Treating Resident's with Dignity in Life and Death

When residents arrive at Victory Centre of Bartlett, located at 1101 W. Bartlett Road, for the first time, they enter through the front door. And, if they happen to die there, that’s exactly how they will leave the community for the last time, too. This simple, yet profound approach to paying last respects is one of several end-of-life gestures that earned the senior community the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA) 2013 “Best of the Best” Award in the category, “Honoring the Life of a Resident Upon His or Her Death.”

Maria Oliva, Chief People Officer of Pathway Senior Living, the owner and operator of Victory Centre of Bartlett, received the honor at the ALFA 2013 Conference held in Charlotte, North Carolina, from ALFA CEO Rick Grimes who said, “Victory Centre of Bartlett demonstrates resourcefulness and ingenuity and embodies the high standard of innovation, professionalism and caring we encourage among our members.”

Although Victory Centre of Bartlett is primarily known for offering residents high quality services and an award-winning lifestyle (their life-enrichment program won the ALFA “Best of the Best” award in 2010 and the International Council on Active Aging’s Innovators award in 2012) lesser known, but equally important, is the fact that the staff at Victory Centre also goes to great lengths to afford its residents the same dignity in death as they do in life.

At any given time, about 20 percent of Victory Centre of Bartlett’s residents are under hospice care. “Death is a fact of life, and it is a very real reality for those of us who work in this industry and live in senior communities,” says Executive Director Laurie Geschrey, also a Certified Bereavement Counselor and Hospice Chaplain. “At Victory Centre, we consider it an honor to help residents through their final stage in life.”

Victory Centre of Bartlett’s end-of-life care philosophy is to do whatever is possible to help residents, if they so choose, die in their Victory Centre home rather than in a hospital room or nursing home. This commitment gives great peace of mind to Victory Centre residents like Barb Sharf who says, “If possible, nobody dies alone here.” The six-year Victory Centre resident added, “It makes you feel safe living here. You know they care about you like family and watch over you. They honor your requests and make sure your wishes are granted.”

During a resident’s final days, when he or she is “traveling” as the staff says, Bartlett’s caregivers make their visiting family members comfortable and attend to their needs, so family can focus on their loved one.

When a resident does die, Geschrey sends a call out that he or she is “leaving for the last time.” As part of Bartlett’s tradition, staff and residents drop everything and line the front hallway in a final, silent tribute as the resident is lead out through the front door, often escorted by the house dog. “The whole place just stops,” Geschrey says. “There is no backdoor exit. People leave here with the same dignity and honor they had when they came in.”

Weather permitting, staff and residents then follow their neighbor and friend outdoors to the waiting car. Then in another act of tribute, the community flag, a special flag designed by residents expressly for this purpose, is lowered to half mast for 24 hours in honor of each resident’s passing.

For residents, staff and any visitors who happen to be present, the spontaneous tribute can be very powerful to witness. It has led some families to choose Victory Centre for their loved one, and has been known to spark deep introspection on the part of some staff.

“Victory Centre has established a culture where residents see that their life is truly valued,” says Oliva. “I think it speaks volumes when residents understand that is how they will exit life—surrounded by family and friends. It makes people feel their life was indeed meaningful all the way to the end.”

Barb says, “We’re very fortunate to live in a community with traditions like giving all residents a final escort out of the building and the lowering of the flag. It makes you feel truly special.”