In late 2023, we moved to the Rogue Valley Manor (RVM), a licensed Continuing Care Community with…read morewide views, lush plantings and abundant trees. We enjoyed meeting the other residents. However, after 22 months, we left feeling angry, frustrated and hurt.
A few months after our arrival, RVM implemented a "points" system for meals, and we experienced months of confusion regard when, where and how to eat. Rules changed daily and communication was spotty. Management made some questionable decisions at this time of massive changes. They fired the Food Service Manager, slashed dining staff hours and permanently shuttered one dining room. The implementation of the points program generated about 40 pages of single-spaced complaints from residents. During this time of unrest, one senior manager remarked, "If residents cannot handle moving to the points program, they should seek professional counseling."
We chose to eat 90% of our meals at home but we ran into problems there, as well. That summer, we discovered that our cottage was too hot for us and too hot for the housekeepers, who refused to clean in our heat. We learned that management had ignored a neighbor with the same issue during the prior summer. We worked with that neighbor to document our cooling problems and sent a report to the managers involved. Eventually, with the assistance of the Resident Council President, we received extra insulation and were told, "You will have to pay for any future upgrades to your cottage." Our neighbor waited four more months for the same insulation without a confirmation it was coming. The next summer, we found that the new insulation was not enough to resolve our cooling problem. We submitted another work order but heard from no one until a few days before we left.
Our experience suggested problems with basic management. Our tipping point was when I personally experienced unprofessional treatment by staff, including managers--pettiness and hostility--while working on two different projects.
RVM says it is "resident-centered" but based on our above experiences, I disagree. One contributing factor may be that CCRC management and resident council leaders do not seem to be aware of Oregon's CCRC Resident Rights laws (ORS 101.115) for independent-living residents. Copies are not given to new residents nor are the Resident Rights referenced in meetings. Resident Rights should be given to all residents and for incoming residents, Resident Rights should be signed off by both parties. Surprisingly, Resident Council leadership told me they were not interested in Resident Rights (the very rights that ensured their roles as advocates for residents). One important Resident Right--residents receiving timely answers to their concerns--was of most concern. One manager told me, "I never read 'those letters' from residents."
In conclusion, we did not want to live there for the rest of our lives. It was an expensive mistake.
