Shannex Inc

Senior living is not what it used to be. More than 20 years ago, Joseph Shannon started Shannex with the idea of improving the daily lives of clients. He felt senior’s facilities should support the lifestyles and choices of the people they serve, and provide as much freedom and flexibility as the clients’ health will allow.

Today Shannex is Atlantic Canada’s largest provider of retirement living and senior care and operates under a philosophy of service that focuses on the client.

“Clients should have the freedom to choose how they want to live. That right should not be taken away from anybody,” explains Roberta Whalen, Director of People and Organizational Development for Shannex.

“Imagine all your life you’ve had your own likes and dislikes, then you enter a care facility and you have to follow someone else’s practice eat what they want you to eat, sleep when they think it’s appropriate. Shannex clients are encouraged to maintain their independence so they can continue to make their own choices and build their own life.”

Shannex started with one facility in Cape Breton and grew quickly. Today it has multiple buildings in 15 different communities throughout Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and is nearing completion of nine new nursing homes in Nova Scotia.

“We’ve seen tremendous growth and we continue to work to provide better and more in-depth services to clients,” adds Whalen.

Shannex offers a continuum of services and facilities to its clients, depending on their health and care needs. These include home care, senior retirement living campuses and nursing homes.

“We offer a campus-style approach to retirement living, which enables clients to choose their living options and services on the same property, as they need them,” Whalen explains. “Knowing they don’t have to move if their support needs change provides a sense of security to many seniors. There is continuity of faces, friendships and care.”

Today, Shannex employs close to 3,000 people and continues to grow in response to the interests and needs of an ageing population. Whalen says it’s an ongoing challenge to find employees to care for the growing number of clients, but Shannex maintains its ratio of employees to clients.

She says Shannex has always worked closely with educational institutions to support programs that train people in the healthcare field, especially continuing care assistants and nurses.

“We’re involved in virtually every continuing care assistant training program, as well as nursing schools across the region. We work with universities, community and private colleges.”

And Shannex offers its own in-house training program to certify continuing care assistants. Based at the Shannex Centre for Excellence, the certificate program operates on an earn-and-learn basis, which is particularly good for mature students who are re-training and have families to support. These students can work while they study, and they continue on to work at Shannex when they finish the program.

Whalen says Shannex also collaborates with medical schools, nursing schools and other healthcare training institutions, offering students an opportunity to do their long term care placement in a Shannex facility rather than in a hospital.

“It gives them a different perspective on long term care and helps them understand our approach to supporting clients. It enables these health care providers to really get to know their clients in a setting where they are comfortable.”

Whalen reinforces that Shannex is active in the communities where it operates, inviting local organizations, like the Canadian Diabetes Association and the Heart and Stroke Foundation, as well as local professionals, to present to and work with clients.

“We make a point of going beyond our walls to involve the community in everything we do. We strive to provide clients with interesting recreational activities, like music therapy, for example. We have a multi-disciplinary team, including dietitians and occupational therapists, to ensure a well-rounded approach to health and general wellness.”

And their efforts pay off. Whalen says clients regularly offer positive reviews of the Shannex lifestyle.

“Our clients say they’re very happy with the variety of activities, the food and the flexible schedule. In many cases, we notice our clients’ health actually improves when they come to live with us. We try to recreate a home environment, and for many clients that may mean a better quality of life.”

Whalen says Shannex currently has about 3,000 clients and expects that number to increase in the years to come.

When it comes to clients, Shannex maintains a simple goal: to be a world class provider of seniors care services and facilities. The company invests in the resources it needs to achieve this, particularly its employees.

Whalen says the culture among Shannex employees reflects the character of people from this region. She emphasizes the word ‘caring’ in describing her co-workers.

“We’re looking for people who go above and beyond to do an excellent job. Everyone knows that Maritimers are a friendly bunch, and we follow that tradition. But we’re also a region of caring, ambitious people, and we see that a lot in our employees.”

Whalen says Shannex is employing a lot of healthcare professionals who are coming to the province for lifestyle and family connections, as well as for the progressive career.

“It’s nice to see people are not just moving here for a job. They’re choosing Nova Scotia because it’s a great place to live and because they like the quality of life here. On top of that, we’re able to provide them with a great job.”

She says more and more people are moving to the region from outside the province, and adds that a portion of Shannex employees move within the province to work at different Shannex facilities.

What started as a personalized approach to improving the lives of seniors has grown into a new way of living. Whalen says Nova Scotians can take comfort in knowing they have a comfortable, flexible option for their retirement years and a bright future ahead.

“There are many options for retirement living, and Shannex takes pride in leading the way to a better living for seniors. Our clients are our main focus and everyone stands to gain from that.”