The chief operating officer of The Communities at Golden Pond assisted living facility took over as its executive director on March 14, the day he let go of the person who had been in that role since August 2024.

In a March 25 interview with the Independent, Doug Noble said he absorbed the executive director position after several weeks of discussion with Marc Cohen about Golden Pond’s future. He described taking on many of the responsibilities of an executive director while Cohen was on a medical leave, as well as how the two had different styles of management.

Noble’s decision came on the heels of a Feb. 26 approval by the state’s Executive Office of Aging & Independence (AGE) of the corrective action plan submitted by Cohen. The facility’s ability to accept new residents was suspended by the state after a Jan. 14 AGE compliance review showed the facility was “not in substantial compliance” with state regulations, including medication mismanagement and failure to respond to emergency calls in a timely manner.

Noble, who has been in the health care industry for nearly four decades in various settings, said he has been in the process of improving Golden Pond’s operations since January. He has been working there for nearly nine years, with his prior focus on the financial and business side of its operation.

“A lot of what I have been doing is a lot of the functions that an executive director does,” he explained, including making employment decisions and returning to operating the dietary services in-house.

“I love the company. I love the building,” he continued. “Because of that, I stepped into the executive director role on March 14.”

While Noble said he “worked shoulder to shoulder” with Cohen and respected him, Cohen’s absence due to health issues (confirmed by the Independent with Cohen in a previous interview) led to Noble taking on executive director duties.

“When I started doing oversight, that’s when I began seeing all these things you see in the report,” he said. “I would tell you that my opinion is that the operation was not on the Golden Pond level.

“We talked for about three or four weeks,” Noble said about Cohen. “I think both parties came to an understanding that my taking over as executive director was in the best interest of Golden Pond.”

In a March 25 message from Cohen via LinkedIn, he told the Independent he was “no longer associated with Golden Pond.”

“On March 14, I learned that it was my last day at Golden Pond,” he stated. “I guess you could describe it as philosophical differences. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for Golden Pond.”

Noble agreed that the two differed in their management styles. He described his way as “being a little more forceful” than Cohen’s.

Goal to restore reputation after state report findings

One example of Noble’s assertion was his overhaul of the facility’s nursing staff in January. He has made this his primary focus, noting the other departments are run well with veteran staff members.

“I hired a brand-new staff for the nursing department,” said Noble. “I had talked with Marc about the need to fire some people. Those changes needed to be made, so I made them right after the first of the year.”

The Independent obtained a copy of the compliance review from AGE in mid-March, which revealed some disturbing findings regarding the nursing staff.

In one instance, “AGE observed the nurse drop a pill during LMA [limited medical Administration] for one Resident, pick it up off the floor, mention the ‘five second rule’ and proceed to give the pill to the Resident,” according to the document.

The report also described a nurse using the same handheld pill crusher for three residents without sanitizing it between uses. This could cause particles from other medications to transfer onto a different patient’s pills.

“AGE observed that the nurse not performing any hand hygiene process prior to, or after, providing LMA for six (6) Residents,” the report stated.

Said Noble: “You would think using sanitizer would be a commonsense thing for a nurse.”

Documenting administered medication was another issue highlighted in the report.

“The nurse mentioned that she was not going to carry the medication book around,” the report stated. “During afternoon LMA passes, the nurse had the book but did not bring it into all of the Residents’ rooms.”

Emergency response times were an issue of concern in the AGE report. The document showed that in June and December of last year, there were 408 emergency responses that took longer than 10 minutes before staff arrived, a blatant policy violation.

Other violations were in regard to emergency drills, bedrail and equipment inspections, and lax record-keeping.

Noble explained he has addressed all the issues described in the AGE evaluation.

“The report clearly showed the need to turn the nursing department over,” he said. “The violations of protocols were unbelievable. The use of hand sanitizer to me should be Nursing 101.”

Since the turnover occurred, Noble has brought in an outside auditor to ensure that medication protocols are being followed. The auditor, he explained, has been a nurse for more than 35 years and observes nurses on a weekly basis. She also makes recommendations based upon what she sees in reports from the facility’s wellness department.

“We also have been providing monthly assessments to AGE,” he added. “There were about seven areas they focused on.”

Noble said emergency call responses now are monitored daily. Audits of the bedrail conditions are being performed. An environmental safety report also is submitted to AGE monthly.

Another change he made was hiring a new director for the memory care unit. He described her as “taking the bull by the horns” in managing the unit.

Assisted living has changed dramatically over the past two decades, Noble said. The pandemic increased responsibilities.

“Fifteen years ago, assisted living was totally a residential model,” Noble explained. “The bar has definitely been raised in this industry. I would describe Golden Pond’s model as a residential/compliance model.

“Every time I come into this building, I review the regulatory scheme with the staff,” he continued. “I expect nothing but good things moving forward. Golden Pond is a major asset, neighbor and friend to the community.”

Stressed Noble: “This is a reboot. I will build back Golden Pond’s reputation brick by brick.”