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Showroom Photo Gallery

This Photo Gallery of showroom photos loop is perfect for your showroom or trade show display showing the design possibilities.

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Factory Tour

Watch the Best Bath Factory Tour and see how our tubs are manufactured.

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SENIOR FRIENDLY: Healthcare Design’s Next Frontier


~by Richard L. Peck, Healthcare Design Contributing Editor~ 

About 10 years ago, I [Richard Peck] was privileged to be part of the publishing team that founded HEALTHCARE DESIGN. It was an offshoot of a very successful publication we had started in the long-term care field, the DESIGN series of annuals that had grown out of regular coverage of long-term care design by Nursing Homes/Long Term Care Management magazine (now known as Long-Term Living).

I was founding editor of that publication as well—so you can imagine my consternation upon discovering that the acute care architects and designers receiving HEALTHCARE DESIGN reported little interest or involvement in the senior care side of things. They viewed it as a niche field occupied primarily by aging-related design specialists.

Cut to the present day: The silo walls are starting to crumble. Realization is growing that seniors will be many hospitals’ chief customers in the very near future, if they aren’t already. Studies indicate that half of all inpatients in today’s hospitals are age 65 or over. As aging Baby Boomers continue to surge, they will occupy hospitals in growing numbers and with increasing frequency. Already, the over-85 crowd is the fastest growing population sector in America.

Are hospitals ready for this? Will hospitality features—the sum and substance of HEALTHCARE DESIGN during its decade of existence—suffice to accommodate seniors’ needs? If not, what can the field of long-term care design teach us?

Recently, I sought answers from designers and planners already working on the new convergence between acute care design and senior care design. And, very gradually, the pathway ahead is becoming clear, despite lingering confusion.

“I remember asking the designer of a beautiful new hospital wing why the structure wasn’t more senior-friendly,” says environmental gerontologist Esther Greenhouse, an advocate for convergence. “He replied that his firm was already doing this for skilled nursing but that applying this to acute care hadn’t occurred to him. I thought, why not? With today’s demographics, senior-friendly features should be standard for any healthcare design.”

When I spoke with her, Greenhouse was working on a project that might well someday be included among those viewed as the gateway to senior-friendly acute care design—those focusing on the emergency room.

The largest such project to date has been sponsored by Trinity Health, the Michigan-based hospital system with 49 hospitals in 10 states. Its Senior ERs are now operational in 12 facilities, with another six openings planned this year. Trinity Health engaged William H. Thomas, MD, a man well recognized for the past 20 years as a pioneer in long-term care reform, as a consultant.

Thomas is a former family physician and emergency room clinician who spearheaded two breakthroughs humanizing the world of nursing home care: the Eden Alternative, introducing pets, flowers, and gardens as regular features in nursing homes to engage elderly residents; and the Green House, an architectural remodeling of the stereotypical nursing home to make it more homelike for residents.

He has spent the past two decades spreading the word about these innovations, but now, he says, he has a Third Act—a return to his former medical bailiwick with Trinity Health’s Senior ER project.

The Trinity Health ERs are changing the paradigm of emergency department function, says Sue Penoza, director of planning at Trinity Health. “The traditional ER has always been measured by its throughput,” she says. “But Dr. Thomas helped with the cultural change we needed to slow down and spend more time assessing the elderly patient’s overall situation and conditions.”

“In the ER, we used to focus on assessing the patient’s chief complaint,” notes Michelle Moccia, RN, ANP, Senior ER program director, who’s had day-to-day experience at St. Mary Mercy Livonia’s Senior ER in Livonia, Michigan, since it opened in July 2010. “And we prioritized the tasks needing to be done, such as lab tests, around that complaint. It was very fast-paced and quite noisy; it was disturbing to seniors and we missed important information. Today we look for the patient’s total needs: Does he or she live alone? Do they have problems walking or otherwise getting about? Are they experiencing depression from some recent loss, or maybe a nutritional need of some kind?”

