“A philosophical shift from care & protection of the body to support of people in obtaining lives of personal satisfaction. Person Centered Care gives personal attention to the people who live in Long Term Care and empowers staff to be a resident advocate. We believe in honoring each person’s dignity, rights, self-respect, and independence by giving them choices, respecting their wishes, meeting their needs, involving them in decision making process, giving them the control of their life and keeping them actively involved, happy and as healthy as possible.(PersonCenteredCare.com)”.
This brings me to the topic of the baby boomers. There are many reasons for the changes within the long term care facility industry but, most importantly they are because of the up and coming retirement of the nations almost eighty-million baby boomers. This is going to be a challenge for our country to accommodate and care for these people. “While the baby boom generation grows older and begins to retire, it is estimated that the number of persons aged 64 and up will most likely double by 2030 (CBO Study).” It is predicted that there will be a huge spike in the number of long-term care facilities being constructed in the next decade. The green movement is very popular within the baby boom generation, in an article from the wall street journal, Matthew Kahn, a professor at UCLA's Institute of the Environment couldn’t of said it better “Baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, grew up alongside the environmental movement of the 1960s and '70s. "These guys were at Woodstock,""This is the birth cohort that was at the environmental movement's summer of love (Market Watch).” There is so much that is involved with the care of elderly, from medical supplies and food to energy and transportation to waste treatment that it could potentially impact environment but, is it worth it? I am going to discuss the pro’s and con’s of both sides of the issue of going green and then decide if it has any practical application to the industry. In other words, is converting or constructing and maintaining long-term care facilities economically and environmentally sufficient? What is the process that a facility has to endure to become and maintain a “green” mode of operation?
In order to build and maintain a “green” facility we must first understand what it means to be green. According to web site that represents the top retirement homes in the US, going green means that the facility meets or beats the EPA’s Energy Star standards (topretirmenthomes.com). In order to meet the Energy Star’s requirements the facility needs to achieve high standards of indoor air quality by installing air ducts that have minimal leakage and they must be well insulated. The construction project must use building materials that are locally produced and or/recycled. In order to cut back on energy costs and up the efficiency of resources that the facility consumes it should also implement water conservation and storm water management. The building should also leave a minimal footprint on the land. Also for the building to maintain a green operation, it must install appliances that are energy efficient. Lastly, the establishment should keep carbon emissions low through the use of renewable energy or efficient building interior and exterior materials such as, high performance windows, effective levels of wall, and comprehensive air barrier details (Energystar.gov).
Moreover, in order to begin the green building construction or renovation it is important that that the building director hire an architect that has experience in green design. This entails that the architect constructs according to the LEED principles. Leed stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Handbook). The LEED standards are established by the US Green Building Council. The USGBC is non-profit community of leaders working to make green buildings available to everyone within a generation (USGBC.gov). Standards for the LEED certification have been established by the Environmental Protection Agency and they incorporate the same standards that qualify something to be Energy Star certified.
Once the construction is complete it is now time to install efficient methods of heating, cooling and ventilation. You may ask why the indoor air quality matters. Indoor air quality plays a crucial role in the health of residents. Not only does it play a crucial role on physical health of residents it also can impact the environment as a whole. The positive impact that an efficient HVAC system can have on the environment is contributed by installing systems that are airPLUS labeled. AirPLUS is the equivalent to the Energy Star label but it is for HVAC systems. The standards for airPLUS are determined by the EPS as well. Properly insulated and sealed ventilation systems negate the possibility for air to escape and wasted thus, causing the HVAC system to consume more energy to produce comfortable air quality levels (airPLUS).
Additionally, indoor air quality can have many positive health impacts for the residents of a facility. By installing HVAC systems that are labeled airPLUS the quality of indoor air is greatly improved. This is because an airPLUS labeling decreases the amount of toxic chemicals and pollutants from entering a facility (airPLUS). Common pollutants that can be in indoor air are mold, radon and carbon monoxide. These pollutants can lead to eye irritation, headaches, allergies, respiratory problems and other serious health problems (airPLUS).
Another key component to any long term care facility is the water source and water treatment. Most long term care facilities have their own water treatment plant. The water treatment plant is in charge of removing any waste products within dirty water. The water goes through a complex cleaning process that removes unwanted levels of pollutants and then dumps the treated water into a nearby water source. The treatment plants consume large amounts of energy and can be very costly to maintain. In order to run an eco-friendly plant, it needs to be powered by an efficient source of alternative energy such as solar energy. Installing a modern up to date plant can ensure efficiency by energy reduction and by being less costly.
