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BMA Blog |
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Touching Lives · Providing Dignified Lifestyles
Posts Tagged ‘Supportive Living Program’
Thursday, April 11th, 2013
By Rick Banas of BMA Management, Ltd.
Thirty-two teams of residents from affordable assisted living communities located throughout the State of Illinois have qualified for the playoffs in the 2013 Affordable Assisted Living Coalition’s 2013 Wii Bowling Tournament.
All of the communities are certified to operate through the Illinois Supportive Living program and either serve older adults or adults with physical disabilities who need some help to maintain their independence.
The teams earned the right to participate in the playoffs by posting the highest scores in their divisions after seven weeks of bowling.
Nearly 80 teams had entered the tournament.
The playoffs will culminate in a Final Four competition May 14 and 15 at the Decatur Conference Center in Decatur, Illinois.
Last year, teams from Cambridge House of Maryville, Glenhaven Gardens in Alton, Heritage Woods of Bolingbrook and Prairie Living in Carbondale bowled in the Final Four. The Gardeners from Glenhaven took home the First Place trophy for the second year in a row, and Oy Vey! from Heritage Woods of Bolingbrook took Second Place.
Teams from the following communities qualified for the playoffs this year:
Cambridge House of Maryville
Cambridge House of O’Fallon (two teams)
Castle Manor in Lincoln
Eagle Ridge of Decatur
Eastgate Manor in Algonquin
Eden Supportive Living in Chicago (two teams)
Eden Supportive Living in North Chicago
Evergreen Place in Streator
Glenhaven Gardens of Alton (two teams)
Glenwood in Staunton
Heritage Woods of Aledo
Heritage Woods of Batavia
Heritage Woods of Bolingbrook (two teams)
Heritage Woods of Centralia
Heritage Woods of Charleston
Heritage Woods of DeKalb
Heritage Woods of Manteno
Heritage Woods of McHenry
Heritage Woods of Moline
Heritage Woods of Mt. Vernon
Heritage Woods of Plainfield
Heritage Woods of Watseka
Heritage Woods of Yorkville
Manor at Craig Farms in Chester
Mary Bryant Home in Springfield
Morraine Court in Bridgeview
Springfield Supportive Living (two teams)
Who are you cheering for to make the Final Four?
What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.
“BMA Management is the leading provider of assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”
Tags: aalc, Affordable Assisted Living Coalition’s 2013 Wii Bowling Tournament, Affordable Assisted Living Community, assisted living in Illinois, Decatur Conference Center, Heritage Woods, Illinois, senior, Supportive Living Program, Wii Bowling, Wii Bowling Tournament
Posted in Assisted Living Event, BMA Management | No Comments »
Thursday, April 4th, 2013
By Rod Burkett, President and CEO of BMA Management, Ltd.
When it comes to affordable assisted living, the State of Illinois continues to set the standard through its Supportive Living program.
I was reminded of this once again last week as I read a news story about the opening of an affordable assisted living community in Detroit. The affordable assisted living community is part of the first phase of a $40 million senior living development.
What really caught my attention was the indication that the newly opened community is one of only two designated affordable assisted living communities in the entire State of Michigan. The other is in Grand Rapids.
By comparison, Illinois, through its Supportive Living program, has nearly 140 affordable assisted living communities that are in operation. The communities are located in more than 70 Counties in northern, central and southern Illinois. Together, they house nearly 11,000 apartments.
We at BMA have been actively involved with the Supportive Living program since its inception. We opened our first affordable assisted living community 13 years ago, in May of 2000, in Flora, Illinois. Heritage Woods of Flora was the third affordable assisted living community in the state and the first to be housed in a newly constructed building.
Today, BMA operates nearly 25% of the affordable assisted living communities in Illinois.
From our experience, here are some of the reasons why the Illinois Supportive Living program has been so successful:
The program provides older adults and adults with physical disabilities with the opportunity to live in an environment that is much more appropriate for their needs. Rather they living in a nursing home or struggling alone at home, they are able to live in a residential environment and receive the personal assistance and help with medications they need to maintain their independence.
The emphasis of the program is on personal choice, dignity, privacy and individuality.
Supportive Living communities are able to serve residents of all financial means, including those on Medicaid.
The cost to the State of Illinois and its taxpayers for a person on Medicaid to live in a Supportive Living community is nearly half the cost of a nursing home. The savings can be used to support other programs and services.
