The Language of Senior Living
When I was in elementary school, I went to “Gym” class, presumably because that’s where it was located. Later, the class changed to PE (Physical Education), a better description of what took place in the gym. Now that my daughters are in elementary school, they take Motor Skills – a name that finally fits the benefit.
Isn’t the evolution of senior housing somewhat the same? My grandparents were elderly people who lived in a nursing home. Today, they might be older adults who receive personal services in a skilled care neighborhood.
The fact is, to change the perception of senior living, we must not only evolve the environment, services and programs. We should also choose words that best describe the benefit to the individual. Here are some suggestions from LeadingAge, formerly American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging. We applaud their name change and commitment to the future of senior living.
Certainly, this is not a new topic at GlynnDevins, but a client of mine recently reminded me this is a topic that’s worth repeating. Thank you, Beth, for the reminder and here is another post that is worth a read or re-read, What about the “F” word?.
If you’re doing anything in particular to change perceptions and focus on the benefits of senior living through the words you use, please tell us about it.
LSS has created a “Word of The Week” to guide our organization on our journey to person centered care. Everything from “the F word” to “wings” (now called neighborhoods or households). Building this type of speech helps to ensure the very words we speak match the culture we are trying to build.
At Kisco, we have a list we call “Totems and Taboos” identifying those words which are taboo and the totems that replace that word for our messaging and everyday conversations. This is part of the orientation when a new associate joins our team and supports our signature The Art of Living Well culture. We also share these with our business partners..
We selected many “institutional words” (about 50 of them) and featured them 1 by 1 in our employee newsletter. Ambulate vs. walk, toileting vs. helping someone use the restroom/bathroom, the hip in 110 vs. her name, Martha and so on. We encourage employees to catch each other and use words we use in our homes. The goal is to get them to think about why do we have a different language in the nursing home? Food for thought! Thinking about it makes us better!
Andea, you know how near and dear this subject is to me and the marketing team at PMMA. As you know the F word is n ot welcomed in the halls of PMMA because we are aware that our friends and loved ones would not like their homes referred to as facilities. So, kudos and thank you for reminding us, again, that something this important is worth the time of evolution.
Kudos to you all for working to create an environment where the perception can match the reality! Thank you for sharing.