Environments for Aging - Spring 2020 - 9

EDITORIAL

Coming together
The COVID-19 pandemic is a call to this industry to unite as
we collectively look forward By Jennifer Kovacs Silvis

The ongoing COVID-19 crisis continues to evolve at a rapid
pace, making it difficult to know where we'll stand as a country and an industry when this issue of Environments for Aging
is delivered to you.
What I do know now, though, is that we've all been quickly
thrust into an entirely new and challenging reality-both
personally and professionally. Many of us are living in states
with stay-at-home orders in place and are working remotely.
Industry events have been canceled, including our own EFA
Expo & Conference (see page 10 for more). Meanwhile, we
have friends and family members deemed essential workers
who continue to support our communities, our healthcare
organizations, and our senior living centers.
And how this pandemic has affected the latter can't be overstated. By now we're
well familiar with what unfolded at Life Care Center of Kirkland in Kirkland, Wash.,
where 129 cases of COVID-19 were identified, resulting in the deaths of 23 people,
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In response, we've seen senior living communities across the country fall under
new guidance from the CDC and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, including
restricting all visitors, with exceptions made only for end-of-life scenarios, as well as
nonessential and volunteer workers. Group activities and communal dining have been
canceled, while the health of residents and staff is being closely monitored.
Providers are now doing a forced reset of their operations at just about every level.
And while so much of what's being managed today exists in the operational realm, its
long-term effect on the design of senior living environments will certainly come.
I reached out to our EFA Editorial Advisory Board to gauge their initial thoughts on
COVID-19 and its influence on design. Vassar Byrd, chief executive officer of Rose
Villa Senior Living in Portland, Ore., said construction on the community's new skilled
nursing neighborhood has paused, allowing her time to reach out to staff to reflect
on how this current crisis might still influence the project going forward. For example,
she's considering details as specific as the style of faucets on public sinks allowing for
proper handwashing and carefully thinking through the air-handling system.
Steve Lindsey, chief executive officer of Garden Spot Communities in New Holland,
Pa., is finding new appreciation for the household model and the ease it brings to
managing small cohorts of residents, and thus reducing the likelihood of infection
spread, as well as supporting social distancing and reducing feelings of isolation.
It's safe to say that these ideas will only continue to be realized. And as this
industry responds to help control COVID-19's reach into senior living today, I
encourage you to share your insights and observations with us at EFA. And we'll
do everything we can to keep this industry connected and informed, no matter the
distance between us. EFA

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Lori Alford
Chief Operating Officer
Avanti Senior Living
CC Andrews
President and Chief Strategist
Quantum Age Collaborative
David Banta
Associate
Wiencek + Associates Architects + Planners
Laura Busalacchi
Senior Director of Interior Services
Brookdale Senior Living
Vassar Byrd
Chief Executive Officer
Rose Villa Senior Living
Margaret Calkins
Board Chair
Ideas Institute
Daniel J. Cinelli
Managing Principal and Board Director
Perkins Eastman
Michelle Clark
Vice President of Development
Domus Development
Andy Coelho
Senior Vice President of Facilities, Design,
and Development
Sunrise Senior Living
Alexis Denton
Associate Principal
Perkins Eastman
Mitch Elliott
Senior Partner
RDG Planning & Design
Lorraine Hiatt
Environmental Gerontologist
Planning, Research and Design Consultation
Steve Lindsey
Chief Executive Officer
Garden Spot Communities
Dean Maddalena
Founder and President
StudioSix5
Eric McRoberts
Partner
RLPS Architects
Robert C. Pfauth
Director of Senior Living Planning
Erdman
Jane Rohde
Principal
JSR Associates Inc.
Jill Schroeder
Senior Planner/Senior Interior Designer
Pope Architects
Rob Simonetti
Senior Associate and Design Director
SWBR

Spring 2020
2019 * EFAmagazine.com

9
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Environments for Aging - Spring 2020

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