More recently, the State approved the development of five Supportive Living Memory Care pilot projects to serve those with Alzheimer’s or related dementia. We were honored to receive approval to develop one of the five. We opened White Oaks at Heritage Woods of South Elgin this past fall; the 32 affordable memory care apartments were filled in three weeks.
In many areas, as many as two-thirds of the older adult population do not have the financial resources to afford traditional private pay assisted living, at least for any extended period of time.
Yet, while the need for affordable assisted living is tremendous, we have yet to find a state where we can duplicate what we have been able to do here in Illinois.
In the just published edition of Senior Living Executive, the magazine published by the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA), I challenged our industry to join with us in evaluating how to better care for all those who cannot afford traditional assisted living.
The Illinois Supportive Living program certainly can serve as a model.
What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.
“BMA Management is the leading provider of assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”
Tags: Adults with Physical Disabilities, Affordable Assisted Living Community, assisted living in Illinois, Heritage Woods of Flora, Medicaid, older adults, Senior Living Executive, State of Illinois, Supportive Living Memory Care pilot projects, Supportive Living Program, Taxpayers, White Oaks at Heritage Woods of South Elgin
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Thursday, May 10th, 2012
By Rick Banas of BMA Management, Ltd.
Oh, how the residents of Heritage Woods of Moline enjoyed the “Remember When Fashion Show.” The smiles, the laughs, the applause, the hooting and hollering.
The Move-In Coordinator parading around the Dining Room in a black Flapper Dress trimmed with gold braiding.
The Director of Maintenance coolly playing a Greaser,
The Administrator dressed as June Cleaver, offering up freshly baked cookies. These are just a few of the highlights of the show, which was part of the community’s celebration of Supportive Living Week 2012.
Sponsored by the Affordable Assisted Living Coalition, Supportive Living Week is designed to bring attention to the Illinois Supportive Living program. The program provides a cost-effective solution to older adults and adults with physical disabilities who can benefit from an affordable residential style of living with the availability of personal assistance and support services.
Residents of Supportive Living communities such as Heritage Woods of Moline also benefit from the opportunity to socialize and enjoy programs such as the “Remember When Fashion Show.”
Staff members did the research and tracked down examples of what was worn. They shared the information and modeled the fashions to the delight of residents.
1910s
When it came to fashion, women were beginning to think more of comfort than fashion, although many quickly fell for the “ hobble skirt,” which was so tight around the ankles that moving quickly was impossible.
Fabrics became lighter, colors were brighter and styles were looser. Lowered necklines became popular, and sales of cold cream and lemon extract escalated. The Tea Gown was worn at home, and the sack, sheath oriental costumes, harem trousers and the Hellenic tunic were all introduced. Head gear was worn and was very costumary.
 When World War 1 – the first war to end all wars – began, fashion design came to a standstill and “Made in America” was in style.
Also during the decade, new materials and technologies made colors more available. The suffragettes focused on more comfortable fashion, with lots of pockets. And, hemlines began to inch up – to show the ankles. 1920s
 The Flapper dress is the most iconic outfit of the Roaring 20s.
Marked by its tight fit and knee-high length, the Flapper Dress was emblematic of the entire Jazz Age. A woman showing the skin of her legs in public would have been a case for scandal in prior decades, but in the 1920s society was changing and fashion changed along with it.
The narrow and straight style of the Flapper Dress gave women an adolescent look. The term Flapper, however, is open to debate. Some folks say that it was used to describe a young woman (bird) just learning to fly while others used the term to describe a woman of the night. 1950s
When it comes to fashion, two distinctly different television characters come to mind.
June Cleaver was a principal character in the sitcom Leave It to Beaver. June was very ladylike and slightly formal in appearance. She was notorious for consistently being dressed as a part hostess, even when doing her housework or relaxing around the house. She wore a pearl necklace in almost every scene, even when gardening.
 The sitcom Happy Days featured Arthur Herbert Fonzarelli. The Fonz portrayed the Greaser, an iconic symbol of rebellion and pure coolness.
The Greaser sported a plain white cotton t-shirt and a pair of tight blue jeans. The shirt was never ducked in daddy-o. A leather jacket with the collar flipped up said “your crusin for a brusin” if you mess with this cat.
Having a comb in hand to slick back a heavily greased up head of hair was essential as was a bandanna to mop up any extra grease.
