Inside Healthcare - RedCoat Publishing

Like a fine wine, Winchester Gardens continues to improve with age. The CCRC was established in 1927 under the will of Marcus L. Ward, Jr., whose father was the governor of New Jersey from 1865 to 1868. Ward established the foundation to build a community to house gentlemen, bachelors, and widowers in their later years.

Greg Rogerino, President and CEO

Tasked with making Ward’s wishes come true, the trustees traveled to London and studied the architecture, an influence that is still apparent more than 80 years later. Located on 37 acres in Maplewood, NJ, many of the 202 independent living units, including 40 villas and 115 assisted living units, have stone and slate roofs, and there are 140 fireplaces spread throughout.

The community underwent its first significant change in 1980 when it opened its doors to women. As time went on, the units became dated in size and design. In addition, the concept and implementation of assisted living units was starting to take hold in the industry. It became clear to the nonprofit organization’s trustees that more changes were necessary.

“The trustees decided to convert the community to a CCRC, and construction began in 1996,” said Greg Rogerino, president and CEO. “At the time, it was the largest financing for a single-site CCRC in the US at $76 million.”

The result of the overhaul is a campus that combines old-world designs with new-world amenities that are constantly analyzed and upgraded to ensure the needs of current and future residents continue to be met. For the past several years, the organization has invested between $1.2 million and $1.7 million into its facilities, a mighty but achievable feat based on its recent bond rating improvement.

Last year, Fitch Ratings, a global rating agency providing credit opinions, revised its outlook on Winchester Gardens’ bonds from stable to positive to reflect “solid rate increases; normalization of expenses, including labor, insurance; and continued strong demand,” according to its report.

The company also views Winchester Gardens’ CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities) and CCAC (Continuing Care Accreditation Commission) accreditations as significant factors in its improved financial standing. The report stated, “Fitch views positively the CARF and CCAC accreditations and Winchester Gardens’ distinction for quality, provision of service, effective physical management, and occupancy, which has been consistent at around 95%.”

Changing needs
The kind of attention to detail that the original trustees put into developing Winchester Gardens remains today, from facilities upgrades to customer service. The organization has retained design firm Arthur Schuster as it develops its five-year plan for the community areas, upgrading and renovating the lighting, carpeting, and furniture. “It’s very much like the hotel business,” said Rogerino. “Every few years, you have to upgrade.”

The organization is redesigning the individual units to improve accessibility for its patient population. In general, residents are moving into CCRCs later in life with increased physical challenges. Long-range plans include upgrading the bathrooms and kitchens to accommodate the motorized devices many of the residents now use, as well as improving the flooring to reduce trip hazards and upgrading emergency call systems.

“We want to make sure our residents move into an environment that is functional for them,” said Rogerino. “We’re in the process of hiring Dr. Lorraine Hiatt, president of Innovage, Inc., a noted long-term care designer and planner, to ensure the changes address accessibility issues of current and future residents.”

Rogerino believes the aesthetics and size of the units, which range from 750 square feet to 2,000 square feet, are part of the reason Winchester Gardens has maintained 95% occupancy, but he realizes the role his employees play in ensuring each resident is satisfied.

“The quality provision of service by our employees is significant,” he said. “We have minimal turnover, especially in management, and we devote a lot of time and energy into training and customer service. Our industry is similar to the hotel industry in that the front-line workers can make or break you.”

Nearly 90% of resident interactions are with front-line employees. Winchester Gardens provides significant benefits and competitive pay scales, but Rogerino knows that’s only the first step in recruitment and retention; 70% of turnover depends on the relationship employees have with their direct supervisors.

“It comes down to the basics of operating and of customer service,” he said. “You can never have a handle on the basics. Operations are a continual work in progress. When I see problems in departments, it usually comes down to employees not understanding who their direct supervisor is. It’s all about management. Success depends heavily on paying attention to the basics.”

Commitment to excellence
That philosophy has worked for Rogerino, who has been with Winchester Gardens for more than 30 years. That and the myriad of challenges he has had to tackle through the decades. “We’ve evolved from aged respectable bachelors and widowers to opening the community to women,” he said. “At that time, the struggle was the number of men resisting opening the home to women.”

Winchester Gardens also went through a challenging transition when the community was evolving to a CCRC. However, the community’s commitment to excellence and education has steered it through those challenges, and Rogerino expects the same moving forward.

“There has been continuous evolution throughout the years,” he said. “Challenges have been there, and we’ve evolved. It will always come back to the same thing: you have to continually educate to ensure success.”

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