St. Mary Mercy Livonia was home to the second Senior ER in the Trinity Health system, but even in the Trinity Health facilities that don’t have a dedicated space for the Senior ER—and there are a few—efforts are made to offer a supportive environment. For example, “pocket talkers” amplify conversation for the hearing impaired, large clocks and signage are more readily visible, and special support surfaces for the ER carts add to comfort and skin safety. In the dedicated ER spaces, features include nonskid flooring, adjustable lighting, recliners for patients and comfortable seating for family members, warming blankets for seniors who are “always cold,” and private rooms rather than bays for enhanced quiet and privacy.

“Dr. Thomas was very effective in leading our staff and leadership toward support for these changes and giving us a real passion for this work,” Penoza says.

There are other signs of the new convergence. “Our firm is jumping in with both feet,” says Jeffrey C. Stouffer, AIA, principal/academic and pediatric practice leader at HKS Inc., the large full-service architectural firm based in Dallas, Texas. “We’ve had very large projects in senior living over the years and now, with the aging of the population, we’re starting to apply the lessons we’ve learned to acute care design.

With child-friendly design, we’ve made some real progress. Senior-friendly design is still in its infancy—if you learn to walk by crawling, we’re at the crawling stage.”

Some senior-friendly features becoming more familiar to the acute care side, Stouffer says, are reduced-glare flooring, training of housekeeping staff to avoid over-waxing floors, more sensitive use of lighting, color contrast and soothing nature-based art, and providing quieter, more comfortable waiting areas with minimal exposure to blaring TVs.

Meanwhile, coming from the long-term care side is Daniel Cinelli, AIA, principal and director of Perkins Eastman, the New York- and Washington, D.C.-based architectural firm, and a long-experienced designer of senior facilities. “Right now there isn’t much understanding of what we do on the acute care side, and we’re exploring ways to upgrade knowledge,” he says. “We recently conducted a workshop with the accounting firm Plant Moran, which indicated that their healthcare clients knew little about senior-friendly design. We found clear opportunities for us to work together.”

Cinelli says his firm, which does 25% of its business in senior living, is broadening its focus to encompass “new aging,” a term acknowledging the growing interest by hospitals, hotels, airports, and businesses in addressing the new demographics. “The information has been available on the senior care side for years—the furniture, the lighting systems, the materials and cleaning products, all of these are being used but hospitals aren’t aware of this.”

Diana Spellman, principal of Spellman Brady & Company, has become increasingly involved on the senior care side with her firm’s senior care division and has worked diligently toward merging the two fields.

“I continue to see attention and improvements made to create comfortable, quiet waiting areas with seating that is sensitive to ergonomic issues of height, firmness, and chair arm design. But I still observe the challenge within the architectural design community working with high-glare flooring in combination with large expanses of glass and sunlight, creating way-finding problems for elderly who often perceive dark silhouetted elements,” she says.

Her colleague specializing in senior facility design, Kelley Hoffman, senior designer/project manager, adds, “Acute care designers need to study visual impairment in the elderly, for example, to understand choice of colors, use of contrasting color shades, design of floors without confusing patterns, and way-finding that is effective but dignified.”

Not only patients but staff can benefit from increased attention to aging-friendly design, with today’s nursing corps grouping steadily in the over-50 bracket—the specialty of Laurie Waggener, director of research at Houston-based WHR Architects.

“The aging of the nursing staff is in keeping with the aging of the Baby Boom,” she says. “That’s why when nurses look at floor plans for a new unit, they evaluate them in terms of getting the job done with less physical demand. They look for adequate space on both sides of the bed to safely maneuver and carefully planned headwalls so that they’re not reaching for equipment. They appreciate features like waist-high electrical outlets so they’re not repeatedly bending over to plug and unplug equipment or charging up batteries.”

To Waggener, today’s exemplar of senior-friendly design for both patients and staff is the Jersey Shore Medical Center’s new Northwest Pavilion in Neptune, New Jersey. This patient tower divides a 36-bed patient area into a cluster of three 12-bed neighborhoods. Each neighborhood has a row of six beds on either side of a circular station for care giving staff to work, assemble, and observe patient rooms.

