Response to Guest Column

The guest column printed in the December 4, 2018 issue of the Marco Eagle and written by Terri Sommerfield is unfortunately for the seniors of Marco, biased against Assisted Living facilities and senior care which is needed by the citizens of Marco Island. Much of the information presented in the column is taken out of context and misrepresents the proposed Watermark at Marco Island.

First, as the developers have described the project, it is a fully licensed assisted living facility offering a full continuum of care, however without a Skilled Nursing component. Anyone participating in senior care today recognizes that the fast growing trend for “micro-CCRCs” as they are sometimes called. A full CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community) most often has over 100 to several hundred beds and offers Memory Care (MC), Assisted Living (AL), Independent Living (IL), and Skilled Nursing (SNF). Most CCRCs have a very large entry fee ranging from $250k to some over $1,000,000. In order to provide the services needed for those who can’t afford it or chose not to invest this kind of fee, a “Continuum Care Limited” or “Micro CCRC” is the future of continuing care for seniors.

The majority of seniors today will not need a Skilled Nursing Facility in their future. A SNF component is very expensive and drives costs up for the entire CCRC. Currently, many providers are turning to the Continuum of Care, minus the skilled component. Today the level of care in an ALF can provide the needs that will provide the majority of senior’s lives to its natural end, avoiding time spent in a Skilled Nursing setting.

Watermark Retirement Communities is one of the most well respected and innovative companies in Senior Care Industry today and serves over 10,000 residents in the US. Watermark, like many others today are licensing their entire facilities as Assisted Living. They can then offer full services and assistance of daily living as well as care for memory related diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Most importantly, Watermark creates an extraordinary lifestyle and is committed to helping residents and associates thrive. This provides great value to all of Marco Island.

Offering a community that is appealing and of value to residents of Marco Island and will have the added benefit of appealing to individuals who are moving for an improved lifestyle, not to address a time-sensitive health crisis. A more independent resident can transition into the facility on their own terms and timeframe, avoiding the necessity move in at last minute when an urgent need arises.  It gives the elderly, who are still independent, time to sell their home and plan for a move. It gives them the important opportunity to live full, vibrant, independent lives, with easy access to  services such as meals, health and rehabilitation services, transportation and social services, which are so important and greatly needed for single seniors. It also offers a “strong spouse-weak spouse” solution to having to put your husband or wife in a facility alone. Here, couples can live together and the “weak spouse” can receive the services they need, while residing together.

The proposed Watermark at Marco Island is not just an ALF in size when compared to ALF’s numbers cited in the Marco Eagle article. The numbers presented in the article are biased or incorrect. In addition, when most professionals in the industry today discuss Assisted Living or ALF’s, Memory Care is most often included in that count, in the article it was not. Attached is a list of Communities in the Marco and Naples area, many listed in the marketing report obtained by the developer. It shows the full IL/AL/MC combination communities that are more in comparison with the Watermark at Marco. Note that the Skilled Nursing units are not listed in this chart.

The Watermark at Marco is by no means, a “Mega Facility” in fact at 166 units it is smaller than most in Florida that contain continuum of care offerings.

As for evacuation issues during a hurricane, The Watermark at Marco will be a benefit for the speed and efficiency of evacuation of residents. Those in the Senior Care industry in Florida today knows that in order to maintain their license annually, every Florida Assisted Living Facility must submit and have an approved Emergency Management Plan. That plan is based on State AHCA guidelines and is approved by the local Fire Marshal and by the County Emergency Management Department, prior to occupation of the facility and it is renewed each year. The evacuation procedures in that plan provides for Contracts with a transportation company, Contracts with multiple facilities to take and keep the residents until they are able to return to Marco as well as Contracts in place for food and supplies during the time they are evacuated. There is no “unknown” here. There is an approved plan to professionally and quickly evacuate this community from Marco before most residents are thinking about evacuating. This will take place in 5 or 6 buses with a professionally trained staff. Currently elderly residents are in their home and trying to rely on an aged spouse, or family members coming on island, or even trying to drive themselves off, the structured evacuation plan is so much better, quicker and safer. Operating four facilities in Florida and thirty years of hurricane experience, Watermark has experience in successfully weathering storms and evacuating residents to nearby accommodations and Watermark sister communities. Watermark has a history of staffing well above state requirements and this practice is of benefit all year but especially during the event of hurricanes.

Marco Island seniors deserve the right for a care facility to provide for their needs through their later years in a modern, quality community located in Marco. Islanders should not have to separate or ship their spouse off-island when care is needed!

The Watermark at Marco Island is an innovative option for the continuum of care for the residents of Marco Island. I hope your readers will take the time to learn more and decide what’s best for them, their families and the greater Marco Island community.

Sincerely,

Peggy Beasley

Executive Director, The Fountains at Lake Pointe Woods

Four years Deficiency Free Assisted Living

Certified Dementia Practitioner

17 years’ experience in Florida and senior housing

Senior Care Properties near Marco Island

Memory care, Assist Living, and Independent Living

Watermark Florida Facilities

BRW Owned Additional Florida Facility