Waterford — Faced with a growing population of senior citizens in their country without family to care for them, a 13-member delegation from the Shandong Province in China spent Monday morning learning about the elderly care system in this country.

Later in the day, the delegation visited the former Norwich Hospital property, where Preston officials conveyed the message that the property is ready for development for a wide range of businesses, hotels, retail stores and light manufacturing.

Hosted by the Eastern Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, the group began its tour at the Visiting Nurse Association of Southeastern Connecticut, hearing from VNA President Mary Lenzini and Betsy Ritter, commissioner of the state Department on Aging, about the complexities of the federal, state, local and private funding and donations that pay for the nursing care provided in seniors’ home

Xiang Linshuang, consultant with the Shandong Provincial Foreign Affairs Department, translated during the presentation, enabling a lively question-and-answer exchange that covered everything from laws protecting the elderly to the need in both nations for more doctors trained in geriatrics.

“Our elderly population is growing, and they’re very old,” Lenzini said. “The people 85 years old and older is the fastest growing group. And our elderly are living longer, because of good medical care, getting new knees, new hips, new shoulders, new hearts.”

She explained that about 60 percent of the VNA’s 2,500 patients have their care paid for through Medicare, 20 percent by Medicaid and the rest from a hodgepodge of private insurance, municipal funds, grants and donations.

Ritter added that because of “a lot of work” over the last 20 years, more of the state’s elderly are staying in their own homes rather than in nursing homes — which are vastly more expensive — making the services of visiting nurses increasingly important.

“About 15 percent of our population in Connecticut is 65 or older, and by 2020, they will be 21 percent of our population,” she said, before explaining the term “baby boom” to Linshuang.

Tony Sheridan, president and chief executive officer of the chamber, said the visit was organized after he traveled with a federal Department of Commerce-sponsored trip to China two months ago. The purpose of that trip, he said, was mainly to promote tourism, but in the course of the trip he made contacts that led to this delegation’s visit. The group, he explained, actually has a twofold purpose — to learn about care for the elderly in this country, and to explore economic development opportunities in southeastern Connecticut.

Connecticut, he added, has had a relationship with the Shandong Province, on China’s northeast coast, for 30 years, since former Gov. William A. O’Neill signed a cooperative agreement. On Tuesday, after touring Greentree Manor Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Waterford, the group is scheduled to meet Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Sheridan said.

Because of China’s one-child policies and gender imbalances of five boys to one girl, Sheridan said, that nation is facing a crisis in caring for its elderly.

“The traditional family units have broken down, so they have to develop other institutions,” he said.

In addition to the VNA and Greentree Manor, he also took the group to Atria at Crossroads in Waterford, and arranged for an expert to speak about the Title XIX Medicaid program for the elderly that provides care for low-income seniors.

“We’re trying to present a very balanced picture of care for people who have money and those who don’t,” Sheridan said.

At Atria, Kathleen Hallett, life guidance director, and Jennifer Tillinghast, community sales director, led the group through the Memory Care Unit, where residents with dementia live in apartments and eat meals in a common dining room.

“The whole concept of this is that it’s their home,” Hallett told the group as they gathered in a large common area furnished with living room sofas and chairs. “This is a safe, secure environment, so people can live here comfortably and freely and preserve their dignity.”

Nearby, groups of residents gathered for a sing-along and gentle exercise. As the group headed down the hall to tour one of the apartments, several stopped to photograph a large calendar showing a full schedule of activities for the residents.

After walking through the tidy two-room apartment of one of the residents, one of the delegates asked Linshuang to inquire about the cost.

“It’s $6,500 per month,” Tillinghast replied. “That includes everything.”

After the Memory Care Unit, she and Hallett led the group to the assisted living area.

“This is where people live very independently, with kitchens in their apartments,” Hallett said.

Later when the the Chinese officials toured the former Norwich Hospital in Preston some of the translations were about as foggy as the weather outside their tour bus.

But Preston town officials were able to convey their message that the former Norwich Hospital property is ready to be developed. 

First Selectman Robert Congdon welcomed the visiting delegation at the start of a nearly one-hour presentation on how the town has worked to prepare the former mental health institution property for reuse.

Preston Redevelopment Agency Chairman Sean Nugent at one point told the group that with 49 of the 57 former hospital buildings on the 393-acre property now demolished, the Thames River and Mohegan Sun casino were visible from the spot where the bus stopped. But the group had to take his word for it, because dense fog completely obliterated the river and the casino from view.

 “No problem,” tour leader Zhou YunPing, deputy director-general of the Department of Civil Affairs of Shandong Province, said through interpreter Xiang, “Doris,” Linshuang. “We’ve already seen it yesterday.”

The Shandong delegation, which arrived Sunday evening, ate dinner at Tuscany restaurant at Mohegan Sun.

On the bus at Preston Riverwalk, Nugent presented an eight-page review of the property, its easy access to Boston, New York and even Canada. John Schuyler of the Connecticut District Export Council, added that the former Norwich Hospital property is within one day’s shipping time from two-thirds of Canada’s economic hubs and one-third of the U.S. economic centers. They pointed out the proximity to the Port of New London on the Thames River.

Nugent handed Linshuang a Chinese translation of the written presentation for distribution, and Schuyler handed her a computer flash drive with updated state business incentive programs. 

During the one bus stop outside the former Norwich Hospital Administration Building — the one building slated for preservation on the campus — delegation officials pulled out cameras and cellphones for photos of the building and its surroundings.

YunPing asked for a list of state and town development assistance programs, and others asked about land and building property taxes on the site. Both would depend on the types of development proposed, Nugent said.

As the group prepared to depart the bus for some local shopping before dinner, YunPing relayed that he has many business contacts willing to invest money in the United States and said through Linshuang that he would like to return “when it’s light out,” so they could see the property better.

Congdon too invited the group for return visits.

Preston officials started preparing for the Chinese delegation tour weeks ago, with quick lessons on cultural and business protocols. They enlisted Yuxin Liu and Hao Ni, both University of Connecticut graduates and current employees at CMEEC, to translate the Preston Riverwalk marketing materials and also had their business cards translated into Mandarin Chinese.

They even learned how to properly present those business cards. Congdon demonstrated by holding his card by the corner edges with fingers of both hands, directly facing the recipient. The recipient – Schuyler in this demonstration – received it in the same manner, took a few seconds to study it and then nodded to Congdon.

 j.benson@theday.com

Twitter: @BensonJudy

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