Farewell Doctor Jurik

On Tuesday, September 30th, we said goodbye to Doctor John Jurik who has led our medical services team since Kirkhaven's inception back in 1984.

John, along with his partners Doctor Kurnath and Doctor Algase, have given nearly 25 years of dedicated, professional and caring services to our residents. Staff has enjoyed the working relationship with John and his team. They have been an integral part of our Kirkhaven family and we will miss them on both a professional and personal level.

Doctor Jurik is semi-retiring from the hectic and demanding pace required of his current Medical Director role and physician practice. After dedicating his life to this field and pace, he is moving to a part-time "9 to 5" physician position with another medical group where he can begin to enjoy more free time while continuing, in a limited fashion, his passion for physician services. His partners will dedicate their limited time to maintaining their physician practice outside of Kirkhaven.

A farewell party was held in John's honor and he was presented with a plaque commemorating his years of service. We wish Doctor Jurik well in his new endeavor and his transition into semi-retirement. We thank him and his partners for all they have provided us.

Farewell John.......... stay out of the Casinos, keep drinking those caffeinated cokes and enjoy life to the fullest!

As we end one leg in our Kirkhaven journey, we embark on yet another. After several discussions and preparation meetings, we are pleased to have teamed up with the Rochester General Hospital Geriatrics Group, who will provide our Medical Director and physician service needs under a short-term transition plan until a more permanent long-term plan is developed. This partnership is a natural extension of Kirkhaven's long-standing relationship with RGH, that was first established via the Genessee Hospital, prior to its closing nearly 10 years ago.

Thanks to an invitation from Board member Tom Lockwood, I attended a Rochester Economic Development luncheon this past week at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center. The attendees read like a "Who's Who of Rochester" as all the big names were there to hear the current state and future plans for our grand City. Sitting right beside me at the table next to ours was Mr. Big himself, Tom Golisano (and no I didn't have the nerve to strike up a conversation with him about his Buffalo Sabres team).

Continuing my week with the "rich and famous", I also attended a reception for Assembly Woman Susan John held Wednesday evening at Tastings in Pittsford. I was somewhat out of my element among the many hospital and corporate CEO's who were also present to share "face time" with Ms. John and work their agenda into the conversation. I'm not a very political person, but I do understand the importance of "friends in high places" if you need something done in Albany. In addition to my role as Seniorsfirst CEO, I am also Chairman of the Rochester Area Association of Homes & Services for the Aging, which gives me heightened status and leverage when needed.

On Tuesday evening, Scott Maar (CFO) and I spent the afternoon and evening with our auditors reviewing our fiscal progress and planning the future audit engagement. The fiscal operations of a senior care community is actually quite complex with the nuances of government and other third-party reimbursement programs and the ever increasing complications of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Our meeting was very productive and was capped off with a working dinner at Virtu's in Cobbs Hill.

The Governance Committee met this week to continue their work on developing a slate of board members and officers to present to the Board in November. We expect to have as many as 5 new seats open up for next year and are busy soliciting potential new talent and passion to join our board. The Committee is also evaluating our board structure and time commitments in an effort to create both effectiveness and efficiency that is mindful of our members valuable and limited time.

Lastly, I continue to work with Jean Boyle (Development Director) and the rest of our team on preparations for our annual Community Gala on Friday evening, October 25th. There are many, many details and coordination needs to ensure a successful event. With the help of many, the Gala is coming together very nicely. Invitations went out a few weeks ago, so don't delay in returning your reservation form. The Gala is a wonderful evening of fellowship, networking and fun. This year we are again featuring our casino games for fabulous prizes (Buffalo Bills tickets to Miami game in Toronto, Helicopter tour-ride over Rochester, Golf packages, Weekend Get-aways and more). We will also be presenting our new Seniorsfirst Video and preliminary drawings of the Kirkhaven Replacement Project design. Special Gala ticket prices in effect for staff, so see Jean Boyle for more details.

I guess that gets you caught up for now. Check back with my Blog next week for more of the latest news at Seniorsfirst, directly from the perspective of the CEO. Thanks for visiting and have a great week..........................Jim.