Senior housing leaders shouldn’t rely solely on employee self-reports to assess community conditions. Here’s why — and what to do instead.
Inherent Bias
Employees can’t provide objective feedback regardless of intent. Whether or not they are aware, they cannot be completely objective when providing feedback about their place of employment. Financial incentives tied to surveys amplify this problem.
Lack of Awareness
Staff may be unaware of systemic issues because problematic practices have become normalized within the organization’s culture. Long-term employees may not notice problems that new residents and families immediately catch.
Consequences of Poor Data
Relying on unreliable internal surveys creates vulnerability during regulatory inspections, damages reputation through negative online reviews, and fails to attract residents and referral sources. If comments on your social media and review sites continually conflict with your internal surveys, you already have a bad-data problem.
A Better Approach
Gather feedback from residents and families at multiple stages — intake, during residency, and at move-out — using specialized survey companies designed for senior living communities.
