The Future Leaders Awards program is delivered to you in partnership with PointClickCare. This system is designed to acknowledge up-and-coming trade members who’re shaping the subsequent decade of behavioral well being, senior housing, expert nursing, dwelling well being, and hospice care. To see this 12 months’s Future Leaders, go to https://futureleaders.agingmedia.com/.
Emina Krajina, government director at Friendship Village, has been named a 2024 Future Chief by Senior Housing Information.
To turn out to be a Future Chief, a person is nominated by their friends. The candidate have to be a high-performing worker who’s 40-years-old or youthful, a passionate employee who is aware of the right way to put imaginative and prescient into motion, and an advocate for seniors, and the dedicated professionals who guarantee their well-being.
Krajina spoke with Senior Housing Information about her early curiosity and training in senior residing and the teachings she’s discovered since becoming a member of it, amongst different subjects.
What drew you to this trade?
As a youngster, I’ve been launched to caring for a geriatric particular person, my mom, and that was the beginning of my curiosity and training on seniors and the right way to present the absolute best care of their houses. My mom was identified with Alzheimer’s dementia early on in her life and I turned her caregiver. Not having correct assets and never figuring out the place to show to assist was exhausting. My objective was to discover a solution to affect caregivers and sufferers of their houses by offering totally different disciplines and assets to make their lives only a bit simpler.
What’s your greatest lesson discovered since beginning to work on this trade?
I’ve discovered a lot over the previous a number of years being in senior care and proceed to study, however one of many greatest classes discovered on this trade is that it’s important to constantly assess your company to make sure you are updated with federal and state guidelines and rules. Proceed educating your self to have the ability to educate your workers and go that data to our sufferers/caregivers and suppliers.
In the event you might change one factor with a watch towards the way forward for senior housing, what wouldn’t it be?
If I might change one factor towards the way forward for senior housing, it could be eliminating managed care go to restrictions. Each affected person is totally different with totally different acuity and a set variety of low reimbursement visits shouldn’t be sufficient for an company to make a huge effect on a affected person. Contracts and visits needs to be accredited by affected person acuity and desires.
What do you foresee as being totally different concerning the senior housing trade waiting for 2025?
Truthfully, I’m frightened about the way forward for senior care. We’re seeing a shift in sufferers switching to Medicare substitute plans which are strictly managed which makes it a lot tougher for dwelling well being companies to satisfy the wants of their sufferers and maintain low reimbursement charges for the company.
In a phrase, how would you describe the way forward for senior housing?
Unpredictable.
In the event you might give recommendation to your self wanting again to your first day within the trade, what wouldn’t it be and why?
It’s pure for people to leap into a brand new function and search methods to impress their new employer. Wanting again to my first day within the trade, I bought proper into it, but when I might return, I’d take these first days to easily observe and assess the surroundings: speak to workers, managers, assessment financials, compliance books, and many others. to have the ability to perceive the enterprise and its challenges.
