EHM remembers the families in Newtown whose lives were forever changed one week ago today.  We join with our neighbors throughout our State and our Nation today in a moment of silence to remember those lost.

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like...

We're getting in the holiday spirit here at EHM...

Linda, Tammy and Lee putting together some gift bags for the Home Office crew.

What events do you does your community have for the holidays?

Have some great decorations you'd like to share a picture of?

Have a Resident whose door is particularly festive?

What holidays do your Residents celebrate? 

Rules of the Road - Reasonable Accommodations

Reasonable Accommodations and Modifications are one of the numerous challenging areas of our daily business.  Recently, some items have caught my attention, so I wanted to clarify some of the aspects of dealing with these requests.  

Documenting

Be sure to track Reasonable Accommodations using the log form (Procedure 3-25 on the Forms and Procedures page of this blog)

I was recently told by USDA/RD that they want Reasonable Accommodations kept in a separate file, all on their own.  SO, from this point onward, rather than keeping the Reasonable Accommodations in the “Personal” file, keep all accommodations in one separate file. Keep the log in that file as well.  A binder is acceptable, and may be more workable for you.

Be sure to keep my approval email in the file.  You will want to sign a Reasonable Accommodation Agreement for anything that has limiting conditions - modifications to policies, etc.  Grab bars do not require an agreement.

Parking

Remember that assigned parking spaces are, for the most part, easily granted and do not pose a burden. The exception is when people are requesting that we make a new handicap space, or are asking that we assign them one of the already labeled handicap spaces. Some things to keep in mind:

The mandated handicapped spaces MUST be available on a first-come, first-served basis to anyone with a permit – at all times.  We cannot in any way, or at any time, restrict their use.  Even if someone is assigned a space, if they have a handicapped permit, they can park in a handicapped space (in some cases, the reserved space may be further away from the handicap space).  If there is a specific concern, please bring it to my attention.

Response Requirements

We should have an initial response back to the resident within 10 days of receiving all needed documentation.  Sometimes, that response may be “We are researching…and expect to get back to you by…” but they must get a response.  If verification has not been received in two weeks, you should follow up as you would for any missing verification - and should advise the Resident that we have not received verification yet.  Feel free to nag me if you need to.  I am now tracking response times – I am using Outlook to monitor my own responses, and suggest that you utilize this resource for yourself.

I should receive a copy of all Reasonable Accommodation requests – grab bars,  parking, transfers – everything.  Some of you may install grab bars upon any request, without going through the RA process, and that’s fine, as long as you follow the same rule for everyone.  But anything that constitutes a Reasonable Accommodation should be copied to me.

Verification

RSCs can serve as verifiers – they have received direction from Lee as to what items and under what circumstances they can and cannot “sign off” on a request.  I trust their judgment on whether they feel they can do so.  If you have concerns, bring them to my attention, and I will discuss those with Lee.

Remember, with “obvious or known” disabilities, and/or “obvious or known” relationships between the item requested and a known disability, there may be no need for third-party documentation.  When in doubt, check with me before sending out a third-party verification. 

Undue Burden

The decision on whether something is an undue burden, or must be put off pending additional funds, must be reached in consultation with me.  There may indeed be times we decline to do an accommodation or modification due to substantial cost and low resources, but there is a process to be followed in such cases. 

Additional Note:

Please understand that my involvement is not meant to imply that I don’t trust our staff.  I do.  You are competent professionals and do your jobs with great care.  My involvement is to ensure that we comply with the rules – and to ensure that you all have the resources that you need.  In short, (and to adapt the "Scrubbing Bubbles" slogan) I worry about this stuff so you don’t have to.  When in doubt, I am only a phone call or email away.

Here We Go Again...

Looks like we've got a Nor'easter headed at us for mid-week.  Reports vary from rain, to snow, to rain-sleet-snow.  Two things everyone agrees on - it's going to be wet, and it's going to be windy.

This soon after another major storm, lots of wet and lots of wind can make this one even more dangerous than the last.  Saturated ground and weakened trees and branches can result in even more trees down than in the hurricane.  Make sure your site is prepared, and encourage your Residents to make preparations too.

The Red Cross has some great resources for storm preparation; you may want to post these at your site, or distribute them to your Residents:

Preparing for Power Outages

Pet Safety in Disasters

Food and Water in an Emergency

Central Voice Answering Service Down

Central Voice, which provides the answering service for most EHM / CHM sites, is based out of New Jersey.  Like a large part of New Jersey, that means that they are not operational at this time.

This means that if your site uses Central Voice, you do not have an answering service until further notice.  Please notify residents that the service is down until they are notified otherwise, and make sure that they have contact information that includes:

• Appropriate Site Staff (Superintendent / Maintenance staff / Administrator)
• Regional Manager 
• Assistant Director of Property Management (Pam)
• Director of Property Management (Tammy)

Please also advise them that those numbers should be reached in case of a building issue - for medical emergencies, the first call should always be to 911.  A courtesy call can be made to appropriate site staff if that is possible - but only after the medical emergency has been taken care of.

Guidelines for Site Staff Response to Sandy

If you are reading this, you're one of the CT residents lucky enough to have power and Internet access, or a smartphone, or access to someone else's power and internet connection.  

Be aware that the EHM Employee Recognition luncheon, scheduled for tomorrow,  has been postponed; you will be advised of further details.

When responding to your site, please use caution during travel.  Do not drive over downed power lines or through standing water.  Follow the instructions of local authorities as well as our state government with regard to restricted roads, etc.

Check on your Residents, and make sure everyone is OK.  If you are unable to reach your site, but have staff living on the premises (Superintendents, etc.), please ask them to check on your Residents - particularly those you know who may have existing health issues, may need assistance, or have limited or no family involvement.  