“This design brings the nurses closer to patients. They are able to easily view at least eight of the 12 rooms from a single area and, also important, maintain good sight lines to each other throughout the unit so that they always have a sense that help is at hand, something they frequently report missing with many decentralized layouts,” Waggener says.

The WHR-designed Jersey Shore was not, Waggener acknowledges, necessarily intended to serve as “a unit that specializes in acute care of the elderly (those older than 75)—it was designed for the growing patient acuity and will, in my professional opinion, gracefully address the special needs of this demographic in the future.”

Indeed, true exemplars are difficult, if not impossible, to find (an exception being a Canadian facility, see “The Patient Care Centre,” sidebar). But “everything that rises must converge,” as a theological philosopher once said. The rising need for hospitals that work for people of all ages is converging on a new healthcare design paradigm. HCD

The Patient Care Centre
One purpose-built senior-friendly hospital does in fact exist—but not in the United States. The 500-bed Patient Care Centre of the Royal Jubilee Hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, has been in operation for about a year and includes most of the design features American designers discuss in the accompanying article.

According to Rudi van den Broek, BSc, MPA, chief project officer for the Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA), the design was prompted by the same demographic trends observable elsewhere, but in this case the provincial authority had the authority to make it happen. “VIHA routinely upgrades its 13 acute care campuses as they move through the aging cycle—in this case we replaced an 80-year-old and a 60-year-old facility with the new hospital, and designed the hospital for a 60-year lifespan. In that context, designing for aging was a given.”

It was not, he notes, necessarily a given at first for the architects involved. “The experience of acute care is different for 25-year-olds and 85-year-olds, but some designers just don’t get that and tend to lump all adults under the same umbrella.”

His colleague Robyne Maxwell, RN, BScN, project manager for the Patient Care Centre, adds, “Younger adults can be just as frail as the elderly, but they tend to recover more quickly. But they share needs, and what benefits the elderly very much benefits the younger patient.” Van den Broek himself comes from the senior care facility side of design, having crafted the criteria used for such projects in the province. To him, it was a matter of transferring the same considerations to the acute care side of things. “We wanted to make the design elder friendly, but not elder-only.”

Remembering A Great Man – Chuck Ballard

by Jeff Mooney, President, Best Bath Systems

The Best Bath family lost a key member a couple of weeks ago with the passing of Chuck Ballard after a long but courageous battle with Leukemia.  Chuck was a founding member of our Dealer Advisory Council which was key in helping Best Bath make strategic decisions in the development of our Dealer Sales Division.

The Chuck I knew was always willing to assist others over and above his own needs.  He was passionate about helping improve the quality of life for those that dealt with disabilities and needed assistance.  I was blessed to have known Chuck well enough to call him anytime and talk about anything, even during the last year when I knew he wasn’t doing well.

Chuck was always optimistic and positive and I enjoyed our discussions every time we spoke.  Myself, and everyone at Best Bath that knew Chuck, will miss him.  He has certainly left deep impressions and had positive influences on all of us.

Dealer Days Hosts 2-Day Comprehensive Program

Best Bath wrapped up another Dealer Days  –  and what a success!  This 2 day training and networking event, limited to 50 Best Bath Dealers, was attended by new and seasoned dealers from all across the United States.   Now in its ninth year, the attendees participated in plant tours, sales and marketing sessions and hands-on installation training focusing on Accessibility, Aging in Place and addressing the growing needs of the active Boomer market.

by: Tammy Harris, Best Bath Marketing Manager

Extremely Popular Marketing Session by: Tammy Harris, Best Bath Marketing Mgr

Attendees left with a better understanding of the product and the company’s philosophy – supplying quality product and service to provide safe bathing for people of all abilities.

The Best Bath marketing team was pleased to include featured Special guest speaker, Environmental Gerontologist Esther Greenhouse, M.S., CAPS, who taught Universal Design, Visitability, and Aging in Place. Dealers learned the importance of aging in place and how Best Bath products make staying “at home” a viable option. In addition, Esther educated the attendees on the implementation of Universal Design, which promotes the design of products, information, and environments to meet the needs of a wide range of users.

