Join 5000+ aging services leaders to shape the future of aging services at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting, October 25-27 in Philadelphia, PA. Discover strategies, tools, and connections to lead boldly in a rapidly evolving industry.

Here’s the lineup of education sessions led by researchers and staff at the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston.

Monday, October 26

17-E. Do Low Medicaid Payments Worsen Disparities in Nursing Homes?

3-4 p.m. ET

Do Medicaid payment levels affect quality and influence racial and ethnic disparities in individual nursing homes? This session will present findings from recent research on this previously unexplored question. Presenters will describe their analysis of a new national database containing facility- and resident-level data for nearly 9,500 nursing homes across 44 states. They’ll share findings on racial and ethnic disparities in nursing home quality and outcomes and examine whether these disparities are associated with Medicaid payment levels. Discover how Medicaid reimbursement shapes the association between a nursing home’s racial and ethnic composition, 5-star quality ratings, staffing levels, and resident-level quality outcomes.

  • John Bowblis, Research Fellow, Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University
  • Marc Cohen, Co-Director, LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston
  • Edward Miller, Professor and Chair, Department of Gerontology, UMass Boston
  • Elizabeth Simpson, Doctoral Candidate, UMass Boston

 

Tuesday, October 27

115-G. Supporting Older Adults to “LivWell” in Affordable Housing

8:30 – 9:30 a.m. ET

Residents of affordable senior housing communities face poor health outcomes and functional challenges linked to low incomes, advanced age, and racial and ethnic diversity. To address these urgent needs, two LeadingAge members—Springpoint Senior Living and Parker Health Group—created LivWell, an affordable-housing-based wellness initiative that supports quality of life, personal choice, lifelong development, and optimal well-being for more than 300 residents across 11 affordable housing communities. Presenters will discuss LivWell’s program design, governance structure, funding, and performance metrics. They’ll also share findings from a recent program evaluation by the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston.

  • Verena Cimarolli, VP, Applied Research and Partnerships, LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston
  • Michael Oakes, Chief Philanthropy Officer, Springpoint Senior Living
  • Donna Silbert, Chief Strategy Officer, Parker Health Group, Inc.

86-H. Measuring Quality in Assisted Living: Lessons from Minnesota

3-4 p.m. ET

As assisted living continues to grow, person-centered approaches to measuring its quality remain scarce. This session will explore how Minnesota addressed this gap by developing an electronic report card that rates assisted living communities on a 5-star scale, using state inspection data and surveys of residents and family members. Presenters will share key findings from the report card’s 2024 statewide implementation, which captured consumer feedback on autonomy, staff relationships, environment, food, and engagement across the state’s assisted living communities. You’ll review tools for measuring resident quality of life and family satisfaction in assisted living, and learn strategies for integrating person-reported measures into quality improvement.

  • Rachel Shands, Deputy Director, Aging and Adult Services Division, Minnesota Department of Human Services
  • Tetyana Shippee, Professor, University of Minnesota

142-H. A Collaborative Strategy for Developing the CNA Workforce

3-4 p.m. ET

Educators, providers, policymakers, and workforce leaders nationwide are rethinking how aging services providers recruit, train, support, and retain frontline caregivers. This session will highlight this collaborative effort. Presenters will describe a recent national meeting that examined the potential for multi-state collaboration to standardize certified nursing assistant (CNA) career pathways through state-based Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Programs. They’ll share lessons learned from convening stakeholders across education, workforce development, aging services, finance, policy, and care delivery systems to discuss workforce solutions. You’ll discover how stakeholder collaboration can drive system-wide changes in policy, practice, and workforce development.

  • Alice Bonner, Senior Advisor for Aging, Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)
  • Molly Carpenter, Director, Workforce Strategy and Development, LeadingAge
  • Robyn Stone, Strategic Advisor, LeadingAge