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Page 16 — Health Care & Senior Housing Quarterly — October 2021 www.crej.com SENIOR HOUSING — MARKET UPDATE M uch has been learned over the course of the pandem- ic. Conducting business with the continuing threat of COVID-19 has seemingly become routine. Even with the circu- lation of the COVID-19 delta variant primarily affecting the unvaccinated across the country, many senior housing and care operators are find- ing their organizations returning to some form of operational normalcy. However, staffing challenges – both retention and recruitment – are sig- nificant barriers. Staffing shortages that were expe- rienced by many senior housing and care operators prior to and exac- erbated by the pandemic persist. As recently as this summer, as the COVID-19 virus delta variant spread across the country, all operators responding to NIC’s Executive Survey Insights Wave 31 survey conducted in July reported that their organizations were experiencing staffing shortages. Among organizations with multiple properties, more than 80% reported staffing shortages in more than half of their properties. Shortages contin- ued to grow since the beginning of the year through July, all respondents were paying staff overtime hours, and four out of five organizations were tapping expensive agency/temp staff to fill gaps in schedules and replace workers who left the labor force during the pandemic. Amid these extraordinary findings, survey respondents were asked to rate the biggest challenge facing their organization. By August, the share of organizations that cited attracting community and caregiving staff as their biggest chal- lenge had risen from about 75% to roughly 90%. For context, NIC has been conduct- ing a survey of C-suite executives of small, medium and large senior housing and skilled nursing opera- tors from across the nation since March 2020, just after the pandemic began. Responses to the NIC Execu- tive Survey Insights represent hun- dreds of buildings and thousands of units across respondents’ portfolios of properties. The survey is the sec- tor’s longest running pulse of the industry survey with 33 waves of time-series data tracking the impact of the pandemic on senior living. The results, regularly released since near the beginning of the pandemic, have proven critical to the sector’s under- standing of real-time trends. According to NIC MAP data, pow- ered by NIC MAP Vision, labor avail- ability for personal care aides (as defined by the concentration of people working a job compared with the number of senior housing units/ beds in a specific area relative to the same measure for the U.S.) is the highest in NewYork City and many of the largest California markets, and lowest in Cincinnati and the largest Florida markets. Denver, as shown by the green bar in the chart, has lower than average (negative) labor avail- ability, which means there are com- paratively fewer personal care aides in Denver than national levels. Indeed, staff with the most hands- on work with residents is in shorter supply. Data from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services reveal that staffing shortages at nurs- ing and residential care facilities are greatest for nursing aides and nurses. There are potentially signifi- cant implications for providers that cannot support the necessary staff- ing levels for nursing care, including inability to accept new admissions, and also for delivery of services in lower-acuity settings like assisted liv- ing and independent living. Respondents to the survey also were asked to rate the most effective method of attracting new community staff. In August, 67% reported that increasing wages was most effective, followed distantly by referral bonuses (10%) and hiring bonuses (5%). Looking specifically at the data from the Bureau of Labor and Sta- tistics, the Colorado average wage for nursing assistants is higher than the national average wage. Wages for Colorado nursing assistants are high- est in Boulder and Denver, and lowest in Greeley and Pueblo. Labor shortages exist across all industry sectors – not just among health care workers – and senior housing and care operators in Colo- rado and across the country will remain challenged to retain and Labor is a critical challenge facing Colorado assets Let us Guide Your Senior Living Community to Success Consulting and Managed Services Call today to learn more. 720-400-3616 • Operational expertise • Regulatory compliance • Resident wellness programs • Clinical expertise • Sales and marketing • Resident satisfaction • Human resources and talent recruitment • Financial oversight • Innovative technologies • Centralized procurement • Project feasibility and development Independent Living | Assisted Living | Memory Care | www.WellAge.com | 12136W. Bayaud Ave. Suite 200, Lakewood, CO 80228 Jackson Creek Senior Living (CO) The Lodge at Greeley Senior Living (CO) Sopris Lodge at Carbondale (CO) Arbor View Senior Living (CO) The Lodge at Grand Junction Senior Living (CO) Carriage House (CO) Sterling Ridge Senior Living (NV) Willowood at Mustang Senior Living (OK) Emerald Square Senior Living (OK) Our Communities Lana Peck Senior principal, National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care Please see Peck, Page 21 Labor availability for personal care aides (as defined by the concentration of people working a job compared with the number of senior housing units/beds in a specific area relative to the same measure for the U.S.) is the highest in New York City and many of the largest California markets, and lowest in Cincinnati and the largest Florida markets. Denver, as shown by the green bar in the chart, has lower than aver- age (negative) labor availability, which means there are comparatively fewer personal care aides in Denver than national levels.

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