Guest Speaker

Guest Speaker, Esther Greenhouse, M.S., CAPS

More information on aging‐in‐place, enabling environments, and Esther Greenhouse can be found at http://www.esthergreenhouse.com.

The market continues to grow as more people focus on home modifications that cater to anticipated mobility limitations. According to the National Association of Home Builders (NHAB), seventy‐five percent of remodelers report an increase in inquiries related to aging‐in-place. The NAHB predicts the aging‐in‐place remodeling market to be $20‐$25 billion. That’s about 10 percent of the $214 billion home improvement industry.

In addition to the educational opportunities, there is always plenty of socializing and networking with other dealers, enjoying local cuisine, and just plain FUN!

“The event and my experience was outstanding. I would highly recommend and will personally be back. Thank You, Jim Morgan – Morgan Walk in Tubs & Shower Systems.”

Dealers Enjoying Fantastic Basque Cuisine!

 

 

Best Bath’s next Dealer Days event will be held June 14 and 15, and will include 3-day CAPS Training offered in partnership with the local NAHB Chapter – BCASWI.

Best Bath Congratulates Debbie Grazioso – Named 2011 Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist of the Year!

BEST BATH WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE  Debbie Grazioso, partner and marketing manager of P&D Remodeling, LLC in Middletown, NY who has been named the 2011 Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist of the Year by the National Association of Home Builders.

The award recognizes her successful efforts to raise awareness of the importance of incorporating universal design and aging-in-place features into residential remodeling and renovation projects. Universal design transforms a home to accommodate to people of various abilities and needs. Aging-in-place modifications modify a home for a specific disability, including barrier-free showers, kitchen makeovers, widened doorways, ramps and more, to a home.

“Debbie takes every opportunity available to point out the importance of creating a home that’s safer and easier to operate for older adults and those with disabilities,” said Mike Davis, chairman of the CAPS Board of Governors.

“Debbie seeks out home shows where she can show consumers how barrier-free showers, grab bars and other assistive technologies can enhance these home owners’ independence so they can stay in their own homes longer – especially if they consult with a remodeler, occupational therapist or other professional with the CAPS  educational designation,” Davis said.

Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists must complete 24 hours of classroom instruction to learn the technical, business management and customer skills essential for competing in the growing home modifications for aging-in-place market. CAPS designees must meet continuing education requirements designed to keep their designations current.

She and other leading industry professionals were recognized at NAHB’s Designation Achievement Reception at the 2012 International Builders’ Show in Orlando,Florida.

P&D Remodeling, specializing in residential remodeling, is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of Pasquale and Debbie Grazioso.  The Graziosos have been in business for over 12 years. P&D is located in Middletown, NY and serves Orange, Sullivan, Ulster, Dutchess and northern Westchester counties.

Be sure to visit them at http://pd-remodeling.com/.


Dealer Day’s Attendees

Dealers Days is THE training event for Best Bath authorized dealers.

Dealer Days is a two day comprehensive training program held at the Best Bath plant in Caldwell, Idaho, and is open to Dealers only.   We believe this training is so important by providing our dealers with a foundation to build their Best Bath business.  Past Dealers that have attended this event leave with an understanding of how the product is built and installed, as well as in-depth training on marketing and sales support programs.

Over 400 dealer staff have attended Dealer Days since its inception in 2006.  Below is a list of those dealers – check them out!

 

