When West Hartford resident and Danish cycling enthusiast Lene Bruun pitched the idea of bringing Cycling Without Age to his nursing home over a year ago, Mark Finkelstein didn’t think twice.
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When West Hartford resident and Danish cycling enthusiast Lene Bruun pitched the idea of bringing Cycling Without Age to his nursing home over a year ago, Mark Finkelstein didn't think twice.
“Our response was, 'Heck, yes,' ” recalled Finkelstein, administrator and vice president of Hughes Health & Rehabilitation in West Hartford. “We knew from the onset that it was going to be a fantastic program, but we really had no concept of just how remarkable it would be.”
Using Danish-style rickshaws steered from behind by a trained driver, the program allows nursing-home residents to experience the joy of cycling and “feel the wind go through their hair,” Finkelstein said. Hughes is one of only three nursing homes in the nation to introduce the program, founded in Bruun's native Denmark and popular in Europe.
Residents, accompanied in the two-seater rickshaw by a relative or staff member, often visit their old neighborhoods or nearby Elizabeth Park. Therapeutic benefits include boosting memory and reducing depression.
“I remember our first rider came back, and he looked at me with a grand smile on his face and said, 'Mr. Mark, we're going to remember this day for a long, long time,' ” Finkelstein recalled.
The embrace of innovative ideas like the rickshaw program is a hallmark of Finkelstein's tenure at Hughes, said Lina Dureza, director of nursing administration.
“He is always thinking about opportunities where we can serve our stakeholders better,” Dureza said. “He is always thinking outside the box. He gets everybody to look at the bigger picture as to what will benefit our building.”
The nursing-home industry has taken notice. In October, Hughes became one of three post-acute nursing homes in the country to win the 2016 Gold – Excellence in Quality Award from the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living. A month later, U.S. News & World Report named Hughes one of its Best Nursing Homes in America for the sixth consecutive year.
Finkelstein, also named a top performer by the American College of Health Care Administrators, shared the credit. “We have a wonderful staff here committed to being the best. Nobody can do this by themselves,” he said.
Finkelstein joined Hughes in 2006 after running nursing homes throughout New England. He earned his bachelor's in psychology from Long Island University C.W. Post, and was in grad school studying to become a clinical psychologist when his career path took an unexpected turn. While working nights as a hospital aide, he was recruited to establish a psycho-social rehabilitation program at a Cheshire nursing home.
“It was a very innovative program back in 1972, to have specialized care in a nursing home,” he said. “I told them that I had to make at least $10,000 a year or I couldn't accept. They said they were sorry, they couldn't do that.”
A week later, the nursing home called back with a proposal: If he'd run the program and serve as assistant facility director, they'd pay him $10,000.
“I thought that was more money than I'd ever see in my life,” he said with a laugh. “And the thought of going from an aide's positon to assistant administrator was just too much for me to say 'no' to.”
Finkelstein went on to earn his master's in healthcare administration from LIU, and in the 1980s, would rise to the presidency of the American College of Health Care Administrators, the nation's main advocacy organization for long-term care.
Improving the public image of nursing homes — back then at an all-time low — topped his agenda. So Finkelstein invited classic film star Helen Hayes and Jim Brady, Ronald Reagan's press secretary, to the organization's annual meeting. Hayes was active with the Grey Panthers, an advocacy group for the elderly that was “very, very anti-nursing home,” Finkelstein said.
“I wanted to bring her in and show her that we were human beings too, that we had families and we were generally caring professionals,” he said.
Brady, recovering from injuries sustained in the Reagan assassination attempt, received an award and took his first public steps after the shooting on stage with Finkelstein.
“I'll tell you, my feet never touched the ground, I was just so proud. And it worked. We got a lot of respect,” he said. Later, Vice President George H.W. Bush would invite him to the White House to discuss ways to control the rising cost of health care.
“It's been a wonderful 45 years for me,” he said. “But you can't be stagnant. You always have to look forward, be aggressive and look at what we can do to improve.”