Be aware of what shelters and resources exist in your community (call InfoLine 211 for info on what shelters have been established in your area), and be ready to assist your Residents in accessing those services.

Some members of the Regional / Property Management team are without power.  If you need assistance, you may contact Tammy or Pam, both of whom have power and Internet, and are monitoring phone and email communications.  If you are without power, the bad news is that the utility companies are unable to give restoration estimates at this time.

Above all, please be safe. 

Useful links:

WFSB - School / Business / Road closings

State of CT Governor's office  - Hurricane Sandy Preparation
CL&P Outage Map
UI Outage Map
Town-by-Town list of shelters

UPDATE 10/29 at 11:37 a.m.:
Rosemary and Andre'a also have power and Internet so are available if needed.

Highways Still Closed Due to Sandy

HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) -

Gov. Dannel Malloy made it clear Monday night that a truck ban is still being enforced on all state highways, however those people who need to get home from work or provide "essential services" will not be ticketed by police or Connecticut troopers.

Malloy said residents have listened to the warnings and stayed off the roadways.

"Unless your life depends on leaving your home, then don't," he said.

The closures will be implemented in two phases, Malloy said.

At 11 a.m., trucks were prohibited from operating on limited access highways, and at 1 p.m., state highways will be closed to all non-emergency-related vehicles.

"Residents need to take this storm very seriously. Beginning in the next several hours, wind gusts will begin to exceed 50 mph, making traveling along our roads, especially wooded areas like the Merritt Parkway, very dangerous," Malloy said. "We're doing this in two phases, so that trucks will first be prohibited and then all non-emergency vehicles. If you're in a non-evacuation area, stay home..."

More here:

Other links:

You can check CL&P outages here:

UI outages can be checked here:

State of CT response info can be found here

Regional Meeting Agenda - Tuesday, October 23, 2012

For those of you attending the Regional Meeting on Tuesday October 23rd, you can download the agenda here.

And just to see how many of you are using the blog, anyone who reads this post and downloads the agenda off the blog will get a prize (no printing a copy for a friend - that's cheating!).

SSA Announces COLA for 2013

The Social Security Administration has announced a 1.7% Cost of Living Adjustment for 2013.

The details are in the Press Release here.

Medicare information is not out yet.

Free Time is Fair Time for Lisa Lundberg

Many of you have met Lisa Lundberg, the Assistant Administrator at Chestnut Hill and Laurel Ridge.  While taking in the Bridgewater Fair with my husband this past weekend, I heard a cheery "Hi Pam!" and looked up to see none other than Lisa headed towards us.   She told us she was there with her daughter, who was showing a 4-H project cow!  Being an animal nut, and having never really gotten up close to a cow, I asked if I could stop by and see her daughter's show entry. 

Though she did allow me to pet her, said cow was completely unimpressed with my presence.  I'm a lot less interesting than hay, apparently ;)

So if you happen to be taking in some of the fairs this year, be sure to stop by the barns - you just may run into Lisa!

Kudos - Sarah Rudzavice

In my travels around our portfolio of sites, I often come across some great ideas, which I'm hoping to share with you all on this blog.  Saw this one today at North Purchase, so here is the start of my "Kudos" category of posts:

Check out this welcome packet North Purchase gives its new Residents.  Sarah uses these in order to make sense of the pile of papers new Residents get.  Included in this packet is the Resident Handbook, information on the site contacts and office hours, and a nifty little welcome brochure.  The brochure gives a quick reference to the area - local restaurants, places of worship, grocery stores, pharmacies that deliver, etc., as well as some other information about the town, and even a map!  Sarah's card is also included.

There's plenty of room for the Residents to use it to store their Lease and other items, so it's a perfect way for them to consolidate all their important rental documents. 

Great idea, Sarah!

You're Never Too Old to Be a Hero

I find it amusing that when you tell people you work in senior housing, you often get comments about how "quiet" it must be, and you hear a lot of stereotypes about senior citizens. 

You don't often hear people talk about 72-year-olds jumping in to save the day:

Inspired by a recent video of tourists rescuing 30 plus beached dolphins in Brazil, 72-year-old George Heheman put the techniques he saw in that video into action when he came upon a stranded dolphin himself.


According to Good Morning America, Heheman was taking a leisurely boat ride in Jacksonville, Fla., over the weekend with his wife and daughter, Kerry Ware, when they saw a dolphin stuck on a sandbar. Remembering in the Brazil rescue mission the beachgoers pulled the dolphins back to sea by their tails, Heheman began to do the same.

Read the full story here.

Memory - a Parody by Pam Peterson

Old or young, you will appreciate this lighthearted look at some of the absent-minded moments we all experience. Not meant to make light of serious illnesses that we all know can affect memory, this is presented as a simple bit of humor.

Well, Who Didn't See THIS Coming?

From Mark Alper of the National Center for Housing Management comes word that Congress may not reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) when it expires in the near future.  But according to Mark, that doesn't necessarily mean that the protections are likely to go away:

If I were to bet, and I am the furthest thing from a gambler because the compliance mindset doesn't involve much risk-taking, my money would be on HUD finding a way to keep VAWA even if the law isn't reauthorized. Specifically, I can see the Department acting in a manner similar to its promulgation of regulations on equal access in HUD programs regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.

If there's one thing that's true about regulated housing, it's that the rules are ever-changing.

More over at Mark Alper's Compliance Corner

Welcome

Welcome to the brand-spanking-new EHM Compliance blog!

This will be your springboard for all things Compliance - forms, procedures, hints and tips, and news of note.

This is very much a work in progress at this point, but we hope to get it fully functional as soon as possible.