2012 Attendees

Accessible Design Missoula

MT

Affiliated Medical Equipment Forestville

MD

Aquassure Accessible Baths Kelowna

BC

Central City Remodelers Carrington

ND

DreamMaker of Rapid City Rapid City

SD

Guy Biggs Construction Rocklin

CA

Handyman Matters of Wichita Wichita

KS

Home Tech Ketchikan

AK

House Calls Inc Arvada

CO

Mobilis Inc Council Bluffs

IA

Morgan Walkin Tubs Hudson

WI

Petersen Plumbing Inc Little Chute

WI

Safe Haven Remodeling LLC Beaverton

OR

Secure Bath & Accessible Home Solutions Brecksville

OH

Vets Access Ramps LLC Montrose

MI

West Coast Construction Sacramento

CA

Nurses Unlimited Inc. Odessa

TX

All Generations LLC Clackamas OR
DreamMaker of Rapid City Rapid City SD
Guy Biggs Construction Rocklin CA
Hammer Medical Supply Des Moines IA
Handyman Matters of Wichita Wichita KS
Lakeland Pharmacy Branson West MO
MedEquip Waco TX
WTH Custom Moses lake WA
Morgan Walk In Tubs Hudson WI
Safe Haven Remodeling, LLC Beaverton OR
Protech Medical, LLC Columbia TN
Central City Remodelers Carrington ND
Affiliated Medical Equipment Forestville MD
Ball Contracting Inc Cape Coral FL

 2011 Attendees

Accessible Home Solutions Guilderland

NY

Age in Place Renovations St. George

UT

Alltrade Enterprises, LLC Baldwin

MD

BILD – Bridgeway Independent Milwaukee

WI

Bryant Pharmacy & Supply Anderson

SC

Centrum for Disabilities Casper

WY

Creekside Construction Hayden

ID

GraEagle Construction LLC Las Vegas

NV

Home Health Accessibility West Lake

OH

In Home Independence Novato

CA

Jayhawk Pharmacy Topeka

KS

Liberty Construction Springfield

OR

Living Free Home Westfield

NJ

Noble Home Services Beaverton

OR

Renaissance Tile & Stone, LLC Aberdeen

NC

Trustcare Home Medical Equip Glen Allen

VA

Turnkey Interiors Salt Lake City

UT

Wayne Health Services Wooster

OH

Access to Independence Ravenna

OH

Easy Livin Colfax

IA

G&G Tub & Tile Brooklyn

NY

Greatland Handyman Services Chugiak

AK

Joel Isquith Construction Cotati

CA

Premier Home Care Louisville

KY

Safe Spa Bathing Solutions Winnepeg

MB

Situational Solutions, Inc. Albemarle

NC

Souris River Designs Minot

ND

Summit HME, Inc. San Antonio

TX

All Access Bath Innovations Vancouver

WA

Bell Plumbing & Heating Aurora

CO

Calgary Renovation Group Calgary

AB

Carter and Company Beaumont

TX

Lakeland Pharmacy Branson West

MO

Orca Health Care Supplies Vancouver

BC

Accessible Home Solutions Guiderland NY
Turnkey interiors Salt Lake UT
Accessible Home Solutions Guiderland NY
Turnkey interiors Salt Lake UT
Virginia Med-Plus, Inc Halifax VA
Wayne Health Services & Supplies, Inc Wooster OH
Lee Supply Corp Columbus IN
MPJ Mobility Springfield OR
Souris River Designs Minot ND
Access to independence Rawenna OH
Easy Livin’ Colefax IA
Safe Spa Bathing Soultions Surrey BC
Custom Home Solutions Meridian ID
Bemidji Medical Equipment Inc. Bemidji MN

