offer an insider’s view of available housing development and preservation resources, describe how they are working to ensure that senior housing becomes an effective platform for service delivery, and discuss opportunities to offer all residents greater access to broadband internet. Speakers will offer updates on the Section 202 program, Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance, and the Housing Trust Fund. They’ll also provide a glimpse of future legislation and guidance, discuss appropriations and operations strategies, and explore HUD’s oversight of its housing portfolio and Congress’s oversight of HUD.

• Linda Couch, Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy, LeadingAge
• Juliana Bilowich, Senior Director, Housing Operations & Policy, LeadingAge
• Ethan Handelman, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing
• Elayne Weiss, Director of Housing, Community Development, and Insurance Policy, House Committee on Financial Services
• Toby Halliday, Director, Office of Asset Management and Portfolio Oversight, U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development

23-E. How Engaged Boards Can Build Successful Organizations

Nonprofit boards of directors can play a critical role in guiding and leading their organizations through turbulent times. But organizational leaders must first take steps to ensure that board members are fully engaged in critical discussions about the organization’s future direction. Building an engaged board can be challenging for both new and experienced CEOs, but it is a task that cannot be neglected. During rotating roundtable discussions, participants in this session will speak directly with CEOs who have taken deliberate steps to engage their boards in efforts to sustain the organization’s mission and secure its future. Learn how to identify practices, structures, and policies that are standing in the way of your board’s engagement. Discover how you can ensure that board members are ready to help your organization chart its future so you can serve more people in new ways.

• Melissa Andrews, President & CEO, LeadingAge Virginia
• Carol Silver-Elliott, President & CEO, Jewish Home Family
• Diana Delgado, President & CEO, Eaton Senior Communities, Inc.
• Rob Liebreich, President & CEO, Goodwin Living
• Anita Holt, President/CEO, The Forest at Duke
• Jeffrey Farber, President & CEO, The New Jewish Home
• Lisa Kubiak, President & CEO, Mary Ann Morse Healthcare Corp.
• Robert Mayer, President/CEO, The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Campus
• Renee Anderson, President & CEO, Saint John’s on The Lake
• Ashley M Tanner, Senior Executive of Long Term Care Services, Sidney Health Center – Extended Care
• Deke Cateau, Chief Executive Officer, A.G. Rhodes Health & Rehab
• Julie Thorson, President/CEO & Head Coach, Friendship Haven
• Jim Bettendorf, President & CEO, Vista Prairie Communities

24-E. What’s So Great About Emotional Intelligence?

Resilient and empathetic leaders can enhance an organization’s well-being, especially during turbulent times. Leaders who demonstrate emotional intelligence (EQ) in their daily practice are significantly better at communicating, inspiring, and supporting residents and family members, and in hiring, motivating, and retaining staff. This session will explore EQ’s key components—self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management—and show how leaders with these characteristics are more aware of their own feelings, more emotionally balanced and effective, more empathetic, and better able to inspire others, manage conflicts, and foster teamwork. Presenters will describe how incorporating EQ into your leadership approach can result in lower staff turnover, higher occupancy, increased resident satisfaction, and improved relations inside and outside the organization. Participants will also learn to incorporate EQ into their messaging, marketing campaigns, and recruitment processes.

• Jeffrey Bilson, President, Druthers Agency Inc.
• Andrew Applegate, President & CEO, Arbor Acres United Methodist Retirement Community, Inc.

25-E. Creating A Diverse, Inclusive, and Equitable Workplace Culture

The long-term services and supports (LTSS) sector is a microcosm of the systemic racism that exits in our society. Nationally, half of frontline professional caregivers in the LTSS field are nonwhite, while mid- and executive-level managers and board members are predominately white. Research identifies this lack of leadership diversity as a major contributor to turnover among frontline staff and a major barrier to recruitment. This session will highlight findings from research on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) that LeadingAge conducted in 2021. Two leaders of color will recount the barriers they encountered in their quest for career advancement and the factors that supported their success. A CEO will explain how and why his organization is working to create a diverse and inclusive culture. Panelists will describe a new collaboration between LeadingAge providers and minority-serving educational institutions and how it will help LTSS organizations recruit diverse talent. Natasha Bryant, Managing Director/Senior Research Associate, LTSS Center, LeadingAge, Washington, DC

• Adrienne Powell Ruffin, VP and Head of LTSS Strategic Initiatives and Operations, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Robyn Stone, SVP, Research/Co-Director, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Natasha Bryant, Senior Director of Workforce Research & Development, LTSS Center, LeadingAge
• Kenneth Daniel, Member, Board of Directors, LeadingAge
• Erica Thrash-Sall, CEO, Horizon House
• Christopher Ridenhour, Director of Workplace Culture

26-E. Infection Control Technologies: Lessons Learned During COVID

Infectious diseases and healthcare-acquired infections are not a new challenge for providers of aging services. But the devastating impact of COVID-19 on older adults has underscored the importance of infection control technologies in the long-term and post-acute care sector. Providers have deployed a variety of infection-control technology applications over the past two years to contain the pandemic and reduce the spread of pathogens. This session will explore the full range of these technologies, including hand-hygiene monitoring and air purification systems, staff and resident screening and contact tracing technologies, and disinfecting robots. Hear from providers that have implemented these technologies in their senior living communities and listen as they offer advice and share the lessons they learned.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• Scott Code, Vice President, CAST, LeadingAge
• Sue Schlener, Executive Director, Phoebe Allentown Health Care Center
• Jim McGovern, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Christ’s Home Retirement Community

27-E. There’s No Place Like Home … and Community-Based Services

Interest in home and community-based services (HCBS) remains high across the country as more older adults express their preference to age in community and as policymakers and providers look for new ways to deliver high-quality services in the home. Congressional staff and officials from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will be on hand during this session to review the latest federal policy plans and actions around HCBS, including changes in current programs like HCBS waivers, Money Follows the Person, and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly. Explore how states are using enhanced federal medical assistance percentages for HCBS, learn about the latest HCBS legislative proposals, understand the policy and budgetary considerations involved in expanding and modifying Medicaid HCBS, and gain insights into how you can bring services to residents of affordable housing.

