Engagement with FHCA’s Florida Center for Assisted Living (FCAL) Committee is the best way to start 2019. Active participation as an assisted living provider will make a difference for you and your team, your residents and the profession. The FCAL Committee, chaired by Steven Rule, is making 2019 a year that impacts more assisted living facilities and more residents than ever before. Many things are happening that can help you in your day-to-day and overall operations.
FHCA’s FCAL Committee has developed a strategic plan to accomplish measurable goals in 2019. One goal is to increase assisted living facility membership by 5% by December 2019. So why does that matter? It matters because each ALF represents many individual staff members and residents who can be given the professional support that FHCA provides.
That support includes team of qualified experts in assisted living care. FHCA’s Quality Affairs team is available for consultation on regulatory and survey issues, or initiatives to improve your care and operations. The volunteer leaders on FHCA’s Quality Cabinet and the Risk/Compliance Council have also developed resources related to elopement prevention, risk management, reporting adverse incidents and more. Future topics will also include narcotic diversion prevention and customer service resources.
Support is there when you engage in these FHCA resources, which are delivered in several ways. One way is during monthly FCAL Committee conference calls, which provide timely education and gather feedback directly from you, the provider. During these calls, leaders and experts in assisted living care provide information on issues that challenge the assisted living staff and operations, such as the latest updates on rule changes and survey trends. This information can be shared with your staff to help promote quality and knowledge within your facility. These calls bring the meeting to you, making it convenient for you to be engaged often as an FCAL member in 2019.
Advocacy is another important way to engage as an ALF provider. On March 20, the FCAL Committee hold its own Lobby Wednesday in Tallahassee. This experience provides an opportunity for ALF providers to visit with legislators at the Capitol and discuss issues impacting assisted living operations in Florida. Supporting the preemption of local authorities to impose additional generator requirements on ALFs is just one of the priorities we’ll focus on this session. You can read more about FHCA’s 2019 legislative priorities here, and email Teresa Hamlin at FHCA to confirm your attendance at Lobby Wednesday on March 20.
Along with these informational conference calls, FCAL will host webinars in the months ahead to address topics of concern. We started the year with FHCA Regulatory Counsel Karen Goldsmith speaking about managing medical marijuana in the ALF. On March 15, ALF providers may benefit from hearing speakers discuss how to implement an effective compliance program. There are webinars on specific topics of concern in 2019. In August, FHCA’s 2019 Annual Conference will provide a full day of ALF training and more CEUs for your leadership. FHCA’s online calendar is the best resource for learning about the many educational opportunities in which you can become engaged and informed.
If you’re looking to start or continue your journey in quality care, you can be engaged in the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) Quality Awards process. FHCA has a Baldridge Master Examiner on staff to assist you at any stage in the process. Being encouraged and guided by a qualified expert can help you continue to reach your goals.
At the national level, FCAL Committee members are represented by Julia Pratt from Bartram Lakes, who serves as the Florida representative to NCAL. Julia is tapped in to federal issues and brings those to the committee to keep members informed.
Now that you know more about how you can be an engaged FCAL member, we hope you’ll encourage your others within your organization and ALF providers in your surrounding area to join you as a member. There is strength in numbers, and increasing ALF membership will give us wider reach, a stronger voice and greater improvements in the profession as more providers access the benefits FHCA has to offer. Our recap of FCAL’s 2018 activity is a great resource to share with prospective members to help them learn about the services and successes from the past year.
FHCA is strong because of the active member engagement, and that includes the assisted living sector. This year, FHCA’s FCAL Committee plans to be stronger than ever, and that will be because of you.
