Retirement planning explained.

As retirement age approaches, most people are faced with a sea of decisions. How do I protect my assets? What are my retirement housing options? Are assisted living and skilled nursing care one and the same? What am I paying for when I take out long-term care insurance? How do I choose supplemental health insurance, and how do I ensure that my wishes will be respected?

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At Foulkeways at Gwynedd, a CCRC in Gwynedd, Pennsylvania, we have created an accredited continuing education seminar to help financial planners, advisers, and elder attorneys gain a comprehensive understanding of the many retirement options available to their clients. Foulkeways has been providing care to residents since 1967. It was the first CCRC in Pennsylvania and the first Quaker CCRC in the United States. Foulkeways has 342 independent residents, 54 assisted living residents, and 36 skilled nursing residents.

By developing an outline and agenda based on questions we receive on a regular basis from financial planners, potential residents, and children of parents beginning to explore their retirement options, we created "Navigating the Retirement Maze; Retirement Living Options and What You Need to Know" to clearly define our agenda of education versus marketing. It simply made sense to support the premise that well-informed consumers make well-informed decisions. To that end, Foulkeways wanted to supply information to professionals who were influential in guiding their clients' retirement options.

Foulkeways initiated "Navigating the Retirement Maze" to provide financial and legal advisers with up-to-date, comprehensive information vital to their ability to guide clients wisely. Much of the information we covered is second nature to those involved in the industry. We wanted to provide an in-depth, comprehensive explanation of information not readily available to those facing the daunting task of advising newly retired or soon-to-be retired active adults on the best options available. We know the medical standards that differentiate assisted living and skilled nursing care, but do they? We may understand the differences between a fee-for-service contract versus an all-inclusive Type A contract, but others may not. We wanted to clarify many of these variables. Presenters were given outlines suggesting the content that needed to be covered in their segments; however, each developed his or her presentation from that point forward.

We targeted elder attorneys, financial planners, advisers, large investment firms, and other industry groups, and then we went online to obtain names and mailing addresses. Selected individuals were sent an introductory letter, an enrollment form, and an agenda. We also went through the lengthy process of obtaining accreditation for continuing education credits from the Pennsylvania Insurance Department, Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education Board, Professional Achievement in Continuing Education, and Certified Financial Planners Board to add additional substance to our program. The existing program must be recertified every two years or whenever speakers or topics change.

This daylong seminar was created to increase our audiences' awareness of our industry and the many choices they are repeatedly called on to evaluate for their clients. To help facilitate their ability to sift through a myriad of information and recommend the best options for their clients, we believe we have a responsibility to educate rather than market to financial advisers. We were especially mindful to discuss the growing list of variables taking place in the retirement housing marketplace and include information on differentiating one community from another, identifying levels of care and the medical evaluations that define each level, the importance of a medical health assessment, and contractual differences. Entry fees, monthly fees, fee-for-service, hidden costs, waiting lists, and long-term care insurance are also covered. The differences between not-for-profit communities and for-profit communities and the industry credentialing that indicates excellence are included in the day's agenda, as well.

Area experts, including Foulkeways CEO Doug Tweddale and Brecht Associates, Inc.'s founder Susan Brecht, were among the day's presenters who supplemented their 40-minute lectures with handouts and PowerPoint demonstrations. The midday meal allowed those in attendance to experience firsthand the "taste" of retirement living by enjoying items chosen from the Foulkeways dinner menu. At the end of the session, a question-and-answer segment allowed attendees to clarify any issues that might not have been covered. Attendees received a binder with reprints of the key points covered during the day and a certificate of continuing education credit from the appropriate educational organizations.

Foulkeways launched the first "Navigating the Retirement Maze" seminar on February 2, 2005, and put on a second seminar on February 6, 2005. Attendees were charged $149 per person to cover the cost of all materials, a continental breakfast, light refreshments, and lunch. Each attendee was asked to pay the cost of individual accreditation as dictated by the various accreditation boards.

Offering vital information to those who serve as advisers to potential community members can provide substance and credibility to the retirement industry and all who are involved with senior living. Rather than promoting one community or one choice over another, Foulkeways offered attendees the information needed to support the best interests of their clients in making the decision as to how they will spend the second half of their lives. By sharing this information in an environment that includes continuing education credits needed to maintain attendees' professional credentialing, we at Foulkeways believe that we are helping to provide the tools needed to enhance their effectiveness to their clients.

It is our belief that with some diligence on the part of other communities, this program can be re-created to satisfy the continuing education accreditation requirements of state organizations regardless of location. Interested facilities will need to contact their state CEU organizations to determine the steps necessary to receive credentialing.

It took careful planning; a hard-earned mastery of the accreditation process of the organizations who serve financial planners, attorneys, and elder advisers in our state; and more than six months of preparation to organize our first seminar. It is definitely not for the faint of heart, but we are eagerly looking forward to putting on another seminar!

For more information, contact Nancy Nolan, Foulkeways at Gwynedd's Director of Marketing and Public Relations, at [phone]. To send your comments to the author and editors, e-mail [e-mail].

A collaboration of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging and Nursing Homes/Long Term Care Management Not-for-Profit Report, appearing in every issue of Nursing Homes magazine, addresses issues of particular interest to long-term care's not-for-profit sector. It provides nonprofit aging service providers with an additional information resource. Topics have been identified in collaboration with the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging. Nursing Homes welcomes comments and suggestions for future coverage.