Presbyterian Villages of Michigan has been selected to partner in a national initiative to create strategies that improve quality of life for senior residents while producing cost savings to the health and long-term care systems.

Developed by LeadingAge and Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. (Enterprise), the Learning Collaborative will engage 12 teams of senior housing organizations and service providers to develop and refine housing and healthcare models over a two-year period.

Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future is also participating in the effort, providing strategic policy support to the teams.

“PVM is honored to be selected to participate in the Learning Collaborative. We bring 67 years of expertise to this important national issue,” said Roger Myers, president and CEO. “PVM is committed to service excellence. Our efforts in this initiative will improve quality of life for seniors locally and across the country.”

Through the Learning Collaborative, teams will explore components of housing with services strategies, such as partnership development, operations, financing mechanisms, outcome measurement, data collection systems and processes, and policy and regulatory changes. The Learning Collaborative model highlights peer-to-peer education, harnessing the vast expertise among the participants.

“At a time when our senior population is growing more rapidly than ever before, and public resources for affordable housing and services are shrinking, it is vital that we take the necessary steps to support innovation, identify successes, and encourage the adoption of these emerging successful models,” said Terri Ludwig, president and CEO of Enterprise.

“Serving the most vulnerable and low-income populations is one of our greatest responsibilities,” said Larry Minnix, president and CEO, LeadingAge. “This Learning Collaborative will provide an opportunity for us to identify the essential elements and practices of effective housing plus services models so we can serve these populations to the best of our ability.”

For more information on the collaborative, visit www.enterprisecommunity.org/learningcollaborative or www.leadingage.org/learningcollaborative.aspx.