The Cross Keys Village Experience

5 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 9 adults are resistant to technology is seriously out- of-date. The majority of our new leads come to us through our website forms. The COVID-19 years brought accelerated acceptance to teleconferencing apps like Zoom and to electronic paperwork solutions such as DocuSign, which can assist our out-of-state future Independent Living residents in completing their various documents. Shifting the CCRC model While it was innovative and valuable to begin with, the original CCRC model depended on older adults transitioning physically from one “level of care” to the next as their needs increased. For example, in a standard 1990s village, administration would frown on Residential Living residents using mobility devices such as a walker or a scooter in the residential dining areas. Residents who were getting frailer would be “encouraged” to transfer from their apartment or cottage to a higher level of care, provided in a more hospital-like setting. Today, progressive villages like Cross Keys Village and the many excellent communities that dot the corridor from Chambersburg to Lancaster, PA are evolving into an increasingly home-based model for their delivery of care. Residents remain longer in their Independent Living quarters. As a consequence, “Length of Stay” is shrinking in assisted living homes and in the nursing centers, causing many CCRCs to consider reducing their nursing bed capacity, all the while making their clinical settings more pleasant and more conducive to residents’ dignity (sooner or later the old semi- private nursing room will be a thing of the past). While Cross Keys Village has experienced the staffing challenges that are common to the industry, somewhat compounded by its rural location in the middle of a finite talent pool, staff turnover is much lower than average. Cross Keys Village has a committee dedicated to retaining staff and actively planning programs, expanded benefits, and more. Hazan concludes, “We are standing on the shoulders of previous Brethren Home servant leaders, starting way back in 1908. Innovation was always part of the community’s fabric. We don’t lose sight of what we’re doing here. It’s God’s work, and we’re serving our community with every tool we have.” CROSS KEYS VILLAGE-THE BRETHREN HOME COMMUNITY, NEW OXFORD, PENNSYLVANIA