Senior Living Business in Times of COVID-19

How to Emerge as a Responsible Senior Living Business in Times of COVID-19?

The public opinion about senior living is changing in the wake of COVID-19. The pandemic has taken a significant toll on nursing and seniors homes, recording many deaths. 43% of all demises due to coronavirus in Canada occurred in the long-term care population. The fatality rate is also higher at around 17%. 

Among the worst cases, 77 patients died among 233-bed long-term care home Orchard Villa in Ontario. In Montreal, 200 seniors and staffers of Sainte-Dorothée came up with positive COVID results. The situation pushes people to think twice about spending their golden years in a nursing or retirement home. 

Discouraging Findings by The National Institute on Ageing

Toronto's Ryerson University surveyed to determine public opinion around long-term and senior homes. 60% of people now think twice before arranging to live in a senior's home, and they will do the same for their dear ones. 

The same opinion was carried by 70% of people who are over 65. 100% of people of the same age range now want to live independently in their residents. 

The results of the survey show people in Canada are aware of the deaths in senior living. They are no longer willing to take responsibility for their health and safety in a third-party's hand.The changing public opinion is a cause of concern for senior living real estate investors. Unless they act now, business losses are going to crop up in the future. 

The Perils of Senior Living

COVID-19 has unmasked the dire conditions in most senior living homes. However, the pandemic is not solely responsible for the disastrous outcomes. The senior living sector has been suffering from multiple problems even before coronavirus broke out. 

Along with other factors, inefficient management is an essential reason for the fall of senior living. Most homes don't have a centralized system of managing residents, staff, operations, and data. As a result, they are mostly clueless about what haunts their establishments.

Moreover, people are also worried about senior homes being driven only by profit motives. They want to see a real change where private players care for the very people who generate business. The time to transform has come, and businesses must act quickly to change public opinion. 

Technology Can Be a Game-Changer

Delivering care and looking after seniors is a challenging task. Additionally, patient needs are also becoming complex with each passing day. Using a traditional approach to manage everything is not the way you want to go.

Senior living needs to follow the models of hospitals and nursing homes. These institutions now rely heavily on digital solutions to streamline workflow, improve collaboration, and manage operations. All the departments work in unison with real-time access to patient data for improved clinical outcomes. Fortunately, retirement homeowners and investors can use similar technologies today—solutions like Yardi Senior Living help you manage the property and deliver impeccable care. Caregivers can also automate assessments, streamline charting, and manage all health records electronically. You can also harness the power of IoT and provide a safe living environment for the residents. Software like Facilio can measure room temperature, energy consumption, and more via sensors to keep you updated. These measures are crucial during infections like COVID, where even temperature and ventilation impact the rate and degree of transmission. 

Additionally, business owners can use MRI software to track all their investments and manage properties. 

A range of solutions and technology exists to transform senior living or assisted living homes' dire conditions. It would be best to adopt the right solution matching your business needs to deliver professional care and emerge as a credible business. 

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