Group Living Success Requires Sophistication

I talk to hospital personnel almost daily. This is due to my having some managerial oversight of Michigan Community Living & Provider Services, Inc. (www.michigancommunitylivinginc.com) a resident and client referral service. Hospitals are wonderful friends of mine as they serve so many of the uninsured and under-insured.

Helping discharge planners find suitable accommodations for patients who no longer require hospitalization is also fulfilling for my staff and me. We have a wonderful group of highly qualified providers who help us manage transition and we never charge patients anything to help provide direction. Nursing homes also rely upon us as they did when I ran The Friendly Villa in the 1990’s.

As I write this editorial I am reminded of the need for providers of care in small scale group living environments to cling to sophisticated business practices. This does not mean that the community of group living providers is an uneducated crowd. Many come from diverse clinical and business backgrounds that complement their work in many ways.

However, business management in general must always include an adherence to a policy of professional behavior that demonstrates an understanding of how the American long-term care system works.

Even if we have the best of intentions in our marketing and operations, if these are not combined with wisdom and best practices we could be labeled unsophisticated. How so?

Well many group home owners come with experience as providers in the mental health network. Unfortunately some of these networks have not fostered professional demeanor and best practices among its provider pool members.

As an example, when you have an empty bed and you serve a population whose care is reimbursed through the mental health network, you likely would call into their system and acknowledge your vacancy. Surely this is appropriate since you are under contract with them to serve their clients, so to some extent your beds are their beds.

The rest of the long-term care community does not operate this way. Typically, whether it is a case manager or hospital or nursing home discharge planner, they seek out services as needed in order to transition a patient back into the community and they are not managing a provider pool. To phone them everyday asking about available referrals demonstrates a lack of understanding of how their system operates and might result in your not being taken seriously as a provider of long-term care services.

I realize another factor is at play. Some of the managed care networks operating in the mental health c o m m u n i t y have also been guilty of practices that foster an unhealthy competition among residential services providers. As a result there is this adrenalin type rush to being the first in line to receive a referral from them. As embarrassing as this sounds, it is a reality.

One provider of services to the mentally ill in Wayne County for over 30 years remarked to me, “Mr. Bruce I cannot believe what I have allowed this system to turn me into.”

Providers with a sincere desire to be taken seriously must avoid allowing themselves to be affected by these practices. Proper relationship management is everything!

This is not to say that marketing of our services is not appropriate. However, to show up in the busy environments of hospitals and nursing homes uninvited or to make frequent and in some cases daily calls to them regarding discharges has the potential not only to hurt your business but it could have a negative impact on all providers.

Social work staff members are typically made aware of available resources in the community and will not be influenced by who calls them the most. I am now hearing from hospitals in SE Michigan who refuse all communications from group living providers. This cannot help your business model to thrive.

You must design and manage a comprehensive, multifaceted marketing campaign for your services that involves outreach to numerous referral sources. This campaign must include the development of a professional presence both in behavior and your web presence and the required research to ensure you have a grasp of how long-term care works across the care continuum.

I wish you well in your continued efforts to shine with the hope that real sophistication is a dominant factor in the process.