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For generations nursing homes have had a stigma. Leila Jones is rewriting the narrative. “Many people still associate nursing homes with loss, rather than seeing them as communities where residents can thrive and enjoy meaningful connections,” Jones says.
From day one, Jones has been on a mission to change how people view skilled nursing. “We’re all trying to recreate what that looks like,” Jones says. She puts that philosophy to work every day as VP of communications at Creative Solutions in Healthcare, Texas’s largest independent owner and operator in long-term care.
Jones’s passion for reinventing the nursing home and making it a more desirable place to live grows out of her empathy for individuals too sick to care for themselves, and for those needing a comfortable and enjoyable place during their twilight years. Creative Solutions’ residents have round-the-clock care, get three square meals a day, and have access to life enrichment tools. “It comes down to us, as caregivers, and family members working toward helping heal and recover this resident, and doing it in a way they’re comfortable the whole time,” Jones explains.
Jones brings an enthusiasm and an optimism to her mission, joking that she says the word “excited” ten times a day. The parts of her job that excite her and fuel her positive outlook more than any others are counting team wins and changing individuals’ lives. “I think a lot of people tend to not focus on wins,” Jones says. “Every single day, I try to find some sort of win, like asking my team members for what their wins are. I think that’s how you maintain that optimism.”
While quick to celebrate every team win, Jones knows wins can feel empty if they don’t advance the mission of serving others and making them feel valued. “That’s the reason I’ve been mission oriented. I really did find a home in healthcare because it’s about caring for people,” the VP explains. A favorite quote of hers states “anyone can make a difference, and everyone should try,” Jones says. “A single individual doesn’t have to change the world to make a difference in another person’s life.”
Since coming to Creative Solutions in 2018, Jones has seen the company grow exponentially from 55 facilities to 174 And it’s not stopping there. “We’ve had a lot of acquisitions. In fact, we have five new buildings coming on board on July 1st. That translates to about 10,000 residents. It’s a fun time,” Jones shares.
The VP has a wide range of duties integral to the acquisition process, like marketing efforts around rebranding. One of the buildings they’re bringing on has a different name, so they’re changing the DBA (doing business as) while developing a new logo and brand standards.
Another of Jones’s duties is automating the customer success process using an AI platform from DataIQ With each new admission, Creative Solutions in Healthcare’s
customer service team contacts family members to seek their opinion on the admissions process. While interpersonal interaction is welcome, beyond that contact there’s a slew of follow-up tasks. Jones and the IT department created a form automating those tasks. After the initial contact, customer service fills out the form, which then sends those follow-up tasks to the appropriate individuals. “We’ve taken a very abstract, qualitative idea, and we found ways to make it quantitative. I can see how many issues occurred at specific locations or how many occurred across the organization. I feel like I’ve made a difference. It’s just been so exciting,” Jones says.
Without question, the most complex aspect of healthcare is patient intake. Jones is currently working with CoreCare to implement a software called Pre-Admit that evaluates referrals quickly and efficiently, smoothing the intake process. “The hospital sends a referral, you read through it and make sure the patient would be appropriately placed with you. Then you go back and forth with the case manager and arrange transport. Then they come in and you start your care. It’s all pre-admission,” Jones explains.
“Every single day, I try to find some sort of win, like asking my team members for what their wins are. I think that’s how you maintain that optimism.”
Leila Jones
Creative Solutions is a parent company to the facilities it acquires. CoreCare and Pre-Admit help Jones create best practices for its acquisitions. In addition, she and her team write policies and procedures, create guardrails, develop standard operating procedures, generate training materials, and develop specific key performance indicators. “This is so we can follow up and know prior to the end outcome that we have had success along the way and then create action plans meeting those key performance indicators,” the VP notes. It’s like she’s standing at B and trying to get to Z. She’s turning a basic abstract idea into a road map, she says.
Jones, an avid traveler, finds several similarities between hospitality and skilled nursing, and often adopts and implements procedures from the hospitality industry to her facilities.
“This is how they greeted me and how I did my check-in at this hotel compared to another hotel. This is what it felt like when I got to the room and I logged onto the Wi-Fi,” the VP says.
Jones brings these fresh ideas from her travels back to Creative Solutions, continuously adding new techniques to the patient experience on her mission to help all patients feel valued, and to rewrite the existing narrative on nursing facilities.
