HaroldUrman
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May 8, 2009, 7:34 AM
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A Closer Look at Independent Living Resident Satisfaction
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In January, we reported that most independent living residents were satisfied with their quality of life in independent living communities. We also informed you that satisfaction with the following domains of independent living was most strongly related to overall Quality of Life:
. The Administration
. Staff Competence
. Dining Services
. Communication Between Residents and Staff
Now we would like to take a closer look at each of these domains to further understand resident quality of life.
Our findings are based on analyses of data from the Vital Research national database of Independent Living Residents over the past five years. The database includes survey results for more than 16,000 independent living residents. The Administration, Competence, and Communication domains are each comprised of five questions and the Dining domain consists of 24 questions.
Independent living residents were very satisfied with the services they receive in their communities.
Within the Staff Competence domain, residents reported that staff were efficient (97%) and took the time necessary to do a good job (96%).
Satisfaction scores within the Administration domain indicated that residents trusted that there was open communication between residents and administrative staff (94%) and that their communities had sufficient resources to meet their lifetime care commitments (94%).
Satisfaction within the Dining Services domain was also high, with 93% of residents reporting that they get the foods that they like.
Table 1 shows some of the items with the strongest relationship to overall satisfaction. These results indicate that residents were most satisfied with communities where they had a voice, staff were well-trained, the administration was responsive, and the food was high quality and well prepared.
Table 1: Satisfaction with Independent Living
Satisfaction scores across all items tended to remain stable or increase each time satisfaction was measured indicating Independent Living facilities are using their
satisfaction data to make improvements to their resident services. Chart 1 shows levels of Independent Living resident satisfaction over data collection periods, some facilities measured satisfaction up to five times.
Chart 1: Satisfaction Across Measurement Periods
While there are many factors contributing to resident quality of life in independent living communities, our results indicate that residents are most satisfied with communities where:
. The care is person-centered
. The staff are knowledgeable and have the skills necessary to do their jobs efficiently and with care,
. The administration communicates openly with residents and is responsive to resident concerns,
. The food is of high quality, is cooked correctly, and there is sufficient variety both in the menu items and the types of food served.
Harold N. Urman, Ph.D. is an educational psychologist and co-founder of Vital Research, a consulting firm specializing in research and evaluation. Established in 1982 and based in Los Angeles, Vital Research is a national research and consulting firm with expertise in senior living services satisfaction measurement.
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(This post was edited by HaroldUrman on May 8, 2009, 9:23 AM)
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