• Claudia Schlosberg, Principal, Castle Hill Consulting, LLC
• Vicki Gottlich, Esq., Director, Administration for Community Living
• David Machledt, Ph.D. (he/him/his), Sr. Policy Analyst, National Health Law Program
• Ruth Katz, CEO, Association of Jewish Aging Services (AJAS)

28-F. Strategies for Supporting Older Adults in the Community

COVID-19 hasn’t dimmed the desire of older adults to age in their communities. A 2021 AARP survey showed that 77% of adults aged 50 and older still want to remain in their homes for the foreseeable future. During this session, you’ll meet LeadingAge members who are working hard to meet these consumer preferences and needs by offering a menu of accessible home and community-based services (HCBS). Panelists will discuss the strategic questions an organization’s leaders must answer before offering community-based service options. They’ll also identify the benefits that home and community-based services can offer senior living providers and their campuses, describe successful HCBS programs, and share the lessons they learned while designing and implementing a broad array of community-based services. You’ll take home valuable information and insights to help your organization decide whether to venture into the world of HCBS.

• Elisabeth Kilgore-Robinson, Director of Family Support Services, Insight Memory Care Center
• Troy Churchill, President & CEO, Cypress Cove
• Christine Burns, VP of Home Based Community Services
• Kenneth Yang, Executive Director, Penn Asian Senior Services
• Robert Lagoyda, Director, Education, LeadingAge

29-F. Creating Pathways of Advancement for Employees of Color

When seeking to promote people of color to leadership positions, are organizations having trouble finding qualified candidates or are they simply not doing a good job of preparing employees of color for higher-level positions? Presenters at this session will answer that question by describing barriers to promoting people of color in aging services organizations and suggesting ways organizational leaders can break down those barriers. The session’s panel of speakers will be led by Deke Cateau, chief executive officer at A.G. Rhodes in Atlanta, GA, who will describe how his organization prepares people of color for advanced roles by offering them access to mentorship and shadowing opportunities and giving them the tools they need to succeed. Cateau will also share his own experiences as a man of color seeking to build a career in the field of aging services and will describe the support he received along the way.

• Deke Cateau, Chief Executive Officer, A.G. Rhodes Health & Rehab
• Mary Helton, Chief Human Resources Officer, A.G. Rhodes Health & Rehab
• Nancy Kamau, Education and Wellness Manager, A.G. Rhodes Health & Rehab Cobb

30-F. Using Appreciative Inquiry to Reinvent Your Organization

Senior living communities emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic are confronted with a conundrum: Do they go back to old thinking and practices, or do they use the lessons learned during the pandemic to reinvent themselves? This session will introduce attendees to the Appreciative Inquiry (AI) model, a dynamic process of engagement that can help the leadership of senior living communities focus on the organization’s positive, life-giving aspects and put changes into place that heighten the organization’s energy, sharpen its focus, and inspire more creative actions. Come explore how AI can enhance employee-driven improvement, increase retention, ensure post-pandemic growth, enrich resident-family relationships, and improve service delivery methods. Discover how AI can help your team move toward a shared vision for the future and engage in strategic innovation.

• Francis Battisti, Principal, Battisti Managment Affiliates
• Danny Sanford, President and CEO, Still Hopes

31-F. Policy Update: Nursing Homes

Nursing homes have spent the past two years fighting COVID-19. At the same time, nursing home executives have been navigating an ongoing and increasingly serious workforce crisis, struggling to reconcile continuous and sometimes conflicting updates and changes to regulations and guidance, adjusting to new categories of expenses and supply-chain challenges, and keeping an eye on a variety of nursing home-related proposals on Capitol Hill. Key congressional and administration staff will be on hand during this policy update to offer their insights into the perennial challenges facing nursing homes and the latest government responses to those challenges. Speakers will discuss regulations, guidelines, and legislative activity focused on such topics as vaccination mandates, the requirements of participation, emergency preparedness, infection control, and the survey process. They’ll also offer a glimpse into what’s in store for nursing homes in 2022.

• Janine Finck-Boyle, Senior Vice President, Engagement, American Association of Post-Acute Care Nursing (AAPACN)
• Jodi Eyigor, Senior Director, Nursing Home Quality & Policy, LeadingAge
• Evan Shulman, Director, Division of Nursing Homes Survey and Certification Group, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Jonathan Blum, Principal Deputy Administrator & Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

32-F. Is Your Data Working for You?

A decade ago, senior living providers were capturing information about their residents in handwritten notes. Today, the same providers are collecting a plethora of digitalized information through robust electronic data systems that track resident admissions and health status; organizational finances, staffing, and marketing; and additional data from key stakeholders. Now it’s time for these organizations to ask themselves an important question: is all that data working for them? During this session, you’ll learn about analytics tools that can help you use your data to better understand and address such issues as high hospital readmission rates, the effectiveness of infection control measures, the impact of interventions, or how your organization compares with others in the field. Hear from LeadingAge members about their experiences with data analysis and its ability to help you make well-informed decisions.

• Majd Alwan, President/Owner, ALWAN AIVantAge
• Jim Dellapa, CIO
• Margie Pregent, Chief Clinical Officer, ArchCare
• Sara Dettore, Administrator, Blythedale Children’s Hospital