As of 2021, Aegis Living gears up for a potentially crashing launch of a Covid-19 vaccine, and the organization is ready for another 100 days of the pandemic, but Dwayne Clark, CEO of Aegis, has stated that a recovery period will happen next spring.
Weaker operators can also be supported for a while as consumer demand increases, but these organizations, according to them, face a much more difficult path.
Meanwhile, in 2021, Aegis and other providers will continue to develop a health and wellness approach with stronger clinical capabilities. Aegis, based in Bellevue, Washington, operates 32 communities in Washington, California, and Nevada.
Vaccination expectations, preparations Since the beginning of the pandemic, Aegis has been working closely with medical professionals during the care process, including a panel of doctors and other clinical experts on the coronavirus. The company’s management and executive leaders continue to work with other healthcare organizations on plans for a Covid-19 vaccine that will be available immediately.
In particular, Clark hit the drums so that institutions for the elderly and housing are given the highest priority for distributing and administering vaccines. He argues that administering the vaccine to older adults will help expose hospital systems and protect hospital workers who contract the virus from these patients.
‘So dramatically, you took the biggest cohort that affects health from a chain equation,” he said. “It’s a critical point. ”
The vaccine is the one thing that will change everything, but he does believe there will be a process for when the vaccine becomes available.
Combining existing distribution problems, such as the need to keep the Pfizer vaccine at freezing temperatures, other growing problems may even include the criminal organizations to use the black market to sell the vaccine.
Planning the vaccine is difficult because of all the unknowns, but Aegis will take action, including calling the entire company to discuss it and register with the pharmacy company CVS. It is expected that every company will receive the vaccine unless they have a medical or religious reason to stop them. And Clark is going to share a video about getting the vaccine.
‘I can tell my staff; I’m not going to ask them to do anything I don’t,” he said.
Rapid Recovery:
Some say a federal panel has recommended that residents and support staff have access to the first wave of the vaccine. While the final decision is made at the state level, seniors are almost certainly allowed to be among the first where people are vaccinated.
Still, camouflage and social distance are likely to be primarily in place until 2021, Clark noted. This is because “Covid’s death” occurs only when the number of people vaccinated and immunized for coronavirus infection has reached a critical mass.
But with widespread vaccinations in health care and disease decline at the same time as warmer weather, Clark believes that recovery will happen in spring for the senior sector.
And that recovery could be rapid when a surplus demand comes on the market. Pre-leasing is ‘through the roof” in six developments that Aegis is undergoing. Clark said a building that has not been open for more than a year is already 25% pre-leased.
“We have never seen such things before,” he said.
However, it isn’t easy to generalize what the recovery rate in the industry looks like. Aegis’s portfolio was 93% occupied at the start of the pandemic, and the company saw erosion in the census.
In other words, there are a lot of suppliers out there that have a rougher shape than Aegis in terms of crew outlook and terms of capital, Clark observed. While demand is declining, these weaker operators may hold out for some time, but their problems with cash flow and debt relief could reach many of them.
It is clear that he counts Aegis among the ‘strong’ group and sets out various ways to believe the company will become stronger in 2021 and beyond. A striking area of focus is building partnerships and health care efforts in this pandemic year.
To that end, the company is looking for a medical director who will be Aegis ‘channel’ for its hospital, healthcare system, and other partners, Clark said.
As Aegis serves a wealthy clientele, he also believes the organization is in the ‘catbird seat” by working with the best healthcare providers who want to work with this demographic.
‘I think one of the things the pandemic has taught us is that you need to do a better job of serving these people in your communities.” Clark stated
Like some other senior service providers, Aegis is currently exploring ways to provide more care in its buildings, including setting up on-site clinics. Aegis is currently discussing the creation of clinics in two locations, which can be a few thousand square meters and get staffed with healthcare partners. And even if Aegis does not “invest the farm” in Medicare Advantage, Clark is interested in adding MA’s revenue to the mix.
Having such a strong capacity for care should reassure consumers who may doubt the safety of older people’s lives, given some bad headlines during the pandemic. In Aegis, about 230 people out of about 6,000 inhabitants and staff have so far gotten infected with Covid-19, and the death rate is only about eight-tenths of a percent.
Overall, he is optimistic about the sector’s resilience and, in particular, the ability of the most powerful operators to recover and turn towards growth and innovation as the pandemic subsides.
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