From Hallways to Households:
UCH’s Commitment to Culture Change What jumps into your mind when you hear the words nursing home? Think about it. Did you picture a bright, friendly place, where staff and neighbors are like family? Did you envision an open floor plan and sun-filled community gathering spaces? Chances are, your idea of a nursing home is vastly different.
Culture Change and Person-Directed Care As a national leader in senior living, United Church Homes has transformed its communities into warm, welcoming and life-affirming homes for thousands of older adults. The reason? Culture change. A few years ago, United Church Homes began looking at the Pioneer Network as a source of inspiration. The basic principle that incites culture change is moving from providerdirected to person-directed care. And yes, that’s exactly as simple as it sounds — from staff choosing residents’ food and schedules to residents making their own choices, with staff adapting to residents’ wants and needs. While it’s not a complex idea, moving to person-directed care can have a profound and positive effect on the wellbeing of older adults living in long-term and short-term care communities.
Creating Home With person-directed care in mind, UCH wanted its communities to be where older adults would choose to live. What does that change look like? Home isn’t necessarily the newest and shiniest place to be. Rather, it’s where an individual feels comfortable, at peace and safe.
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Uplands Village, a United Church Homes-managed community in Pleasant Hill, Tennessee, is an example of life plan community that has transformed hallways to households. It’s where you are surrounded by a community of extended family who make life meaningful. So, in each United Church Homes community, we strive to create that environment — every day. Many of our buildings were older, designed as institutions — more hospital than home. Over the past decade, we’ve converted those hallways to neighborhoods and transformed units to households. We didn’t just alter the language, though that remains incredibly important. We created elements in each community that mirror home — dining rooms where residents eat together, sharing
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a meal and conversation; gathering spaces, indoors and out, where residents can meet their friends and families to play games, go for walks or just catch up; and areas where residents can experience UCH’s oneof-a-kind community life — activities and events chosen, and often led, by residents. Nearly every owned and managed United Church Homes community has adapted this type of environment. From memory care neighborhoods to skilled nursing households, United Church Homes has followed the Pioneer Network’s ideals and turned hallways into homes.
