2024 Planning Considerations for Senior Care Organizations

A conversation with our Healthcare Industry Leader

It is no secret that the world is changing at a rapid pace. And while the bulk of pandemic-related challenges may be a thing of the past for many industries, healthcare organizations, specifically senior care facilities, are still very much feeling the effects. On top of this, these organizations are faced with the issues that nearly every business is currently dealing with as well, including a struggling economy, labor shortages, ever-changing legislation, and so much more.

The only way to prepare for this rapid change and the challenges it brings is through strategic planning.

For a deeper look into what is currently going on in the healthcare industry, we sat down with Janine Mangione, our Healthcare Industry Leader, for a discussion on why she has dedicated her career to serving healthcare organizations as well as the key planning considerations and emerging trends shaping the future of senior care services.

Meet our Healthcare Industry Leader

For Janine, accounting is quite literally a family affair. Growing up in Rochester, New York, her grandfather owned a tax service, and her aunt was a CPA. Those early influences gave Janine a life-long love of crunching numbers, so a career in accounting was almost inevitable.

With nearly 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Janine is an expert in serving healthcare organizations. After working at another firm for nine years, she joined TBG in 2004 and has since grown the firm’s senior care and healthcare consulting practice exponentially. Janine has also led the Healthcare Tax-Exempt Practice, as well as the Albany team.

As our Healthcare Industry Leader, Janine is currently responsible for business development, client/project acquisition, geographic expansion activities and determining how and where each of their industry clients is best serviced within our healthcare industry.

Why Healthcare?

Janine found herself in the world of healthcare after starting at a firm whose clients were nearly all healthcare organizations. During this time, she was exposed to the innerworkings of healthcare organizations and was able to gain experience in healthcare consulting.

While Janine may not have chosen healthcare at first, she has chosen to stay with it for the entirety of her career ever since.

“I truly developed a passion for helping these underserved organizations. Many of them don’t have the money or resources necessary to properly care for their patients and I wanted to do everything I could to assist them,” shared Janine.

Janine has become an expert in assisting healthcare organizations over the years. She currently provides free trainings for these organizations that explore reimbursement rates, cost reports, and more.

Considerations for Senior Care Facilities

Senior care facilities have a lot to consider when developing a strategy for the year ahead. Two key considerations that should be top of mind when planning are how your organization can 1.) ensure spending in the right places and 2.) diversify and optimize programs.

Spending in the Right Places

As all healthcare organizations know, being able to allocate the appropriate resources to the appropriate areas is everything. However, many organizations have unnecessary costs or could even be leaving money behind.

Janine encourages senior care facilities to take a close look at their spending as they plan for the year ahead. “Is your organization spending in the right places? Have you looked at your costs? Are they in line with competitors and other regions? Maybe it is time for you to consider outsourcing various functions,” shared Janine.

“It is also crucial to ensure your organization is capturing its reimbursement and not leaving anything on the table. Be sure that you are monitoring new revenue models and have an understanding of how they may impact you.”

Diversify and Optimize Programs

One key idea that senior care facilities should consider is having all programs (nursing homes, assisted living, etc.) on the same campus. By combining all services and programs to one area, your organization can save on costs in a number of different areas.

Additionally, senior care facilities should consider opportunities for mergers, affiliations, and shared service agreements with other organizations. Your organization may not have the resources to do it all, but by pairing with one that fills in the gaps, you can ultimately save time and money while offering your clientele a better experience with more diverse programs.

Looking Ahead

Implementing a strategic plan while navigating the changing healthcare landscape can seem like a daunting task. Be sure to look ahead from a strategic perspective—some aspects of this feat may not be as complicated as they seem and could just take a little reviewing and rearranging what’s already there.

If you need further guidance or have any questions as you embark on your own strategic planning process, we are here to help. Please do not hesitate to reach out to discuss your specific situation.

This material has been prepared for general, informational purposes only and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal or accounting advice. Should you require any such advice, please contact us directly. The information contained herein does not create, and your review or use of the information does not constitute, an accountant-client relationship.