Perkins Eastman white paper explores state of the senior living industry in the Carolinas

Perkins Eastman announced the publication of “The State of Senior Living in the Carolinas,” a new white paper written by David J. Segmiller, AIA, Managing Principal of the firm’s Charlotte, N.C., office.

The report is a summary of a series of one-on-one interviews that Segmiller conducted with a number of influential leaders of existing Continuing Care Retirements Communities (CCRCs) and multi-facility providers throughout North and South Carolina.

All interviewees were posed the same nine questions related to current trends affecting their communities’ recent successes and challenges, and to gauge how such trends will affect the senior living industry as a whole in the coming years. Among those interviewed, there was a general consensus that the CCRC industry is changing, driven by both its changing consumer and more prevalent global interest on the effects of aging.

Among the topics discussed were:
• The shift in financial models for not-for-profit vs. for-profit providers
• Changing resident demographics
• Staffing trends and retention efforts
• Delivery of services outside the community

One CEO of a CCRC in South Carolina said: “I think our industry is being redefined, both from a product standpoint and a programmatic standpoint. We as providers either are smart enough to be a part of that new definition, in creating that definition, listening to that consumer or that consumer, or it will be redefined without our input.”

According to Segmiller, “Being involved in designing senior living environments for more than 30 years has shown me that our industry and its providers are innovative and responsive to the residents’ needs and demands. The industry will be challenged more than ever by the increasing demands of a growing consumer base and challenges to staffing and economic issues … The future of senior living in the Carolinas appears bright, but with hurdles and pitfalls driven by the market, regulations and changing demographics.”

The full paper is available for download at: http://www.perkinseastman.com/white_papers.