Movers & Shakers — NIC Names New President

National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care Appoints New President 

Brian Jurutka has been appointed as president of National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), effective August 3, 2015.

Jurutka joins NIC from comScore, Inc., a leader in digital analytics, where he served as senior vice president, Telecom, and GM for comScore’s wireless operator analytics division. 

“NIC’s unique, trusted position in the seniors housing and care ecosystem has enabled it to establish 10 years of trended market fundamentals data, the most accurate and longest data set available in the space,” Jurutka said in a press release. “These data, as part of the NIC MAP Data Service, have helped provide the transparency necessary to establish seniors housing as a core investment property type. NIC’s conferences are strong brands in their own right, providing platforms for education, networking, and capital transactions. I’m looking forward to helping lead the organization into the future.”

A former nuclear submarine officer, Jurutka brings more than two decades of leadership experience with a successful track record in analytics, business development, operational management, and data system development and integration. Prior to comScore, Jurutka was with Capital One’s Direct Banking organization where he launched and managed the company’s first deposit product partnership in addition to overseeing various strategic partnerships.

In his role as NIC’s president, Jurutka will assume responsibility for day-to-day management and operations of the organization with particular focus on building the infrastructure for NIC to deliver on its mission-driven agenda of delivering transparency to the capital markets, advancing quality and availability of seniors housing and care, and fostering leadership development.

“I’m excited to have someone with significant background and experience with analytics,” said Bob Kramer, NIC’s CEO. “As we look towards the future, the seniors housing sector, like most other verticals, requires more and more data to help drive decisions.”

Abbey Delray Announces New Executive Director in Delray Beach, Fla. 

Abbey Delray appointed Grace Pfordresher as the new executive director of the senior living community located in Delray Beach, Fla. 

Pfordresher is responsible for overseeing day-to-day operations at the senior living community, which features 350 independent living apartment homes and a variety of amenities, in addition to offering on-site health services to its more than 450 residents.

Pfordresher comes to Abbey Delray with over 15 years of leadership experience in senior living and health care. She most recently served as a senior administrator for HCR ManorCare, overseeing operations and marketing for multiple retirement communities in Southwest Florida.

Prior to that, she held director roles at Senior Health Management and Genesis HealthCare, providing skilled nursing and health care services at retirement communities throughout Florida.

“Abbey Delray has a lot to offer the dynamic population of older adults, and I’m excited to use my operational experience and passion for serving seniors to strengthen our position in the area,” Pfordresher said in a press release. “We’ll work to build on our reputation for providing an excellent lifestyle option, wellness services and culture of hospitality to everyone who lives, works or plays at Abbey Delray.”

United Methodist Retirement Communities Welcomes New Executive Director in Chelsea, Mich.

United Methodist Retirement Communities, Inc. (UMRC) announced that Ashley Martin has been promoted to executive director of the Chelsea Retirement Community (CRC), located in Chelsea, Mich.

In her new role, Martin will be responsible for managing staff, executing fundraising activities and implementing new and existing programs across the CRC campus, for its 350 and more residents. 

Martin brings more than 10 years of management experience in senior living. Prior to becoming executive director, Martin most recently served as associate executive director of CRC, where she successfully licensed and opened its new 67,000 sq. ft. assisted living facility, Glazier Commons, and led planning and logistics for the transition. 

United Methodist Retirement Communities Names New Assisted Living Administrator in Chelsea, Mich.

United Methodist Retirement Communities, Inc. (UMRC) announced that Anathea Collar has joined as assisted living administrator of the Chelsea Retirement Community (CRC), located in Chelsea, Mich.

In her new role, she will be responsible for overseeing, maintaining and developing operations for CRC’s assisted living communities: Towsley Village and Glazier Commons.

Bringing more than 10 years of related experience, Collar most recently served as vice president of employee relations and executive director of the Residence of Arbor Hospice in Ann Arbor, Mich. While at Arbor Hospice, she was responsible for the oversight of its human resources team, in addition to directing all human resources activities including employee relations, training, development and more. 

Leavitt Digital Launches Senior Living Division, Names New Managing Director 

Leavitt Digital recently launched its Senior Living Division and hired Kim Tranmer, a 25-year industry leader as managing director.  

Leavitt Digital’s Senior Living division focuses on increasing the online presence, search engine optimization (SEO), review monitoring, and press releases distribution in senior living and skilled nursing industries.

Tranmer’s 25-year career in senior living includes sales, marketing, consulting, and management, prior to joining Leavitt Digital.  

“We couldn’t start this division until we had the right leader; when we came across Kim we knew that she was the right fit for this role,” said Brendan Hotchkiss, Leavitt Digital’s CEO, in a press release.

Tranmer’s primary roles at Leavitt Digital are business development and relationship management within its Senior Living Division. Tranmer is tasked with presenting Leavitt Digital’s platform to owners, managers, and consultants in the senior living and skilled nursing communities.

“Leavitt Digital’s technology is able to help these communities connect to the local market via search,” Tranmer said. “When a senior, son or daughter is looking for a retirement community, assisted living, or skilled nursing facility they are going to run a search online. We are able to not only help communities come up in those searches, but help them come up higher in the rankings.”

Rydal Park Welcomes New Dining Staff in Jenkintown, Pa. 

Margie Hymerling has been named director of dining and nutrition services for Rydal Park continuing-care retirement community (CCRC), part of the Presby’s Inspired Life organization. Rydal Park is located in Jenkintown, Pa. 

Hymerling was previously dining-services director for Morrison Senior Living.

Also joining the Rydal Park dining team is Jason Porter, who will serve as executive chef.

New Chief Information Officer Joins Hebrew SeniorLife 

Hebrew SeniorLife (HSL), a provider of senior health care and communities in New England, and an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, announced the appointment of Peter Ingram as Chief Information Officer.

Ingram will provide strategic and tactical planning, development, evaluation, implementation and coordination of the information and technology systems for all aspects of the nonprofit organization’s health care, senior living, and Institute for Aging Research. He will be responsible for coordination, facilitation, and consultation with staff on information systems, electronic communications, and resident and patient information safety and technology initiatives.

“In my professional career in health information technology and in my personal experience helping to manage the care of aging relatives, I’ve seen the value of using information technology to coordinate care across the continuum of care,” Ingram said in a press release.

Ingram most recently served as a strategic planning consultant for the regional MetroChicago Health Information Exchange that serves 33 hospitals and associated physicians in Chicago.

Previously, he worked for Chicago’s Sinai Health System, where he held a number of increasingly responsible positions since 1984, most recently serving as vice president and Chief Information Officer. As CIO at Sinai, Ingram was responsible for information systems, telecommunications, and patient relations for an integrated safety-net health care delivery system, including a 350-bed hospital, a 270-bed community hospital, a 120-bed acute rehabilitation hospital, and an affiliated faculty physician practice with 250 physicians and a network of 25 clinics.

In addition, he oversaw an integrated, centralized information system linked by a master patient index, featuring an inpatient electronic medical record (EMR) system, a physician EMR system, a behavioral health EMR system, and a data repository.

During his 30-year tenure at Sinai, Peter held leadership positions in strategic planning, new business development, marketing, and practice management.

Written by Cassandra Dowell