Category 2 of 12

Census & Occupancy

Census is the most consequential number in senior housing & care and the one most often reported three ways. These questions cover definitions, reconciliation and authority for census and occupancy.

1. Why doesn't our EHR census match accounting?

   The EHR census and the accounting census usually measure different things.

2. Why doesn't our occupancy report match our resident census?

   Occupancy and census are different measures.

3. Why does CRM occupancy differ from financial occupancy?

   CRM occupancy reflects sales events: signed agreements, deposits and scheduled move-ins.

4. What is the correct definition of occupancy in senior living?

   There is no single correct definition of occupancy in senior housing & care.

5. Why do departments report different occupancy percentages?

   Departments report different occupancy percentages because each department pulls from its own system and applies its own definition and capacity figure.

6. How should senior living operators reconcile census across systems?

   Reconcile census at the resident level, every day, against approved definitions.

7. How can operators establish an authoritative daily census?

   Decide what the daily census is for, define it in writing, name the source that has authority for each event it depends on (admission, discharge, leave, transfer), and set a daily cutoff time.

8. How can census discrepancies be identified before month-end?

   Compare census across systems daily at the resident level and flag differences automatically, sorted by likely cause.

9. How do census discrepancies affect financial reporting?

   Census discrepancies flow straight into revenue, labor ratios, per-resident-day costs and occupancy reported to owners and lenders.

10. Which system should govern occupancy reporting?

    No system should govern occupancy reporting on its own.