One thing that’s always been special to me about covering the senior living design industry is the personal stories many of you have shared with us at Environments for Aging. So often, there’s an underlying experience that’s driven you to this field—frequently, a loved one who was a resident in a senior living community that lacked the type of comfortable, supportive, resident-centered environments you all work so hard to establish today.
It reminds me of my own time spent at the bedside of grandparents in institutional nursing homes. Like you, I still remember the sound and smell and so many other things that I wish could have been very different.
So, it’s been such an honor to be a part of what you do—our mission at EFA is to provide you with the insight, information, and inspiration you need to continue to push senior living design forward. Each project that crosses my desk demonstrates the strides that have been made over these years, the fruit of all your labor.
Thoughtful senior living design pays off
And just one recent report demonstrates the difference. Research conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago and funded through a grant from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care shows that adults experience a decline in vulnerability after moving into a senior living community. Data exhibits that residents experienced a 10 percent decline in relative frailty levels one year after moving in.
Plus, the patterns were consistent across all levels of care and community types.
That’s meaningful change, the type of result that the communities of decades ago would have been hard-pressed to achieve.
Design Champions and EFA transitions
It’s thanks to your efforts and the efforts of many others that have allowed senior living to evolve and become a place of choice and not last resort. In this issue, you’ll find the stories of our 2023 Design Champions, individuals who we celebrate for outstanding efforts to keep that evolution going.
Meanwhile, we here at EFA will continue to support you on that journey—and for me, I’ll be doing that in a different way. After publication of this issue, I’ll step into a new role as Brand Director, where I’ll lead EFA holistically across media and events.
I’m excited to share that Anne DiNardo will become your new editor-in-chief. Anne has been with our team for 11 years and brings immense talent and experience to guide where this magazine goes next. Join me in congratulating her, and I look forward to what lies ahead.
