Paula Hertel: Three Decades of Doing Senior Living Right
If you want to understand what genuine expertise in senior living looks like, spend five minutes with Paula Hertel. Better yet, look at her track record, because it speaks very loudly.
Paula has spent 30 years focused on improving service delivery systems for the elderly, holding executive management positions and leading consulting projects throughout the United States. That’s not just a career arc…that’s a calling pursued with uncommon discipline.
Her operational resume spans some of California’s most respected senior living organizations. She served as Vice President of Operations and Marketing for Elder Care Alliance, participating in all phases of feasibility, development, and operations for four new assisted living and dementia communities, in addition to two stabilized long-term care communities. Before that, she spent 11 years with ARV Assisted Living in various capacities, including Vice President of Operations and Strategic Planning, where as part of the corporate acquisition and development team, she served as an operations and regulatory specialist supporting 15 new communities in just two years. She served as Chief Operating Officer of AgeSong Senior Communities in San Francisco.
Earlier in her career, she directed the City of Anaheim’s Adult Day Care Program and worked in medical social work. These roots grounded everything she does in actual human service, not just business strategy.
Today, Paula is the Founder of Senior Living Consults, working with developers, capital partners, and operators seeking to enhance senior living. She is also a valued member of the CiminoCare Consulting team, bringing her depth to strategic operations, marketing, feasibility analysis, and third-party payer strategy.
Her industry leadership extends well beyond her client work. She is a past Commissioner of the California Health Policy and Data Advisory Commission, a past board member of the Assisted Living Federation of America (now Argentum), and currently serves on the CALA Board as a Director and Co-Chair of Education. She is also a recognized research contributor, a Blue Ribbon Research Recipient from the Gerontological Society of America, and a presenter at the 21st IAGG World Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics.
Perhaps most unexpectedly, Paula is Co-Founder of The Connected Horse Project, a nonprofit partnering with Stanford and UC Davis to explore equine-guided programs for people living with dementia, a reminder that the best leaders in this field are always reaching for what’s next, not just what works today.
When California’s Center for Health Care Strategies needed a voice to articulate how assisted living can address the housing and care needs of Medi-Cal enrollees, Paula was on the panel Center for Health Care Strategies alongside policymakers, health plans, and operators. She is made to be at the table where the field’s future gets shaped.
Paula Hertel holds a Master of Social Work from San Jose State University. She brings the rare combination of clinical roots, executive-level operational experience, policy acumen, and genuine passion for the people this work is ultimately about.
