Evacuating residents, especially in events like fires, was a big subject at the Kathryn Greiner retirement village enquiry in New South Wales last year.

At the Wollongong session we attended, a resident in a wheelchair who lives in fifth floor village apartment stated he would be ‘toast’ in a fire because the lifts would not work, and nobody had responsibility to collect him.

Remember, 60% of villages are over 25 years of age and if we are honest with ourselves, highly combustible. Last week in a rural Fire service training session we were told it takes just 10 minutes for the average house to be fully ablaze.

We report in The SOURCE at least five fires in villages a year – especially in winter.

Regulators are onto this, and the operator’s obligation to ensure that the village has appropriate emergency evacuation procedures/plan, and that residents are aware of them.

‘Aware’ means really aware; they know what they have to do.

Emergency plans don’t have to be lengthy or complex. They should be easy to understand and tailored to your village.  

If you do not have an Emergency Plan, it is worthwhile working out a serious one. If you are a member of the DCM Institute we can assist you with the documentation and also engaging with the residents so it is a positive experience.

In the meantime here are some points to think about:

• emergency contact details for key wardens, for example fire wardens, and first aid officers
• note down and share specific roles and responsibilities with each of them
• list contact details for local emergency services (police, fire brigade, poison information centre etc) and have that prominently available at reception and office
• create a process for alerting people of an emergency or possible emergency, for example a siren or bell alarm or door knocking procedure
• create a process and arrangements for assisting any hearing, vision or mobility-impaired people
• create a map of the village illustrating the location of fire protection equipment, emergency exits and assembly points
• identify triggers and processes for advising neighbours, and the operator about emergencies
• create a post-incident follow-up process, for example notifying the regulator, organising trauma counselling or medical treatment.
• create a schedule for testing the emergency plan, say every four months

Having a plan is only one part. The staff and residents must be aware of the plan, remembering the staff and residents change over time.

Practising the emergency evacuation plan is also vital. Remember many fires, electricity failures, floods etc occur at the most inconvenient times – at night and on the weekend!

The regulator and insurers will also look for evidence of ‘practice’!

Reminder: as a member of the DCM Institute village manager professional development program, you will receive the tools to develop an emergency plan specifically for your State regulations. You can learn more about membership HERE.

Meet Vanessa Clarke, Chief Retirement Villages Officer, Dept of Health

Hear from our guest speaker Vanessa Clarke, SA’s Chief Retirement Villages Officer (Office of Ageing Well) who will talk about Code of Conduct & Terminations. 

This is an opportunity to network with other Village Managers in your area. 

Of course, there will be time to share an issue you may have in your village and hear if others with the same experience can help resolve it.

We are meeting at Brighton Dunes village at 8 AM next Thursday 25 July.

To attend simply register and the Regional Meeting hub section of the DCM Institute website HERE.

Travelling around the country delivering the Village Manager Professional Development Program, I was asked by a program participant an interesting question that I didn’t have the total answer for.

You see she was relatively new into her role (around 9 months) and she described to me that she had been employed as the Community Manager.

She shared what excited her most about the role was the chance to give back, to make a difference, to facilitate information or activities to provide choices to residents to live “their best life”.

And her job description also had resident welfare and the building of community, but also the typical variety of responsibilities – from managing budgets to maintaining assets. 

Where is the time for ‘community’?

Yet now she has been in the role some months she is finding that she rarely has time to focus on these very aspects of community building that excited her so much. 

She feels she has become a Facility Manager. She asked me: how do I find time for the residents?

I guess there are two aspects to this in my experience.

The first is that even by coordinating the maintenance, garden, budgeting and cleaning etc, she is still actively contributing to the service provision for residents that was promised to them.

However, secondly, it is up to her to prioritise these functions to create time for community building.

Start small

My advice is to start small. Remember, an ‘event’ only requires two people – that is two people achieving enjoyment out of interacting with each other (including you – who is equally important).

I recommended:

• Make a list of the easy things that you can do that are ‘building blocks’ to creating and maintaining community
• Place the easier ones that take the least time at the top
• Check the activities calendar for holes or things that are already being addressed
• Check if there are any obvious volunteers in the village that you can rely on

Now allocate even just one hour a week to your list – and I have found it is good to alternate the activities. Here are some suggestions:

• Conduct two resident check-in discussions
• Visiting a resident that may have experienced a life changing incident recently
• Attend a resident function
• Research and communicate activities occurring in the local community
• Plan a social event or activity
• Organise a guest speaker of interest

I guess the message is that, just like allocating time to the compliance and service provision role of being a Village Manager, we need to make a conscious effort to allocate specific time to the building of ‘community’.

This is time allocated for us – making sure we get fulfilment out of our role; because it is a 100% certainty that the village residents will greatly benefit from our positive enthusiasm to contribute to their ‘community’.

After all, we are not facility managers – we are community builders.

Jodie

Everyone likes to feel ‘connected’.

In fact the World Health Organisation and Maslow’s famous Hierarchy of Needs both identify that one of the key attributes for wellness is human connection.

But is connecting residents in your village and their wellness in your job description?

It is common knowledge that residents join villages often for the sense of community.

Multiple surveys and research outcomes over the last decade find that in fact one of the most satisfying aspects of village life for residents is the sense of community, interaction with neighbours and the human connection experienced.

We all get that. But….

The resident journey

As operators we promise a lifestyle… which for most residents is enjoyed in its fullest in their early years in a village; but what happens when residents start to age? They experience an increase in frailty, poorer health, and ultimately their ability to access social activities in the wider community or within the village decline.

For instance Bob moved into the village 15 years ago with his wife who has recently passed.  Bob has been always played bowls twice a week and he continues to see many of his friends. 

However a month after his wife passed Bob had a stroke which has resulted in his loss of his drivers license. Without his license and his wife he now finds getting out to social activities difficult, so he starts to spend more time just at home, rarely attending Happy Hour or other village functions as it is not the same on his own.

What is our duty of care or what role should we play in assisting Bob remain connected?  Part of the appeal in moving into a community is the promise of connection, neighbourhoods, lifestyle, social activity etc…. 

A Village Manager can play a pivotal role in helping Bob remain connected, social and active.

Perhaps you can put a system in place to check in on Bob over the first 6 months? Talk with Bob about what are the options he might like to access to remain socially connected.

Can you assist Bob by linking him up with someone at the Bowls Club that may drive past, or is going from the village?

Can you link Bob with a buddy from the village to attend some of the social functions?

Do you have a village Friends and Neighbours Support group of volunteers that may be able to help from time to time?

Can you show Bob how easy it is to access Uber? 

Would Bob perhaps qualify for some social transport under a home care package – can you point him in the right direction?

Wellbeing and reward

The wellbeing of residents as they age will rely on the skill of the Village Manager to be proactive and identify the steps in each resident’s journey, and the resources and knowledge to be able to support them to access opportunities for social and human connection.

In our experience the positive impact is fast and incredibly rewarding – for residents and your own job satisfaction.

To give you some ideas you can also check this terrific video by Southern Cross Care NSW & ACT, on their 10K Project. (Click HERE).