Smooth black shoes accented the rolled up pair of blue jeans, and a pair of black mirrored shades was the final accent to help convey the coolness of the Greaser. 1960s
Both the fashions and music of the 1960s reflected the counter-cultural revolution that was underway.
In the early 1960s, women wore mini-skirts and leather boots and men wore Paisley shirts and velvet trousers.
In 1966, the age of the Hippie was born and Psychedelic clothes featuring bright colors for both men and women were introduced. Men started to wear their hair longer, and women identified with the Hippie look by wearing longer skirts and dresses known as Maxies. Anything and everything had color, including the body. 1970s
In the 1970s, the influence of the Hippies was mainstreamed into fashions. Men sported shoulder-length hair. Bellbottom pants, hip huggers, colorful patches, hot pants, platform shoes, earth shoes, clogs, t-shirts and gypsy dresses were some of the non-traditional clothing that became the rage.
 Women were wearing everything from ankle-length dresses to hot pants and micro-miniskirts while men were donning leisure suits.
Fashions also were impacted by Woody Allen’s movie “Annie Hall,” which was released in the spring of 1977. The clothing worn by Diane Keaton in the movie started a fashion trend of women wearing traditional men’s clothing. In particular, derby hats, tweed jackets, neckties, and baggy pants or skirts were the rage. 1980s
 The “In Things” in the 1980s included big hair, bright color patterns, mismatched clothing and stone-washed jeans.
Aquanet hairspray helped women keep their ratted up big hair in place for days, and some men joined the big hair trend by sporting a Mullet.
MC Hammer brought us parachute pants, which seemed to come in any color or pattern one could dream up, and Madonna brought us the look of lace, black leather, long pearls and a big hair bow. To view the Remember When Fashion Show
photo gallery, click here.
What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.
“BMA Management is the leading provider of affordable assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”
   
Tags: 1910s, 1920s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, aalc, Affordable Assisted Living Coalition, Annie Hall, Aquanet Hairspray, assisted living in Illinois, Diane Keaton, Fashion Show, Flapper, Happy Days, Heritage Woods of Moline, Hippie, Hobble Skirt, June Cleaver, Leave it to Beaver, MC Hammer, Psychedelic clothes, Roaring 20s, Supportive Living Program, Supportive Living Week 2012, The Fonz, World War I
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Thursday, February 9th, 2012
By Rod Burkett of senior living provider BMA Management, Ltd.
As President and CEO of the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois and Immediate Past President of the Affordable Assisted Living Coalition (AALC), I found some recent information about Medicare spending on older adults to be intriguing.
 The information was posted in a DataBrief on the SCAN Foundation website and reflects an analysis of Medicare Benefits prepared by Avalere Health, LLC. You can see the DataBrief at thescanfoundation.org
The SCAN Foundation is an independent not-for-profit organization that supports efforts to keep seniors self-sufficient at home and in the community.
 The analysis looked at how much Medicare spent on health care services for older adults who required supportive services to assist them with activities of daily living such as help with eating, bathing, dressing, toileting and transferring.
The analysis showed that over the course of one year Medicare spent approximately $4,300 less on health care for a person who lived in assisted living or a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) than a person who required supportive services and was living in their own home or apartment.
The figures shown in the analysis reflect Medicare spending for inpatient hospital, outpatient hospital, physician, emergency department, skilled nursing, home health and hospice services.
The analysis reflects spending data on nearly 2.2 million individuals on Medicare who required supportive services. Of those, nearly 1.2 million lived in their own home or apartment; more than 800,000 in a nursing home; and more than 200,000 in assisted living or a CCRC.
When you multiply an annual savings of more than $4,300 per person times the more than 200,000 that lived in assisted living or a CCRC that totals a savings of more than $870 million in Medicare spending in just one year.
The analysis also shows that the Medicare health care costs for individuals who need assistance and are living in assisted living or a CCRC is nearly $600 a year less than those living in a nursing home.
In light of the tremendous cost savings, how unfortunate it is that the Draft Framework for the National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s that was recently released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS.org) virtually ignores assisted living.
In our assisted living communities, we have and do care for a significant number of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia. These are people who do not require the skilled nursing care services of a nursing home. These are people who may need help ordering their food and remembering what time of day it is and how to get to their apartment.
According to the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA.org), more than one-third of the residents currently living in assisted living communities nationwide have Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia.