 2010 Attendees

Access Ability Now, Inc. Matthews

NC

Accessibility Connection Folsom

CA

Alpine Home Medical Equipment Salt Lake City

UT

Custom Home Solutions Boise

ID

Dave Bearson Constuction Portland

OR

GFM Construction Camas

WA

Hammer Medical Supply Des Moines

IA

P&D Remodeling, LLC Middletown

NY

Safe Senior Living O’Fallon

MO

United Seating & Mobility LLC Earth City

MO

Access Elevator, Inc. Cudahy

WI

Accessible Home Improvement of America Waterloo

IA

Aging in Place USA St. Peters

MO

Assistive Solution Dayton

OH

Build 4 Mobility, Inc. Lehi

UT

Disability Made Easy Troy

MI

Elegant Bathrooms Westborough

MA

Floor to Ceiling Elk Grove

CA

Harmony Home Medical Redding

CA

Home and Bath Solutions Baton Rouge

LA

Katsinas General Contractors St. Louis

MO

Marilyns Medical Freedom Paducah

KY

Premier Aging in Place Service Orlando

FL

Safe Living Solutions Eureka

CA

Veneto Services LLC Waterford

NY

World Class Kitchen & Baths Matawan

NJ

Accessibility Connection Folson CA
Custom Home Solutions Boise ID
Alpine Home Medical Equipment Salt Lake City UT
Bemidji Medical Equipment Inc. Bemidji MN
Classic Interiors Chehalis WA
Dave Bearson Construction Portland OR
G A Purves Construction Cassville MO
GFM Construction Camas WA
Guardian Residential Services Ltd White Rock BC
Hammer Medical Supply Des Moines IA
Home Access Solutions Omaha NE
P & D Remodeling LLC Middleton NY

 2009 Attendees

Accessible Solutions-ME Rochester

NH

ADL Solutions Inc. Tempe

AZ

Barrier Free Systems, Inc. Scotia

NY

DLS Home Improvements Seldon

NY

Kevin’s Carpentry Service Glendale

AZ

Lynch & Sons Inc. Indianapolis

IN

Premium Bathrooms LLC Lemoyne

PA

ADL Solutions Inc. Gilbert AZ
Best Home Remodeling San Carlos CA
D.L.S. Services Seldon NY
Wood Wise Construction Inc. Wells ME

 2008 Attendees

Adaptations Unlimited Newington

NH

Kansas City Mass Services Kansas City

MO

Life Access Akron

OH

DreamMaker Anderson/Redding Anderson

CA

Handiworks Bonita

CA

Home Access Solutions NE Omaha

NE

Access Baths and More Little Rock

AR

Accessibility Solutions, Inc. Tallahassee

FL

Amy Plumbing Heating & Cooling Carpentersville

IL

Bentley Baths Ltd Denver

CO

Caremor Inc. Brighton

MI

Design Solutions Inc. Newark

DE

Devol Design Build Remodel Loveland

OH

Exalt Him Properties Puyallup

WA

Family Home Modifications Carlisle

PA

Kitchen & Bath Enhancements West Seneca

NY

Mobility Products Depot Broussard

LA

Sage Solutions Ottawa

ON

Cooks Kitchen and Bath Inc Vallejo

CA

DreamMaker Bakersfield Bakersfield

CA

Eagle Accessibility Solutions Auburn

CA

Kiwi Creative Services Inc. St. Louis

MO

Luxury Bath Systems Loves Park

IL

Tubz Sacramento

CA

Universal Design Specialists Corte Madera

CA

All Disability Access, Inc. San Fransico CA
Anderson Plumbing & Remodeling Chula Vista CA
CoMar Products, Inc. Caycee SC
Doug Ripleys Inno-Craft Eugene OR
Norco Boise ID
The Wheelchair Place Morganton NC
Accessible Bathrooms & More Meridian ID
CD Stine Construction Lancaster OH
Handiworks Bonita CA
Willams Home Center, Inc Goldsboro NC
Amy Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, Inc. Carpetersville IL
Cobblestone Homes LLC LaCenter WA
Doug Ripleys Inno-Craft Eugene OR
DreamMaker of Belfair Belfair WA
The Medical Club Indianapolis IN
Accessibuilt Inc. Waynesville NC
Advanced Renovation Solutions Denham Springs LA
Chets Construction Kingman AZ
CompCare Orofino ID
DreamMaker Bakersfield Bakersfield CA
DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen Naples FL
Eagle Accessibility Solutions Auburn CA
MedSource Layton UT
Mobility Excellence Vista CA

