CC Young Senior Living Set to Open Inpatient Hospice Unit

Dallas-based CC Young Senior Living next month will open its new hospice general inpatient care (GIP) unit. The move comes at a time when demand for hospice is on the rise as the aging population burgeons across the country.

Set to open doors to hospice patients in September, the new 16-bed unit will be housed at the CC Young campus at its skilled nursing and assisted living facility, The Vista. Opening earlier last year, The Vista “launched a new era of health care for residents and surrounding community members,” according to the organization.

“With GIP services, hospice patients and their families will find comfort in the extra layers of clinical, psychosocial, and spiritual support in this high-acuity, comfort-focused setting,” the company indicated in a statement. “CC Young has assembled an expert interdisciplinary team to care for patients whose symptoms can no longer be managed at home, who have medically complex needs, or who have experienced a sudden decline and need round-the-clock care.”

The senior care provider offers a continuum of community-based services including independent and assisted living, memory support, long-term care, rehabilitation and therapies, respite and adult day care services, along with home health and hospice care. CC Young provides care to patients in the home as well as other settings outside of its campus. Patients do not have to reside in one of the company’s facilities to receive care.

Founded in 1922 by Conley Young, a Methodist minister, the nonprofit organization serves 13 counties throughout north Texas.

Demographic tailwinds are fueling a rising demand for hospice in Texas. The aging population in Dallas is growing. Seniors 65 and older accounted for 10.3% of the Dallas city area in 2019, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report. This age group is projected to swell from 2.6 million in 2010 up to more than 5.5 million by 2030 — a 114.3% jump, according to a report from the Texas Demographic Center.

The Lone Star State in 2018 ranked 15th nationwide in hospice utilization among Medicare decedents at 52.8%, according to the National Hospice & Palliative Care Organization. This falls in line with the national average that tipped to 50.3% that same year, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission reported.

CC Young will provide general inpatient hospice services along with other clinical, psychosocial and spiritual support services in the high-acuity setting. The organization reported assembling an expert interdisciplinary team to care for these patients and their families.

CC Young indicated that it would continue to follow current health guidelines and safety protocols from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) when it comes to family and friend visitations, allowing for continued 24/7 access to hospice patients.

Hospice providers struggled to gain access to facility-bound patients during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Concern over continued access has mounted among providers and families alike as infections surge once again with new variants spreading, largely among unvaccinated populations.

Long-term and nursing care facilities have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic. Roughly 1-in-10 or 8% of deaths in these settings have been COVID-19 related during 2020 and 2021, according to most recent data from the CDC. More than 186,000 residents and staff in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities have lost their lives to the deadly virus, according to a recent AARP report.

CC Young Senior Living received recognition last year for development of its 325,00-square-foot post-acute care facility, where it offers assisted living, memory support, skilled nursing, adult day care and other services. The Vista is located roughly eight miles northeast of downtown Dallas at the provider’s 20-acre campus that scales the edge of Flag Pole Hill Park and White Rock Lake.

The beauty of its “flex” design is that each nursing floor can be adapted as patient needs demand it, a design element that came into play with the pandemic’s impacts, according to Jennifer Griffin, vice president of engagement for CC Young.

“We held off filling one wing of the fifth floor in case we needed it for COVID-19 cases. Thankfully, we did not,” said Griffin. “As a result, we were able to pivot and fill another need — which is hospice GIP. This new program will include the north wing of the fifth floor with designated rooms for this level of care.”

The Vista ranked high in last year’s 2020 Architecture & Design Awards from Senior Housing News, a sister publication of Hospice News, receiving recognition for best post-acute design for the building’s amenities. These included a therapy suite and small house-style layouts that enable flexibility and enhanced infection control capabilities — unexpectedly put to the test during the pandemic.

Each patient room within the inpatient hospice unit of The Vista will feature an adjustable bed and recliner, a private bathroom and television. The inpatient wing has multiple family gathering areas, an area for small children, private conference rooms, an outdoor garden and a meditation chapel.