Few things are more satisfying or instructive than getting to know the AgePros community better. There’s no telling what you’ll learn or how this new connection will impact your perspective and business.
Meet Paul Jones, a fellow Age Pro. He’s a Care Concierge Senior Living Advisor. Join us in learning what that is, how Paul started his business and what makes his company different.
This interview is the first in a series dedicated to learning about our Aging Professional (Age Pro) Community. It has been edited for length and clarity.
Let’s start with an introduction:
Paul Jones (PJ): My name is Paul Jones. I’m the owner of the Care Concierge Senior Living Advisors — formerly the Care Concierge of New England — located in North Smithfield, covering all of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. I have a team of two nurses, one social worker, one other concierge.
Would you tell the AgePros community a little bit about your background?
PJ:Â Prior to starting the Care Concierge, I was a Memory Care Director, did sales for a while and became an executive director. In 2019, I decided it was time to work for myself. I wanted to help support seniors and their families as they are evaluating living options.
I formed the company with two major pillars in mind:
- How can I help every family I work with get the absolute best quality of life?
- How can I help potential residents or patients age-in-place successfully in their new home?
What services does your company provide?
PJ: We offer a couple of different service plans. The first plan is the Assisted Living & Memory Care Placement Service. We sit with families, discuss their needs, wants, and desires — especially in terms of qualifiers like, “What location do you want to be in? What can you afford? Which amenities are you seeking? What diagnosis are you living with?”
Then we’ll go back to our partner network of 600 properties and narrow that list down to the three or four properties that match well with a family’s criteria.
Next, while the family can tour those facilities on their own, many elect to have a concierge go with them, as their advocate and guide. In that case, I will visit properties with the family. They count on me to take notes, pick up on things families may miss as they’re trying to take in all this information. Our responsibility is to make sure everyone understands what this community is set up to do. Ensure everyone understands what this family is looking for, and whether the family’s expectations can be met.
Once the tours are done, we’ll discuss their choices. If a family chooses one facility, then I help coordinate the assessment and move-in process. I can negotiate prices on their behalf, review the residency agreement and other documents to help make sure it’s the smoothest possible move-in for the family. I really want to take as much stress out of this as possible.
We want clients to walk away from their experience with a better understanding and more peace of mind.
Paul Jones, owner of the Care Concierge Senior Living Advisors
What if your client is looking for a nursing home rather than assisted living?
PJ: Our newest service, which just launched in March, is the Nursing Home Navigator program. The Nursing Home Navigator and the Assisted Living Placement Service share a similar DNA. The Nursing Home Navigator does many of the same things for clients who are looking for skilled nursing placement. Because of Medicaid and nursing home rules, we can’t create a referral partner network. So, the Nursing Home Navigator program is a private pay service between the care concierge and the client.
We’ve divided the service into three tiers, so, families can choose the best fit for them. At the lowest tier, it’s a consultative service with either a nurse or a social worker in my employ. They discuss:
- What a nursing home is
- What the industry is like
- What a CMS rating is
- What to look for in a nursing home
In many cases, admissions goes smoothly. Still, there can be communication problems afterwards between the family and the receiving facility. So, having our navigator stay involved for 30 days, as that family’s advocate, really creates a sense of comfort for clients.
Basically, we arm the family with the tools and guidance they need to move forward. The tier two service involves much more hands-on support from the navigator. Tier three includes having the navigator tour properties or nursing homes with clients. The navigator also serves as that family’s and that patient’s personal advocate for 30 days post-admission.
How is your company different from others that offer the same services?
We embrace the road warrior mentality. We make more of an effort to be boots on the ground. I personally try to see as many facilities as I can, every single week. Even if that’s just walking in to say hello to the sales director, see how everything’s looking and ask if there’s anything new to show. It’s so valuable. We want clients to walk away from their experience with a better understanding and more peace of mind.
How do you deliver peace of mind to your clients?
We’ve spent a long time developing our network of Assisted Living and Memory Care Properties. These are facilities we’ve personally vetted in almost every case, just to make sure we have a deep understanding of their culture, the services they’re offering, the food they serve, the activities.
We want to make sure we’re giving families as deep an understanding of these properties as possible, because this is going to be one of the most important decisions they make as a family — especially if this is the last place their loved one ever moves to.
Learn more about an important part of the agepros community: Concierge Senior Living Advisors.
Become a part of the agepros community. Make sure you subscribe for more of our conversation with Paul Jones. Specifically how he grows his business with Part Two .
