Newest and Southernmost: Taikang Community Guiyuan Opens in Nanning with $380M Investment

Another Taikang Community is set to open soon.

On September 20, at the invitation of Taikang Insurance Group, VCBeat visited Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, to experience Taikang Community·Guiyuan, which is scheduled to officially open in eight days (on September 28).

With a total investment of RMB 2.72 billion, a total gross floor area of 235,000 square meters, and capacity for 2,000 elderly care units, this high-quality medical-nursing community is Taikang Insurance Group’s first such project launched in an ethnic minority autonomous region. It is also Taikang’s first large-scale, fully functional, internationally standardized medical-nursing community in Guangxi, and currently the southernmost member of the nationwide Taikang Community network.

VCBeat has learned that reservations for Taikang Community·Guiyuan have exceeded 100 households. Starting from the 28th of this month, Phase I of Taikang Community·Guiyuan, which includes two independent living buildings, a vitality center, and a nursing apartment, will welcome its first batch of residents.

This is the 12th city and the 13th high-quality medical and elderly care community launched by Taikang.

Founded in 1996, Taikang anticipated that China would enter an era of longevity, with the needs and consumption of the elderly gradually becoming the most significant demands and expenditures in society. In light of this, Taikang began planning its entry into the elderly care industry in 2007 and conducted a study tour in 2008 to Willow Valley, a retirement community near Philadelphia, USA.

This visit left Chen Dongsheng, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Taikang Insurance Group, deeply impressed: 95-year-olds were running on treadmills, 85-year-old women were performing ballet, and the community was equipped with a large sports center, a cultural center, and comprehensive medical rehabilitation facilities.

The models of overseas elderly care institutions have provided Taikang with insights for entering the elderly care industry, gradually crystallizing intoTaikang’s Model: Integrating Insurance Payments with Physical Medical and Elderly Care Services to Build Three Closed Loops of “Longevity, Health, and Wealth”

Among them,Taikang Community is a vital component of Taikang’s physical medical and elderly care infrastructure. To date, Taikang Community has established large-scale chain communities for integrated medical and elderly care, along with rehabilitation hospitals, in 26 core cities across China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Suzhou, Chengdu, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Nanchang, and Xiamen. It has planned nearly 47,000 senior living units, provided over 2,700 medical beds, and can accommodate approximately 71,000 elderly residents.

Prior to the opening of Taikang Community · Guiyuan, Taikang Community had already launched operations in 12 communities across 11 cities. Guiyuan has also perfectly replicated the successful operational and service experiences of the previous 12 Taikang Community locations.

Among these, the integration of medical and elderly care is the most distinctive feature of Taikang Community.To achieve genuine integration of medical and elderly care, Taikang Community will be developed under the “one community + one hospital” model, meaning that each community will be equipped with either a general hospital or a rehabilitation hospital.

andLike most other communities, such as Taikang Community·Yanyuan (Beijing), Taikang Community·Shenyuan (Shanghai), and Taikang Community·Xiangyuan (Changsha), Guiyuan is also paired with a secondary-level rehabilitation hospital.

According to Cai Guang, Vice President of Guiyuan Rehabilitation Hospital,Currently, Guiyuan Rehabilitation Hospital has more than 100 rehabilitation beds and over 500 nursing care beds. With geriatrics and rehabilitation medicine as its core specialties, the hospital also houses a medical examination center. It is equipped with comprehensive diagnostic and laboratory testing facilities, emergency rescue equipment, and a full range of rehabilitation devices, enabling it to establish a three-tiered safeguard for residents: emergency and critical care support, chronic disease management for the elderly, and geriatric rehabilitation.

Not only that, although the official opening of Guiyuan Rehabilitation Hospital is scheduled for next year,A medical clinic will be established in advance to meet the healthcare and health management needs of the first batch of residents.

It is reported that doctors in the infirmary will assume the role of “family doctors,” responsible for establishing residents’ health records, conducting regular follow-ups, managing health, implementing health interventions, and facilitating medical referrals.

Notably, to achieve genuine integration of medical and elderly care services, Taikang also places significant emphasis on building a multi-tiered healthcare service system.

In addition to the rehabilitation hospitals within its communities, Taikang is also in the process of establishing five general hospitals across China.namely, Taikang Xianlin Gulou Hospital (operational), Taikang Tongji (Wuhan) Hospital (operational), Taikang Ningbo Hospital (under construction), Shenzhen Qianhai Taikang International Hospital (under construction), and Taikang Southwest Medical Center (under construction).These five general hospitals not only cover the Yangtze River Delta, Central China, Southwest China, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, creating synergy with Taikang’s commercial insurance offerings, but also provide remote outpatient consultations, specialist consultations, and teaching services to hospitals within Taikang Community.

