Presbyterian Homes and Services works to meet the housing needs of seniors by providing retirement communities, independent living and assisted living.

Premier Business Partners:

Fong & Chan Architects Gonsalves & Stronck Construction Co.. Sodexho Senior Services

As we get older, our needs and priorities change. For some, living on a fixed income will mean the need for more affordable housing. For others, health concerns will mean the need for access to 24-hour care. In the Bay Area, Northern California Presbyterian Homes and Services (NCPHS)  has been working to meet the housing needs of seniors across the spectrum, providing retirement communities, independent living and assisted living for 50 years.

CEO Barbara Hood says the organization specializes in what it calls the “life-care approach” to continuing care, with three communities located in the San Francisco area that provide that kind of service. In addition, NCPHS operates three affordable-housing retirement communities for seniors living on fixed incomes, as well as one equity-based manufactured housing development community that offers assisted living services.

Senior Support
Founded in 1958 as a nonprofit organization, NCPHS currently provides housing for nearly 1,900 seniors and services nearly 2,300 more through community programs. Hood says the organization stands apart from other providers in the area because it is a nonprofit, it allows residents to have a say in how the community is run and it takes a leadership role in the field of continuing care.

As the organization celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, Hood says the focus and commitment of NCPHS has never wavered. “Our mission has consistently been support to seniors in services and housing,” Hood says.

Investing Within
Hood says there are several ways in which NCPHS operates differently from other continuing care providers in the area. First of all, the fact that NCPHS is a nonprofit means that all of its efforts are focused on improving the quality of service for its residents, not just its bottom line. The organization receives a combination of Medicare and HUD funding, along with payments from individuals.  

A separate foundation raises some money for services, Hood says. “I would say our commitment to the not-for-profit aspect, that the bottom line goes back into the organization [sets us apart],” Hood says. “We have a lot of services and bricks and mortar and personnel, and it’s important to reinvest in all of those things.”

For example, the organization has embarked on a series of ongoing capital improvement projects at its facilities in the last three years. Common areas at some of its facilities were improved, such as a complete remodeling of the community dining room at The Sequoias – San Francisco CCRC. The construction of a remodeled health center at The Sequoias – Portola Valley included a memory care program, the first such program for NCPHS.

Hood says a number of improvements to NCPHS’s services have also been implemented in recent years. “I think we’re moving programs and services into a more flexible approach,” she says.

For example, rather than meals and wellness programs on a rigid schedule, Hood says more seniors want to be able to set their own times. “There are new cohorts of seniors coming in, and they have different expectations,” Hood says.

In the case of fitness and wellness programs, having professional trainers on-site to help coordinate residents’ workouts is now the norm. “It’s not a matter of having a couple pieces of equipment, it’s having people there who can work with the seniors,” Hood says.

Leading at All Levels
Leadership is one of the key concepts for NCPHS, Hood says, and that includes everyone from the board of directors to the residents. “We really focus on leadership at all levels of the organization,” Hood says.

She says NCPHS has a “history of residents being partners with us,” and stresses the importance of allowing seniors to have a hand in defining their communities. “At each community, there’s a residents’ association, and they’re totally self-governed,” Hood says. “They determine how best they will build this community. In terms of the governance, the board has an advisory committee for each of the communities.”

The founders of NCPHS were also founding members of the national organization the American Association of Homes and Services, and Hood says NCPHS’s leadership is still involved in that organization, as well. She says they often work with state legislators on ways to improve services for seniors throughout California.

“Within the organization, at the level of department heads, we expect that they keep service first and foremost in their minds as they work with the residents,” Hood says. Employees are empowered to affect change no matter what their level in the organization, Hood says. “If something seems not quite right, they have the ability to articulate that to their supervisors,” she says.

Looking Forward
Hood says NCPHS isn’t certain what the future of senior living will hold, especially with the baby boomer population nearing retirement age. “The baby boomers are really not the retirement group yet,” Hood explains. “It’s very hard to predict, but we know we need a variety of settings and services; we need flexibility.”

Of particular concern when looking toward the future are mid-level-income seniors who might not be able to afford their own home in an assisted living community and won’t be eligible for government assistance. Hood says NCPHS is considering rental community models, as well as the possibility of providing in-home assistance outside of its communities.

So many seniors are not interested in being in a congregate setting, so what can we do for them?” she says. “I think the continuing care community model will continue to be popular, but the services will have to change,” Hood says, adding that the organization is looking at establishing additional communities. “Growth is on our agenda, we think we have to grow,” she says.