When it comes to serving the needs of others, experience matters. Masonicare’s mission is to enhance the quality of life of older adults through exceptional care and service. Masonicare stands on a legacy of caring that has guided it for over a century — and remaining true to founding ideals, continues to evolve. With best-in-class residential living and myriad supportive health care service lines, the Masonicare Be Ageless™ promise aims to deliver a truly individualized living experience.
For 125 years, Masonicare has been working to serve the needs of its communities. The largest non-profit senior care health system in the state, Masonicare offers a full continuum of services ranging from a variety of residential living options, to home health care, home maker companion services, hospice and palliative care, short-term rehabilitation, hospital care, adult day care, memory care and more. This one-of-a-kind care continuum allows residents to receive all the care they need from the provider they have come to trust.
As the organization navigates the changing tides of the healthcare and senior-living industry, it is clear that its formula for success rests first in its ability to recruit and retain the best and brightest talent in the industry. Masonicare CEO Jon-Paul Venoit credits Masonicare’s excellence to the team of 2,500 talented employees who give their best each and every day. “Our success stems from our caring and compassionate employee team members who exemplify our brand values in all they do,” states Venoit.
Fueled by a passion for caring for others, Masonicare team members embrace a mantra of accountability. “The ‘I am Masonicare’ rally cry stems from the personal accountability and commitment to quality held by each of our team members,” states Venoit. “Caring for others is hard work. It takes a special kind of person to make a living in service to others. We are proud of the culture of caring we have cultivated and the employee team members who embrace the Masonicare values of Innovation, Compassion, Accountability, Respect and Excellence.”
While Masonicare works to ensure the highest standards of care and service are delivered on a daily basis, its service extends far beyond the sprawling campuses and caring hands of its providers. At Masonicare, community and social accountability are at the heart of its core values. A mission-based organization founded by the Masons over a century ago, community service remains central to its mission and values.
Initiatives include:
• Togetherhood Project
• We Honor Veterans
• Free blood-pressure clinics in senior centers around the state
• Free exercise classes for seniors who have arthritis and joint disorders
• Thanksgiving Basket Drive to help families served by the Meriden/Wallingford United Way
• Support of food pantries in Wallingford, Chester, Pawcatuck and the Connecticut Food Bank
• Bottled water and fan drive
• Adopt a Family for the Holidays initiative
• Toy drives
• Back-to-School Drive for school supplies
• Tax Assistance for Seniors
Despite Masonicare’s statewide presence and multilevel residential and health care offerings, the organization is not exempt from the rapidly changing dynamics of the health care and senior care industry. Declining government reimbursement, rising health care costs and labor shortages continue to challenge the health care industry, forcing some operators out of business while others work to find new and improved ways of delivering care and service. Mammoth hospital enterprises and preferred-provider groups are shrinking the market and changes in reimbursement threaten the financial health of smaller operations.
On the residential side, surplus in the market has raised the level of competition, which is “good for everyone,” said Venoit. “Competition keeps everyone on their toes, working to deliver a superior, differentiated product and service.” And while the residential-living industry competes for occupancy, the need for mid-market and affordable housing remains. The company that finds the exact recipe to fill these voids and meet the needs of the up-and-coming baby boomers will no doubt hit the mark. Masonicare is planning on doing just that.
“Our clients want us to know what is important to them and deliver on that consistently and without hesitation,” said Venoit. “That makes what we do personal and unique to individuals in our care. People want to feel that they are being heard and that they are in the hands of professionals who can provide the care and service they need and want.”
Masonicare has recently evolved the brand and put forth a marketing strategy that is refreshingly simple. “We communicate with our clients and communities through a variety of platforms using honest, compassionate and straightforward dialogue,” states Ann Collette, vice president of strategy. “Through our recent brand relaunch, we have re-established communication with our audiences by defining our tone and voice as conversational and collaborative. We are listening to our customers and potential clients and restructuring our service lines, pricing, policies and products to align with their wants and needs. Our brand evolution takes what has always worked and brings clarity to the conversation we are having about who we are and what we do.”
The Masonicare brand is synonymous with quality. But the Masonicare team is not resting on its laurels. Instead, members are working to adapt to changing markets, evolving the brand, restructuring programs and changing the conversation about what it means to be “ageless.” Working to ensure Masonicare will be around to serve the next century and beyond, Venoit and his 2,500 compassionate employees are creating what they call the “Next Generation Masonicare – Built to Last.” From all indications, they are surpassing the mark.