 2007 Attendees

Active Plumbing Supply Co. Chagrin Falls

OH

Home Pro Remodeling & Building LLC Richmond

VA

Shirey Handyman Issaquah

WA

Accessibility Professionals Caledon

ON

Bathroom Plus AZ Gilbert

AZ

D&T Builders Lagrange

IN

Interiors for Independence Gulph Mills

PA

Mod Squad Reno

NV

Bomarc Design & Construction San Anselmo

CA

Colvin Kitchen & Bath Fort Wayne

IN

Frontier Access Cheyenne

WY

Master Grab Bar Lewes

DE

Rowen Design Hillsdale

MI

Active Plumbing Supply Chargrin Falls

OH

Home Pro Remodeling & Building LLC Richmond

VA

KC MASS Services Grandview

MO

Mr Handyman Shakopee

MN

Pete’s Construction Sparta

IL

Shirey Handi Man Services Issaquah

WA

H2 Renovations Camas

WA

Interiors for Independence Gulph Mills

PA

Jem Construction, LLC Oregon City

OR

KaJo Services Anchorage

AK

Kodiak Plumbing Keizer

OR

Light House Creations South Jordan

UT

Safe-Ko Kitchens & Baths Rock Springs

WY

Bomarc Design & Construction San Anselmo

CA

CJ Construction Sacramento

CA

Colvin Bathroom Remodeling Fort Wayne

IN

Daniels Design Centerville

UT

Frontier Access & Mobility Cheyenne

WY

Mister Grabbar Inc. Lewes

DE

Rowen Design Hillsdale

MI

The Walk in Bath Tub Store Mount Dora

FL

 2006 Attendees

Access Bath Systems El Segundo   CA
Accessible Environments, Inc. Williamsburg   VA
Frangeli Consulting&Remodeling Dix Hills   NY
Home Town Restyling Hiawatha   IA
Med Surg Systems, Inc. Seattle   WA
Dickey’s Incorporated Olympia   WA
Access Bath Systems El Segundo   CA
Accessible Environments, Inc. Gloucester   VA
Adaptive Installation Seattle   WA
Babson Services Nakina   NC
Bath Pros Coastville   PA
Bathroom Plus Sacramento   CA
CareAssist Technologies Crescent   PA
CPRC Inc. Lodi   CA
Frangeli Consulting & Remodeling Kew Gardens   NY
Home Town Restyling Hiawatha   IA
Homeowners Building & Remodeling St. Clair Shores   MI
Horizon Remodeling Phoenix   AZ
In Your Home Lake Oswego   OR
Independence Modification Isanti   MN
Motion Accessibility Indianapolis   IN
Zoe Industries Scottsdale   AZ
Advance Services & Repairs Vancouver   WA
Dickey’s Incorporated Olympia   WA
Home Owners Builders & Remodelers St. Clair Shores   MI

 

Continuing Education

By Gary Multanen, CEO and Founder of Best Bath Systems

It’s time to continue my education, and to me calling on customers is the best education the CEO of a manufacturing company can get. There is opportunity to learn everywhere, but since we are in the midst of a cold Idaho winter, Florida seemed a good place to start.

Megan Multanen, our Eastern dealer sales manager, took on the trip planning duties. Our first stop was Orlando where we met Tim Bates from Premier Aging in Place [http://www.premieraip.com/] for breakfast.  Tim is broadening his DME business to include bathroom modifications.  He sees opportunity but is faced with a challenge: How do you get comfortable venturing into a new business direction?
After 30 minutes of discussion it was clear to me that “pulling the trigger” was the next step for Tim and his company.  Preparation is crucial so that you know the obstacles ahead, but then you have to participate.  It’s time for Tim to secure jobs and begin his on-the-job training, and I am sure that a year from now Tim will be comfortable creating safe and beautiful bathrooms for his customers.

Access Ability in Pompano Beach [http://www.access-ability.com/] is a family run business that mother Kathy and son Doug have carried on in their father/husband’s name.  They offer a full line of equipment and home modification products. Kathy is an artist and there is a huge collection of original art for sale. To me it seems like a great combination.   A safe, functional home environment is what Danny offers, coupled with an option to decorate with original paintings.

Ted Bickoff [http://www.linkedin.com/pub/ted-bickoff/b/b8/686], an old Best Bath Systems friend from New England, has relocated to West Palm Beach.  He is busy getting Access Life [http://www.generalplumbing.com/accessiblity-mobility.html] up and running for General Plumbing.

