Non-profit senior living operator Front Porch is expanding its memory care offerings while decreasing its skilled nursing units in order to meet evolving resident demands.
The Glendale, California-based organization on Friday announced it had expanded memory care resources “through innovative services and expanded capacity in multiple locations across California.”
Front Porch has 19 senior living and 32 affordable housing communities. The organization significantly grew in 2021, when affiliated it with another senior housin nonprofit, Covia.
Almost all of the expansions and repositionings were to downsize skilled nursing and add memory care. For instance, Front Porch converted 24 skilled nursing units into memory care at its Vista del Monte campus in Santa Barbara, California; and did the same at San Francisco Towers in San Francisco by converting a former skilled nursing floor into a 12-unit memory care wing.
At Fredericka Manor in Chula Vista, California, Front Porch is converting eight independent living cottages into 22 new memory care units. Another community, Walnut Village in Anaheim, California; has recently closed a skilled nursing wing to add 31 memory care apartments. And more recently, the nonprofit acquired land adjacent to Carlsbad By The Sea in Carlsbad, California, to add a new building that will include 19 memory care suites.
Changing resident needs were the primary drivers for the changes, according to Front Porch CEO John Woodward. As demand for memory care increased over the last decade, demand for skilled nursing also steadily declined. That trend was driven by shorter lengths of stay and changing acute care discharge patterns, Woodward told Senior Housing News.
“Patients discharged from hospitals require shorter rehabilitation stays than in the past, and thanks to new technologies and expanded home health resources, patients are increasingly being discharged directly to their home,” he said. “At the same time the cost of delivering skilled nursing services — not just in our communities but around the country — have continued to increase sharply over the past couple of years due to labor shortages and other factors which have limited capacity. All of this has combined to make us rethink the type of care we deliver and how we deliver it in fulfilling our mission.”
As Front Porch leaders expand the number of memory care units in the organization’s portfolio, they are pairing that with technology from Front Porch’s Center for Innovation and Wellbeing (CIW).
While Covid-19 has resulted in a slowdown for some of the organization’s ongoing plans, Woodward said it now can advance multiple capital development projects, including its expansion of memory care.
Looking ahead to 2023, Front Porch expects to spend about $90 million in capital, which is in line with what the organization spent in 2022.
“Our goal is to see our residents flourish through personal attention, meaningful connection, and opportunities for self-expression,” Woodward said.
Companies featured in this article:
