Smart projects further afield might be more likely to lead to a consultancy or management joint venture, where a partner would provide resources on the ground. “We never say no until we know what we’re saying no to,” Wright says, although he is more inclined towards growth close to iCare’s established geographic footprint.
iCare also has fielded calls from investors looking to bring a care partner into business deals. The 60West project and this new partnership in Holyoke, MA, have led to routine calls from others whose states are in need of similar skilled nursing outlets. “We never say no until we know what we’re saying no to.” It is the first time the company has gone outside Connecticut to provide care, but likely not the last. That led to iCare’s eventual purchase of a new building nearby and the transfer of all residents in partnership with the state.
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“One gets discharged and there’s more waiting to come in that have that need.” How to growĭuring the pandemic, a hospital system in Massachusetts reached out to iCare for help managing a facility for released prisoners.
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“These programs have typically always been full with residents with those needs,” Wright says. Despite that short-term nature, iCare had occupancy of 84.7% across all 12 facilities in mid-April, compared to an average of about 79% reported by operators nationally. While many behavioral patients may reside for the long-term, for others the goal remains to transition back to the broader community. Recruiting residents hasn’t been an issue, either. If we can help them and bring them up to their highest level of potential and even discharge them to the community, it’s very rewarding.” There are many employees who feel that they’re really helping … people with specialized needs who are very underserved. “When you’re specially trained in that, it’s very rewarding. “What we’ve found is that certain employees are sort of drawn to work in a specialty program,” Wright says, emphasizing the need for education to disprove stereotypes. One example: When iCare opened Connecticut’s 60West in 2013 to take in judicially involved patients, the CMS-licensed nursing home had more than 2,000 applicants wanting to help staff up the 95-bed facility.
Those individuals and short-term patients in the medical specialty units need a higher level of care than typical long-stay residents, making the nursing home a more attractive alternative for nurses who like the idea of practicing at the top of their license. You have to have the resources there, strict policies, and be able to train your staff appropriately for those types of residents and behaviors.” Refreshing labor situationĪ key to the iCare model is integrated staffing, including social workers for each behavioral health unit, contracted behavioral health experts such as psychiatrists and therapists hospital-affiliated specialists who can be tapped when other needs arise and a vice president of psychosocial services who coordinates efforts across the chain.Īlthough iCare has at times needed to shift much of its marketing to recruiting in recent months, it has in some ways been sheltered from industry-wide labor challenges.Ībout one-third to one-quarter of the chain’s residents have a behavioral diagnosis.
“You have to have the programming in place first. “I would caution anyone who’s doing behavioral health that you can’t just go into it thinking it’s going to put a head in the bed or be a census filler,” he says. CMS also reinforced its willingness to pay for diagnosis and treatment of such needs.īut skilled nursing providers need to proceed carefully, Wright warns. On April 13, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services unveiled a new behavioral health strategy that promotes access to prevention and treatment services for substance use disorders, mental health services, crisis intervention and pain care in a person-centered approach. A 2021 report from Brown University found the percentage of people diagnosed with serious mental illness, many of them under 65, has continued to increase in skilled nursing facilities, posing new challenges for both compliance and quality outcomes.
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