Opportunity in the New Normal

In March, Creative Spark launched our “What’s your Spark Status?” quiz to continue our mission of research-driven innovation. We’ve been collecting data from senior living leaders about their teams and their experience with training. We are applying what we have learned to move us forward as we inspire and energize team members who work with older adults. Please keep in mind that this is preliminary data as we intend to expand our data set and hopefully refine our results, but we want to share with you what we are noticing so far and what it could mean for the industry and the humans connected to it. 

The quiz has four potential outcomes: 

Flickering Spark – Organizations in need of immediate support, with a primary focus on staff well-being. 

Generating Spark – Organizations in transition, often experiencing staff instability or limited team connection.

Scouting Spark – Organizations open to innovation and exploring opportunities for growth.

Well-Tendered – Organizations with a strong existing foundation seeking advanced training to support culture shift and continuous improvement.

A graphic illustrating the results of the “Spark Status” quiz so far

The majority of the respondents (9 of 15) were designated “Generating Spark” (60%). Four respondents received the “Scouting” designation, two received the “Well-Tended” designation and one received the Flickering designation. We also found similar results in our previous quizzes from exclusively SNF communities with 76% of participants designated “Generating Spark.”

What this tells us: 

Senior Living and Health Care as industries have been through a great deal of strain and change since the COVID 19 pandemic lockdown in 2020. Many health care workers left the industry altogether because of the stress and trauma. Senior Living Communities saw decline in their residents due to inactivity and slower adaptation to changing circumstances. As well, team members started burning out due to the constant need to pivot and support others through the crisis. 

Six years later and many Skilled Nursing Communities have seen a decline in staff numbers and a proportional decrease in residents since there are not enough team members to keep the needed caregiver to resident ratios. Some of these communities have only recently let go of constant mask wearing requirements within the last 18 months which although necessary has impeded the ability to connect to co-workers and residents in the ways that are most rewarding. So, the impact of COVID is still very much being experienced in Senior Living Communities. 

Now we are in what some have called a “new normal”, an acknowledgment that we are forever changed by those experiences and face the future with new points of view. Faced with high turnover and worker burnout, industry leaders are focused on creating cultures that encourage team members to stay and offer comprehensive learning and professional development pathways. 

We see this in our data when we ask participants what one thing they would improve if they had a magic wand. 46% of respondents marked “Communication and culture”. In addition, 40% are prioritizing “Greater passion and joy onsite during the workday” over any other cultural change in their organization. How to improve culture, communication, a sense of purpose, and joy then is where an opportunity presents itself. 

Two Creative Spark participants paint community art together

Creative Spark advocates applying a creative lens and enchanting both work environments and human connections in order to move senior living toward a dynamic, joyful culture where team members want to work and residents want to live. But, is the industry ready for change? The overwhelming results from our quiz say YES! 93% of participants say they are open or very open to trying a creative or non-traditional approach to training. Given this response, the window of opportunity offered by the “new normal” is open and ready for a fresh, new perspective on training and subsequent changes in behavior that over time create a culture that supports joy and purpose in meaningful ways.

These are preliminary findings based on 15 respondents from the senior living industry. Help us expand our data set and refine our results. Take the quiz now or forward it to your senior living colleagues! 

Veronicah Cohen (she/her) is Creative Spark’s Program Manager and an advocate for creative living at all stages of life. Her passion is supporting care providers through mindfulness and joy for the ultimate benefit of everyone in our care communities. 

This article’s statistics and analysis were supported by Business Strategist, Park Cofield (he/him). Park is a human-centered community builder, strategy consultant, and social entrepreneur with a specialty in building programs and products with and for older adults. He excels at designing spaces for conversation, interaction, and creative engagement. You can learn more about his work at:www.parkcofield.com