Ted is a recognized expert on aging lifestyle, universal design and making safe bathrooms beautiful and elegant.  Ted made it clear to me that safety bars with style are important.  It often depends on the preference of the home owner, but according to Ted “beauty and style always carry the day”.  Listening to Ted made it clear:  Best Bath Systems need to offer beautiful, stylish safety bars to our dealer network.   Give us a few months -we will get it done.

Being a recognized expert is important as you establish yourself in your community.  Prospects are more comfortable when it is clear that “you know what you are talking about.”  I would encourage anyone who wants to see a true professional at work to be in the audience when Ted is the speaker.

After our visit, it was time to head west.  Funny story:  Ted had asked me about the West Coast and I started talking about California, after a couple of comments I realized that I had committed a Floridian cultural SNAFU.

In Coral Gables Megan and I popped into a senior expo.  I know a lot of you are not impressed with these kinds of events, oftentimes comprised of busloads of seniors from local assisted living facilities that are dropped off for an outing. Nonetheless, it’s always best to be polite and friendly because they might know friends or have relatives that are living at home and are looking to renovate their bathroom to be safer.

While there, we found Treavor Ball and Bill Ethridge under the Trendsetter Walk-in Tub banner.  Treavor and Bill are combining their experiences and are excited about the future.  Treavor owns Ball Contracting which specializes in helping communities cope with natural disasters. Bill has spent years with Sears Remodeling.  Their goal is to cover the west coast of Florida installing walk-in tubs. They were smiling having secured five appointments.  With their products right at the front of the booth, they were already excited about the next day.

After the expo we headed north to Tallahassee.  Accessibility Solutions [http://www.homeaccessfl.com/] has been selling Best Bath Systems products since 2008. When we walked into their showroom we were impressed. John Petit is an expert.  He is hooked into the VA and the local community, and Reta Hodges is in charge of their beautiful showroom.  It’s a place where she gets customers thinking about their bathing needs and home design at the same time.

Our visit to Accessibility Solutions led to some brainstorming.  In late March we are going to join forces and co-host a two day open house.  Details are being worked out but I’ll let you know the results. Also, if you get to Tallahassee make sure you eat BBQ at John and Reta’s favorite spot –give them a holler and they will let you know where it is.

It was time to head east again to Jacksonville. We were meeting Scott and Eve Ross of Home Sweet Accessible Home [http://www.homesweetjax.com] for dinner.  Their business is in fact home based. Scott is a contractor by family tradition and Eve understands the value of social media. Their social media savvy and Web presence is really helping them grow.  They are excited about 2012 and have already committed to our Dealer Days event – the first for Eve and the second for Scott.

As a member of the first year the of baby boomer generation, it is absolutely joyous to find young professionals who are ready to focus on seniors and to help them stay safely in their homes.

By design, Best Bath Systems has decided that our dealers do not have to fit a ridged, structural model. We want dealers with passion, who are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to grow their business. The relationship between risk and reward is absolute.

Gary

Link with Gary to keep up to date with his Travelogue:  http://www.linkedin.com/in/garymultanen

Safe Bathing Links and Notes from Around the Web

Here are a few articles from around the web, including some from one of our dealers in Corte Madera, California – Universal Design Specialists – who have been writing up some great content lately for their customers.

When buying a walk-in bathtub, there are a lot of choices and features to ponder. Here are some things to consider before purchasing a handicap-accessible tub for your home.

Here is a review of Best Bath Systems showers, and another article that explains the common features of a handicap shower.

Before you plan a bathroom remodel, get some tips on budgeting your bathroom renovation from HGTV.

And US News and World Report  discusses land use, transportation, and housing when considering aging in place and senior-friendly communities.

 

 

Best Bath Shower Installed on Disaster Guy TV Program

Best Bath has made it to prime time TV! One of our barrier free showers was installed in an episode of Disaster Guy on A&E. It’s an inspiring show that sends a crew of contractors out to build or repair homes for families that have been had their lives turned upside down by a natural disaster such as a flood or tornado.

You can see our shower with the WaterStopper flexible water dam in The Harris Family episode at around the 32:00 mark.