 A growing number are living in specially designed Memory Care neighborhoods that offer special individualized and group programming. We are honored to have received approval from the State of Illinois to develop one of five pilot affordable assisted living Memory Care programs. The pilot projects will operate through the State’s Supportive Living program so they can serve those of all incomes, including individuals on Medicaid.
We will soon have under construction Memory Care apartments on the campus of our Heritage Woods affordable assisted living community in South Elgin, Illinois.
Unfortunately, the National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s only mentions assisted living in one of its strategies and recommendations. Our company is providing feedback to the Department of Health and Human Services on why assisted living should play a much more prominent role in the National Plan.
We encourage you to join BMA in sharing your comments with the HHS. You can send an e-mail to NAPA@hhs.gov
What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.
“BMA Management is the leading provider of affordable assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”
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Tags: aalc, Affordable Assisted Living Coalition, Affordable Assisted Living Community, ALFA, assisted living, Assisted Living Federation of America, Continuing Care Retirement Community, DataBrief, Medicare, Medicare Benefits, Medicare Spending on Older Adults, Memory Care, Memory Care programs, National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s, Rod Burkett, senior living, Supportive Living Program, The SCAN Foundation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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Wednesday, December 28th, 2011
By Rod Burkett of BMA Management, Ltd.
Illinois continues to be headed in the right direction.
No, I have not tipped back a few too many glasses of the Spiked Egg Nog. And yes, I am aware of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute poll referenced yesterday in a Chicago Tribune editorial that says Illinois voters believe otherwise.
When it comes to older adults and adults with physical disabilities, Illinois in 2011 continued to head in the right direction with its innovative Supportive Living Program.
For those of you who are not familiar with Supportive Living, the program grew out of the state budget crunch. Rather than follow the usual paths of cutting services or raising taxes, the state developed a wonderfully innovative program that benefits both the state and those who need some level of help to maintain their independence.
The program gives those of all financial means, including those on Medicaid, the opportunity to enjoy a residential-style apartment living with the availability of personal assistance and support services. For those unable to afford private pay assisted living, struggling alone at home or moving to a nursing home are no longer the only options.
In a press announcement earlier this month that summarizes a decision to continue to expand the Supportive Living program, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) noted that Supportive Living “makes these critical services available at a significantly lower cost than in a nursing home.” The program also “can successfully prevent or postpone the need for nursing home care.”
The Dec. 19 announcement highlighted the State’s approval of five new Supportive Living communities designed to serve adults with physical disabilities who are 22 to 64 years of age.
Our company, BMA Management, is involved with three of the five communities.
BMA Ventures, LLC, a sister company of BMA Management, Ltd., will own and develop the community that was approved for Bourbonnais, Illinois. The community will house 76 apartments. BMA Management will manage the community.
BMA will assist the owner, Budslick Investments, LLC in developing the community that was approved for Carbondale, Illinois. The community will house 76 apartments, and BMA Management will serve as the management entity for the community.
BMA Management will manage the community that was approved for Peoria, Illinois. The community is being developed by Vermilion Development of Chicago. While we will be serving a younger age group in these communities, our focus will be the same as in our affordable assisted living communities that serve older adults. Our emphasis will be on promoting the resident’s independence and will be framed by our values of love, compassion and dignity.
2011 also marked two other milestones for the Supportive Living program:
The number of apartments available in Supportive Living communities topped the 10,000 mark. There are now 133 communities in operation in more than 70 Counties throughout the State. Thirty-three of our communities are affordable assisted living communities that operate through the Supportive Living program.
The first two Memory Care Supportive Living communities opened for occupancy as pilot projects. We were also pleased to learn in November, that the Department of Healthcare and Family Services gave BMA approval to develop a pilot Memory Care Supportive Living community as part of Heritage Woods of South Elgin. The Memory Care community will house 32 apartments in two specially designed neighborhoods of 16 apartments each.
As we look back at 2011, we express our thanks to the State of Illinois for its continued promotion of the Supportive Living program.
Rod Burkett is Chief Executive Officer and President of BMA Management, the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois. He has served for the past two years as President of the Springfield based Affordable Assisted Living Coalition (AALC).
What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.
“BMA Management is the leading provider of affordable assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”
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Tags: assisted living in Illinois, BMA Management Ltd, BMA Ventures LLC, Budslick Investments LLC, Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, Medicaid, Memory Care Supportive Living, Public Policy Institute, Rod Burkett, senior living, Spiked Egg Nog, supportive living, Supportive Living Program
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