NaCCRA Forum: Governance of CCRC/LifePlan Communit

Virginia State Corporation Commission Consumer Guide Needs Definition of "Self-Organization"

Need to add generally accepted definition to Chapter 49 of Title 38.2-4910

Regarding my complaint to the SCC about Ashby Ponds, Redwood-ERC Ashburn, and Erickson Living Management, LLC (“Ashby Ponds”), on July 21, 2023, Ms. Daryl Hepler (Manager, Financial Analysis – Managed Care) at the State Corporation Commission, wrote:

You ask how the SCC defines “self-organized”. Chapter 49 of Title 38.2 does not define the term, and a search of Title 38.2 does not reveal a definition.

You indicate the RAC is not self-organized as the NSC Board drafted the constitution and bylaws as defined in the RAC Handbook. You mention it was adopted by the RAC. As the residents adopted the revised constitution and bylaws and could revise them in the future, we believe this satisfies the right of organization.

The SCC seems unaware that self-organization has been studied for more than one hundred years. It is a defined, generally accepted term. Perhaps it’s definition should be added to Chapter 49 of Title 38.2 

Self-organization refers to “a process or system in which order and structure emerge spontaneously from the interactions of individual components, without the need for external control or central coordination.”

Systems lacking self-organization can have order imposed on them in many different ways, not only through instructions from a supervisory leader but also through various directives such as blueprints or recipes, or through pre-existing patterns in the environment. Source https://assets.press.princeton.edu/chapters/s7104.pdf

Self-organization among people in a community can take various forms, both in physical and virtual settings. Self-organization is a common phenomenon in various fields, including biology, physics, sociology, and computer science. Examples include the formation of snowflakes, the flocking behavior of birds, the emergence of traffic patterns in a city, or the way individuals in a social network form connections.

The idea of self-organization has roots in physics, particularly in the study of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. More than a hundred years ago, scientists like Ludwig Boltzmann and Josiah Willard Gibbs made contributions to understanding how order can emerge from disorder in physical systems.

In Virginia Residents are afforded the following rights under Chapter 49:

To self-organize

• Residents shall have the right of self-organization.

• No retaliatory conduct is permitted against a resident for participating in a residents’

organization or filing a complaint.

See page 4 of https://scc.virginia.gov/getattachment/6c1252ee-0060-41c9-b3db-28fb3379cbb7/ccrcguide.pdf

PROBLEM: Title 38.2 does not define "self-organize” without which residents of Continuing Care Retirement Communities are unable to enforce their rights

VIRGINIA STATE CORPORATION COMMISSION (July 21, 2023 email to me) states, "You ask how the SCC defines “self-organized”. Chapter 49 of Title 38.2 does not define the term, and a search of Title 38.2 does not reveal a definition. 

Regulation of Continuing Care Retirement Communities in Virginia (consumer guide,page 5), states:

Residents are afforded the following rights under Chapter 49:

Residents shall have the right of self-organization.

No retaliatory conduct is permitted against a resident for participating in a residents’ organization or filing a complaint.

https://scc.virginia.gov/getattachment/6c1252ee-0060-41c9-b3db-28fb3379cbb7/CCRC-Guide.pdf

Ashby Ponds Resident Advisory Council was created by National Senior Campuses. The Constitution & Bylaws may be amended as requested by the Council to the Ashby Ponds Board Chair. Such changes and amendments will be evaluated annually by the not- for-profit Community Board and National Senior Campuses. This applies to all Erickson Communities. 

https://www.ericksonseniorliving.com/find-a-community) were

These councils tend to be in be bed with Management and do not advocate for residents on minor issues. On major issues they do nothing to help residents. Resident complaints do not appear in their “Minutes” making it very difficult to which other residents share their problem. At Ashby Ponds the “Minutes” are Meeting Notes — not Minutes.

An organization whose Constitution & Bylaws were created by National Senior Campuses cannot later become “self-organized” which is what the SCC believes. VIRGINIA STATE CORPORATION COMMISSION (July 21, 2023 email to me) states, 

You indicate the RAC is not self-organized as the NSC Board drafted the constitution and bylaws as defined in the RAC Handbook. You mention it was adopted by the RAC. As the residents adopted the revised constitution and bylaws and could revise them in the future, we believe this satisfies the right of organization.

I disagree. Current Resident Advisory Council’s have been in bed with management too long. Changing a few words in their Constitution & Bylaws does not make them “self-organized” — they continue to benefit by the privileges granted by Management. Someone born by Caesarean delivery cannot later claim birth by natural delivery. 

SOLUTION: Define "self-organize” — ChatGPT defines self-organized as follows:

Self-organized refers to a process or system in which order and structure emerge spontaneously from the interactions of individual components, without the need for external control or central coordination.