Certifiably Green

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Providers throughout the country continue to implement initiatives that make their communities healthier and more environmentally friendly places for residents and staff. From energy-efficient appliances and lighting to environmentally friendly air ventilation systems and native landscaping, providers are keeping pace with what has become a central point of corporate responsibility and consumer preference-so much so, that green initiatives are fast becoming a new norm of operational excellence.

There's one green milestone, however, that senior living has yet to reach, and that is official building certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Since the USGBC rolled out its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program nine years ago, more than 2,300 general contractor Massachusetts  projects-including commercial properties, government facilities, and educational buildings-have become LEED-certified. Now, Chicago-based Pathway Senior Living may soon become the first LEED-certified provider for a community it recently opened-Victory Centre of South Chicago.

The 112-unit community, developed in partnership with the not-for-profit Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, was designed by architectural firm Harley Ellis Devereaux with the goal of achieving LEED Silver certification. (general contractor Massachusetts : Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, and each level is based on a points system.)

"We've always had an interest in energy efficiency," says Robert Helle, a principal at Pathway Senior Living. "We pay all of the utility costs at our assisted living communities, so there has always been an economic incentive for us to invest in communities that are as efficient as possible."

That history has helped the provider on its path toward LEED certification, as has Helle's status as a "LEED-accredited professional"-a designation the USGBC gives to those who have "demonstrated a thorough understanding of green building practices and principles and the LEED rating system." More than 80,000 people have earned the credential since the program debuted in 2001. Pathway has also eased its way toward certification by working with LEED-certified architects (LEED APs) on the Harley Ellis Devereaux staff.

Working with LEED APs is a simple but important strategy for providers interested in pursuing LEED certification, says Ashley Katz, USGBC manager of communications. Not only does a LEED AP on your project team earn you a point toward certification (26 points are needed for certification), but "because they are building professionals with the knowledge and skills to successfully steward the certification process, they can make the whole process seamless."

Another tip for providers pursuing LEED certification, Katz says: Register your project as soon as possible so you can receive additional resources that will help with the certification process. "Once registered, project teams receive information, tools, and communication that will help guide them through the certification process."

There are many providers, however, that are still in the planning stages of embarking on such initiatives, in which case it's important to look at the big green picture before committing to a comprehensive plan and specific strategies. Especially in a challenging economy, smart providers will examine the pros and cons and determine whether the return on investment aligns with company goals.





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Stress Management Group Analysis

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The current group of analysis is a mock stress management group. Each member acted out specific roles of individual situations that possibly exist within the local communities of Flint, Michigan. Each of these individuals had been asked to recall for one week between sessions, of a stressful event that impacted their life in a significant manner. The group had initially met one week prior for introductions and general contractor Massachusetts  of group rules. The current video segment represented the second meeting with a time of approximately (30) minutes.

During the video segment the group's indicated stage of development could be characterized as the Forming Stage (Tuckman, 1963). This stage as Tuckman (1963) stated is characterized by the initial or early stages of the group, with introductions, orientations, and the testing of members through interaction. Klein (1972) also characterizes an accurate portrayal of our stress management groups stage of development, when he stated that early in the development of a group, "The underlying theme of the orientation phase is anxiety and the actions are a means of coping with it. Some people respond to anxiety by remaining passive, watching and waiting" (p 82). Corey & Corey (2002), indicate that some members may be suspicious, anxious, and represent a curiosity of who these new group members are. These theoretical perceptions can be clearly identified when one of the members within the stress management group would laugh at times; expressing anxious reactions to group involvement as well as the indication by their members that we all can feel anxious initially. The priority issues within the group general contractor Massachusetts  of four areas of focus. They are as follows;

1.The need to express a past stressful event in the member's life.

2.The need to identify and express the emotions connected to the event.

3.The need to understand and express the affects of the event on their relationships.

4.The need to express the ways in which the member coped with the event

Figure 1.1

The members were asked to contemplate over a period of one week, a past event that was stressful. They were asked to prepare to discuss the topic during the second group session. The members were asked to identify and express the subjective emotions they experienced during the stressful event. According to Therapeutic Resources (2006), it is important to express and share feelings and emotions within such a support group in order to promote emotional healing. The members were also asked to identify and express the affects this event subjectively had upon the member's relationships. Finally, the members were asked to express their perceptions and actions taken to cope with the past event. According to Toseland & Rivas (1995), assisting members in identifying past actions that assisted in accomplishing a positive outcome serves to empower individuals.

According to Reid (1997), group composition pertains to identifying who will be in the group and who will not be in the group. The gender, age, ethnic, social and racial characteristics are identified and analyzed according to group purpose and needs (Reid, 1997). Our stress management group consisted of four members, constructed as an open system. The members were all between the ages of thirty and forty. There were two males and two females of mid to low social stratification. This group represented both homogeneous and heterogeneous aspects (Reid, 1997). Unfortunately for the purpose of the group project the only members the leader could utilize were of European Caucasian decent. The leader realizes that it may have been valuable for other ethnicities and racial compositions to be present in the group for further learning opportunities for all members. According to Reid (1997), those of other cultures can give a group a diverse amount of perspectives in solving problems. It would have clearly been of great interest and more educational for members to gain insight on how others from different ethnic groups experienced their stressful event. Regarding gender, the leader did make efforts to obtain an equal participation of both genders.






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The Rationale for Personal Development and Training

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The basic rationale for personal development can be understood from the necessity to understand one's own human needs, together with spiritual, emotional and social development, because a failure to understand this about one's own self is unthinkable if trying to understand and relate to other human beings in any meaningful way.

A person's development can be perceived in many different ways; for instance as in Freud's Psychosexual Development Theory (Marshall, 2004) which looks at stages of sexual development and the frustrations connected to each stage, or Havighurst's Developmental Stages (Sugarman, 1986) and Tasks which identifies:

Tasks that arise from physical maturation

Tasks that arise from personal values

Tasks that have their source in the pressures of society

or through Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs(Maslow, 1998).

Or indeed through any of the other methods and theories that have been developed, and which may be studied and related to the needs of a counsellor in training,e.g.:

Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development Theory

Piaget's Phases of Cognitive Development

Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

Gilligan's Theory of Moral Development

Which is to name but a few, and some of which will mean more to one person than to another.

What is really important is the core condition of recognising ourselves and others as human beings with developmental needs and developmental general contractor Massachusetts , the understanding of which is paramount to enabling a real understanding of the human development processes and the requirements necessary in order to work towards living a contented and fulfilled existence for ourselves, and for engaging meaningfully with others working towards the same.

An individual's decisions are often influenced by social construction, by adapting our personality to fit in with the expectations of friends, family and employers; whilst in relation to any other person we may act in response to our own unconscious and emotionally fuelled expectations. The person we are depends upon our life experiences and feedback from others about how we inter-relate with those people with whom we come into contact, as well as the physical, cultural and spiritual worlds in which we find ourselves. If we are to be able to relate to others whose personal construct and developmental processes that have led to what they have become with any real empathy and congruence, we must first understand our own general contractor Massachusetts . In taking responsibility for learning about our own emotional and social actions, understanding and development, we act authentically; but allowing our social construct to make choices for us could be seen as acting un-authentically.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs takes a premise that once the most basic human needs are met it becomes possible to progress through successively more advanced levels of need, to culminate in 'self actualisation'. If we engage in exploring this process we allow ourselves the opportunity to develop a relationship with one's self which leads to and enables the establishment of a more understanding relationship with others.






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