The melding of aesthetics and durability with code-compliant materials

As an interior designer working on large projects for senior housing facilities for the past 20 years, I have been in a constant battle with manufacturers to produce products that meld the three most important criteria specifically needed for senior housing: aesthetics, code compliance, and durability.

To date, products meeting all three criteria have been virtually nonexistent. In the past five years, however, I have begun to see amazing changes in the availability of such materials and technologies that are universally beneficial to the physical changes that occur with aging and that still meet the growing list of regulatory compliances required for the elderly.

One must also remember that this population is not checking in at the front desk, dropping their bags, and heading out to the pool. They live there 24 hours a day with every type of infirmity imaginable. These facilities are their homes. Their environments must be not only safe and attractive, but durable as well.

The boomers

I believe that the primary catalyst for this current evolution of healthcare materials is the American baby boomer generation. The approximately 77 million people born after World War II, between 1946 and 1964, have the greatest wealth, education, and influence of any American generation before them. Their perception of aging and how to successfully negotiate its consequences is also unique, as they refuse to be perceived as “old” and are therefore healthier, more active, and the youngest-looking generation to date. This group will not accept the same meager surroundings of healthcare facilities for the elderly that their parents and grandparents were willing to endure during the '60s, '70s, and '80s. No, this generation wants to pass gracefully into the hereafter while living the life of a retired vacationer at a resort where every day is a Saturday to play. Their desires, financial status, and sheer numbers cannot be ignored by the free market that will produce the products targeted specifically for this generation and those to follow.

Aesthetics

The following is an illustration of a scenario that commonly plays out between a parent and an adult child today.

Let's say your father passed away two years ago and your mom is still living in the home you grew up in. She recently fell and broke her hip, has had surgery, and now needs to spend some time in a nursing facility while recuperating with physical therapy. Both of you had always hoped her retirement years would be spent at home, but in the event she had to be placed in a nursing home (the term commonly used for an independent living, assisted living, board and care, sub-acute or skilled nursing facility [SNF]), it would be at the highest level that her savings would allow. If equated to a hotel chain, this most likely does not include the local motel. This is where aesthetics become an important factor not only to the resident and family member, but to the business of the facility owner/operator as well.

In the United States, facilities reimbursed by government funds don't get paid unless a bed is occupied, much like schools. When the discharge planner at the acute care hospital hands you a list of licensed, local facilities that will accept her government benefits, what will be your deciding factors? Obviously, the competency of the care she is to receive comes first, but how are you to assess that? You can't be a fly on the wall for a 24-hour period to see if she's getting her medicine or assistance to the lavatory in the middle of the night. You are already feeling the guilt of having to move her into a nursing home in the first place.