As well as the above mentioned greening activities, it is also important that the facility installs appliances that are energy efficient. To insure that an appliance is efficient facility administrators should only purchase appliances that are Energy Star labeled. From ovens, and refrigerators to computers, TVs, and washing machines and dryers, these appliances consume a great deal of energy. Energy efficient appliances may be pricier, but they will cut down on energy costs in the long run (epa.gov). Greening a facility doesn’t just stop at energy sources, and appliances but it also includes the food services, recycling, and the utensils used in the kitchen and dining room. From my personal experience of working in LTHC facilities, I rarely saw any kind of recycling programs. According to a presentation on green building impacts, recycling can cut your solid waste outputs by nearly 70% (Building Impacts presentation).
Additionally, the market for green long term care facilities is expected to grow. There are some new trends popping up around the country. According to on the nation’s largest home building firms Shea Homes, they believe that the baby boomers are looking for environmentally friendly community’s (market watch). A niche for eco-friendly retirement communities is being developed at a slow pace but facilities are creeping up around the country. Shea Homes has recently opened Victoria Gardens, which is a retirement development in Florida that will have 20-30% lower carbon footprint than the typical home (market watch).
With this in mind, you may still be asking yourself, why should Long-term care facilities go green? There are so many benefits for an LTHC facility to go green that it would take pages and pages to cover it all. I will mention some benefits of going green. I will start by saying that the overall biggest contributor to CO2 emissions into the atmosphere are caused by buildings around the country. Having a green facility can reduce energy use by 24-50%. CO2 emissions can be reduced by 33-39%. Water usage can be cut down by 40% and solid waste can be cut down by almost 70% (Building Impacts presentation). There are also a number of business benefits to going green. It is estimated that operational costs can decrease 8-9%. It is also estimated that building value can rise about 7.5% and occupancy ratio is said to increase around 4%. Due to cleaner air and quality lighting within the walls of green facilities, residents are healthier and more productive (Building Impacts Presentation).
Moreover, since going green is not required by law, it is totally voluntary. There are two ways that a business can profit off of going green. One would be through claiming three different tax incentives; city, state and federal (green management). Another reason for going green would be for the businesses branding and marketing purposes (green Management). Branding and marketing with a green image can be a very powerful tool especially with the onset of the whole green movement. Some other reasons for going green are because of the government incentives that are available for businesses to go green. Government incentives for going green vary from state to state but in Ohio, if a facility converts to an alternative energy source they can qualify for exemption of the properties sales and use tax (DSIRE). There are also many other tax incentive and rebate programs to promote the purchase of solar power (DSIRE).
In addition, it was difficult to find information about the disadvantages of going green. After reading through many different sources I concluded that the most common disadvantages were the upfront costs or the initial costs of building or converting a facility to be greener. Another disadvantage to going green is that it takes a lot of time to renovate and or build a green facility. According to an article on doityourself.com there are a few appearance problems associated with going green. Since going green requires the use of recycled products such as glass they may be some physical imperfections (doityourself.com). This is true with most recycled products. Another setback would be the installation of the green materials (doityourself.com). Since a lot of green materials are more complicated than ordinary products the installation of let’s say, a metal roof would require a specialist and therefore may result in more expensive installation process. The maintenance of green buildings can also be challenging. Green materials are often more sensitive and fragile, and require close monitoring and maintenance (doityourself.com)
Given these facts, I see a potential for a rise in the demand in green long-term care facilities. With the nations baby boomers coming to their retirement and there strong ties to the environmental movement I can see a market for green LTHC facilities. It will be interesting to see what the future will bring about in the field of green business and building. I found the information about LEED certifications and all of the other governmental labeling programs to very interesting. Until now I was unaware of the numerous tax incentives there are for businesses to go green. It is reassuring that this trend is getting more popular. Let’s see what the future has in store for the green business.
Works Cited
Building Impacts. Digital image. US Green Building Counsel. Web. 9 Feb. 2010.
Cohen, Stephanie. "Pitching boomers housing that is green as their hair goes gray." Market Watch [Princeton, N.J]. Print.
"Database of state incentives for renewable and efficiency." University of North carolina, 2009. Web. 10 Feb. 2010.
EPA. "A Green Home Begins with ENERGY STAR Blue." EnergyStar. Web. 22 Jan. 2010.
"Green Building Drawbacks." Do it yourself. Web. 3 Feb. 2010.
Gulyas, Carol. "Looking for Green Retirement Communities." Top Retirement Homes. 2006. Web. 29 Jan. 2010.
Haider, Eric. "Person Centered care Model." Web. 12 Feb. 2010.
"Indoor Air Plus." Indoor AirPLUS an Intro. EPA. Web. 7 Feb. 2010.
"Intro-What is LEED." USGBC. US Green Building Counsel. Web. 5 Feb. 2010.
Lane, Robert E. "Handbook on conservation for Retirement Communities." Sept. 2007. Web. 27 Jan. 2010.
Shackleton, Robert. "Baby Boomers' Retirement Prospects:." An overview (2003): 1-2. Print.
Tran, Ben. "Green Management:." The reality of being green in business: 20-22. Print.
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