Casa Dorinda's paradigm shift connects a community

Located in the affluent coastal community of Montecito, California, Casa Dorinda has provided luxury retirement living for more than 40 years. The stand-alone nonprofit community is owned and operated by Montecito Retirement Association, which runs the lifecare program "with a commitment to excellence in the quality and quantity of its services ...," so residents may continue to live "with dignity, security and as independently and fully as they are able." Director of Life Enrichment Melissa Gill Hausz affirms the community's well-established commitment to resident wellness. She also points to unintentional barriers created by aligning staff responsible for life enrichment programs only with staff in their individual levels of care. A staff restructuring in 2013 gave Gill Hausz and her team the opportunity to shift this model through programming and campus-wide staff integration, the impact of which continues to grow organically. The Journal on Active Aging recently asked Gill Hausz to share her insights and experiences, as well as the impact of her community's efforts.