The Villages - August 2021 - 9

BUILDING A
HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
FROM SCRATCH
Saying you are going to start a healthcare system is
all well and good, but how do you actually get things
started, especially with the mountain of logistics you
now have to figure out?
Sussman says from the beginning, Gary and Mark
Morse strongly reinforced one of The Villages' core values.
" One of the things I learned from Gary and Mark
was how important it was to listen to the community, "
Sussman said. " The first thing we did was actually the
largest survey ever of older adults on their health beliefs
and behaviors, and we learned a lot from that. We sent
out about 85,000 questionnaires, and we got back
almost 35,000, which is an amazing response rate. "
The survey asked how Villagers felt about their
current level of healthcare and what types of services
or physicians they wanted for the area.
" What they basically said was they wanted a health
system and physicians who listened to them, gave them
time and helped them understand what their health
issues were and how to stay as healthy as they could
so they could enjoy all the wonderful resources in The
Villages, " Sussman said.
Sussman says time with the doctor was an issue that
frequently popped up on the returned surveys, and he
gives an example of what he calls the " door handle
sign. " In many primary care facilities, you may wait a
long time for a doctor, and then when the doctor does
finally show up, they keep their hand on the door the
entire time they are in the room - like they are waiting
to leave, even though they just walked in.
The Villages Health was founded on the principle
it would focus on the patients and their experiences, a
principle Sussman believes they have stuck to.
MAGAZINE
9

The Villages - August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Villages - August 2021

Contents
The Villages - August 2021 - Cover1
The Villages - August 2021 - Contents
The Villages - August 2021 - 1
The Villages - August 2021 - 2
The Villages - August 2021 - 3
The Villages - August 2021 - 4
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The Villages - August 2021 - Cover3
The Villages - August 2021 - Cover4
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