SENIOR DINING
International Council on Active Aging and Restaura partner to launch senior living dining benchmarking system
The new system will provide a self-assessment tool for operators to review their program and also offer in-person evaluations for those looking to receive formal recognition in the form of a ICAA Plate of Distinction designation.
BY BENITA GINGERELLA
T he International Council on Active Aging (ICAA) has part- nered with senior living food- service provider Restaura to create a senior dining bench- marking system that operators can use review their program and find ways to elevate the dining experience for their residents. “Our goal is to ensure that people, when they move into a community, that their expectations are met and that the organizations are rewarded for excel- lence and challenged when they’re not,” says ICAA CEO Colin Milner. At the center of the benchmarking system is a set of standards that were created by the ICAA and Restaura Chief Culinary Officer Matthew Thompson. “Great food and heartfelt hospitality do more than nourish the body—they nurture community, purpose and joy,” says Thompson. “This tool empowers organizations to create environments where people don’t just live longer— they live better.” The standards are based around the following key areas: culinary excellence
and food quality; hospitality and ele- vated dining experience; transparency, trust and culinary innovation; and ac- tive aging through food and community engagement. Operators will be able to assess what where they stand in regarded to the key areas above and see what areas of their dining programs need improvement through a self assessment tool that will be available through the ICAA website. Alongside the self assessment tool, quality assurance company CrossCheck will also conduct in-person evaluations for communities that seek to receive formal recognition in the form of a ICAA Plate of Distinction designation. The ICAA Plate of Distinction designa- tion has three levels: bronze, silver and gold. “I kind of like thinking about [The ICAA Plate of Distinction levels] this way, I’m walking, I’m jogging, and I’m running. The walking are the people that have started to build in things like good quality food and they have appro- priate staffing. They just haven’t got to the jogging yet,” says Milner. “And once
they get to the jogging, then they need to get to the running.” Once senior living communities re- ceive their bronze, gold or platinum lev- el distinction, they would need to be re- certified annually to keep their current level or move to the next. The recognition and benchmark sys- tem has been in the works for several months now, and Milner is excited to finally release it to operators. Having a benchmarking system like this, he says, not only allows prospective residents to know what to expect when it comes to a dining program at a particular commu- nity, but it also gives senior living oper- ators a way to feel recognized for a job well done. “It is great to be recognized number one for your incoming consumer or your current consumer, but also for your staff and for the organization,” he says. “If you’re doing a great job, you want to be told you’re doing a great job, right? And I think far too often, we don’t get that recognition. So, we want to highlight that recognition.”
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QUARTERLY | Q2
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