Business View Magazine - September 2015

112 Business View - September 2015 Business View - September 2015 113 24-hour, specifically trained, hand selected, and car- ing staff. It exists, essentially, to provide tenants with memory and cognitive impairment, holistic support and round-the-clock supervision with their activities of daily living – bathing, meals, housekeeping, medica- tion reminders, and social and leisure activities.” Devlin explains the assessment protocol for admis- sion: “Initially, the applications for supportive housing come from the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority’s (WRHA). The WRHA funds the staffing component of the program with a particular purpose and need in mind - frail older adults who require 24-hour, non- medical support and supervision. The assessment involves a number of steps, including a variety of physical and medical tests by a physician and, in the case of supportive housing, family input and support for the application. These results are then collected along with other important information, and used to assist the WRHA with the task of determining each in- dividual’s level of care, service, and housing needs. If the assessment supports an application be made to supportive housing, then the WRHA submits the ap- plication to the program of choice. So, for example, if our site is chosen, the WRHA will send the application to our leasing office and our leasing coordinator will review the application and contact the applicant, and his or her family, to discuss our programs, services and other variables and expectations in more detail. Our goal, from the start, is to make sure that all new tenants and their families are clear about what our program provides, and what it doesn’t provide, by es- tablishing good and open communication pathways, and ultimately ensuring that expectations are clear and can be met.” Some of the main advantages of residing in the Resi- dences include its lower rental costs in comparison to other facilities in the area, as well as the solid rep- utation of the Lions as a long-standing service Club within the community. Also important is the Resi- dences’ specific and specialized focus on dementia care. “Everything we do,” says Devlin, “is designed for that purpose – our meal service, including our menu and the color of our plates, our leisure and social ac- tivities, even our management philosophy and human resource practices and policies. All are designed to support a healthy, nurturing, human environment, with particular focus on the needs of individuals with cognitive impairment.” Devlin has used her prior training and experience with ecologically-based management approaches, such as the “Eden Alternative Philosophy” to lead the organi- Healthcare Healthcare