Today’s bonus episode wraps up Season 1 of Shaping Dementia environments! We have a discussion with Susan Ryan about what she’s learned during the last year both from advising senior living organizations all around the world through the Green House Project, as well as talking to experts in the field of aging through her podcast Elevate Eldercare. She shares with us some of the core tenets of great environments for everyone, regardless of cognitive ability.

Susan Ryan is Senior Director at the Green House Project.  Susan has spent over 25 years working with elders as a nurse and change agent. She has worked in a variety of eldercare settings and helped to lead her previous organization’s transformation to culture change by assessing industry innovation and developing strategic and educational protocols.  Her podcast, Elevate Eldercare, airs each Wednesday and explores the opportunities and challenges to actualizing a vision for dignified eldercare through the lens of the Green House model.

Continue the conversation in our LinkedIn group Shaping Dementia Environments:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/9044567/

Learn more about Perkins Eastman insights:

https://www.perkinseastman.com/white-papers/

Today’s bonus episode continues the conversation Max had with Sean Kelly of Kendal. Similar to some of our other guests in this week’s episode, Max asks the following question of Sean: Given the progress, we’ve seen in caring for people living with dementia in the last thirty years, do you think there’s anything we’ll regret about how we care for people living with dementia today looking back thirty years from now?

Sean Kelly, President & CEO, joined Kendal in 2008 and took on his current role in 2016. Prior to 2016, while at Kendal, Sean was responsible for fostering a culture of continuous improvement through leading and managing new opportunities for growth and evolution for Kendal. Sean came to Kendal after 10+ years working with development, finance, marketing and operations consultant to senior housing and service providers throughout the United States.

Continue the conversation in our LinkedIn group Shaping Dementia Environments:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/9044567/

Learn more about Perkins Eastman insights:

https://www.perkinseastman.com/white-papers/

We’ve chosen to bookend our first season of Shaping Dementia Environments with the topic of ‘Risk Attitude’, because it was so fundamental to every conversation we had this season. Something we alluded to in Part 1, and that appears several times in today’s episode, is the concept ‘surplus safety’ – which takes the approach of applying the most restrictive condition to everyone, as opposed to creating individualized interventions that are tailored to the individual. How do we perceive risk for older adults living with dementia? How can operators push the boundaries to prioritize resident choice and quality of life, rather than putting an over-emphasis on safety above all else?

First, we talk to three members of the leadership team of Kendal: Sean Kelly, Marvell Adams, and Steve Bailey.

Sean Kelly, President & CEO, joined Kendal in 2008 and took on his current role in 2016. Prior to 2016, while at Kendal, Sean was responsible for fostering a culture of continuous improvement through leading and managing new opportunities for growth and evolution for Kendal. Sean came to Kendal after 10+ years working with development, finance, marketing and operations consultant to senior housing and service providers throughout the United States.

Marvell Adams Jr., COO, served as Executive Director/CEO of Kendal’s metro Washington, D.C.-area affiliate, Collington, for seven years, before being named The Kendal Corporation’s Chief Operating Officer in October 2018. Marvell came to Collington from Rochester, New York, where he was COO/Administrator at The Highlands at Pittsford, a continuing care retirement community affiliated with the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Steve Bailey, SVP of New Business and Development, joined Kendal’s corporate staff in 2012 as Project Director and has directed major expansion and repositioning projects for several Kendal communities, including Kendal on Hudson and Kendal at Ithaca. He also has served as a key resource for planning and developing new Kendal communities, including development plans for Kendal at Sonoma in northern California in partnership with the San Francisco Zen Center. Steve’s experience includes more than 30 years in real estate development and planning.

Next, we speak with Tammy Marshall. Tammy is president & CEO of Biophilia Pharma, where she focuses on the healing power between nature and humans. Previously, she served as the first woman Chief Experience Officer in the country for ageing services, the first woman to sit on Thrive Senior Living’s vision team, and the first VP of Strategic Planning for one of New York’s largest long-term care systems. She previously served as chief experience officer at a New York City-based senior care nonprofit called the New Jewish Home, where she led an effort in boosting person-centered care. Marshall keynotes around the globe on the topics of ageism, woman in leadership, integrative health and civil rights for those living with changing cognitive abilities, sometimes known as Alzheimer’s and Dementia. She is known for her published work on leadership, dementia care, designing environments for older adults and strategic planning.

Finally, we talk to Kirsten Jacobs, who leads dementia and wellness education strategy at LeadingAge, including enhancing existing external/internal relationships and identifying areas of potential growth. She develops wellness, dementia and related content for conferences and other education efforts, including distance learning. She provides thought leadership around wellness and dementia to various audiences, including speaking/presenting at conferences and delivering technical assistance to members.

Continue the conversation in our LinkedIn group Shaping Dementia Environments:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/9044567/

Learn more about Perkins Eastman insights:

https://www.perkinseastman.com/white-papers/