Furthermore,Taikang Community · Guiyuan also continues Taikang Community’s consistent professional rehabilitation and nursing systems.

In terms of the rehabilitation system, Taikang Community has introduced international standards and innovated the Taikang International Standard Rehabilitation System (TKR). By developing personalized rehabilitation plans through a multidisciplinary team, the system covers physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, music therapy, hydrotherapy, and more. It helps residents recover lost functions, adapt to functional impairments, and maintain optimal physical functioning from multiple levels and perspectives.

Taikang International Standard Long-Term Care System (TK-LTC) aims to improve residents' quality of life by customizing living assistance and nursing services at varying levels, thereby providing professional, holistic, and continuous care.

It is not difficult to find that,Neither Taikang Community’s rehabilitation system nor its nursing system operates as a siloed effort by a single department; rather, they are the result of collaborative efforts across multiple departments. This is the “1+N” service model of Taikang Community.

This system is led by one primary coordinator (case manager) and supported by N care teams—comprising multiple disciplines such as case management, nutrition, food services, logistics, infection control, recreational activities, rehabilitation, clinical pharmacy, geriatric medicine, and nursing. Through interdisciplinary collaboration, it elevates residents’ service experience to the highest level.

Among them, case managers are even referred to as “residents’ dedicated children,” coordinating the daily living needs of residents, serving as advocates for the interests of “elders,” and speaking on their behalf.

Once medical needs and daily living needs are met,Taikang proposes to enable seniors not only to age with care but also to enjoy their later years, allowing residents to live out their vibrant lives at Taikang Community.

To this end, Taikang Community has established the Letai Academy to offer residents a rich array of courses; it encourages and supports residents in founding various clubs based on shared interests and hobbies, allowing them to showcase their talents and pursue their passions while fulfilling their social needs; furthermore, it organizes diverse cultural and recreational activities, with lifestyle coordinators hosting cultural salons, performance exchanges, and even intergenerational activities involving children and adolescents, thereby stimulating residents’ inner vitality.

Meanwhile, the Vitality Centers across Taikang Community’s various locations feature cultural and arts hubs—including libraries, computer rooms, and craft workshops; sports and wellness facilities such as swimming pools and fitness centers; leisure and entertainment venues like KTV lounges and audio-visual rooms; as well as mindfulness and spiritual care spaces, including meditation rooms and Party member activity rooms.

In the interview, 88-year-old Wei Ju, a veteran of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea who is about to move into Taikang Community·Guiyuan, also mentioned a key reason for his decision: the community’s open-minded environment, which features not only meditation rooms but also prayer rooms. “Here, one can experience the interplay of diverse ideas and cultures.”

Building on the mature operational and service expertise of Taikang Community, what unique characteristics does Taikang Community · Guiyuan possess?

At the entrance of Guiyuan Vitality Center stands a bronze drum, one of the cultural symbols of the Zhuang ethnic group. In the lobby of the Vitality Center, several large butterflies appear to be “fluttering.” As one of the symbols of Taikang Community, it is not surprising to see butterflies in various Taikang Community campuses across the country; however, the patterns on the butterflies at Guiyuan are somewhat different from those elsewhere.

According to the staff, VCBeat learned that these patterns integrate the ethnic characteristics of the Zhuang people, while the lobby ceiling is designed to mimic the shimmering scene of leaves floating on a sunlit lake. Furthermore, the exterior design of the Vitality Center strives to recreate the layered peaks and ridges characteristic of Guangxi’s karst landscape.

Everything is designed to realize the vision of “gardens within scenery, and scenery within gardens,” where gardens and landscapes blend harmoniously with nature, allowing residents to immerse themselves in an environment that promotes comfort and well-being.

While promoting physical and mental well-being, Guiyuan naturally incorporates the standard feature designed by Taikang Community—age-friendly design.

Emergency pull cords, shower benches, anti-glare lighting systems, telephones with large characters, and barrier-free design in public areas... Comprehensive age-friendly design ensures the safety and convenience of residents' daily lives.

AndTaikang Community · Guiyuan’s age-friendly design, integrated with a seamless blend of landscape and garden, earned it the Gold Award in the Future Healthcare Architecture category of the World Architecture News Awards and made it the winner in the Health & Wellbeing project category of the 2021 World Architecture Festival WAFX Awards.

However, the embodiment of ethnic characteristics in Taikang Community · Guiyuan is far from limited to this.According to Zhang Jing, the head of Taikang Community · Guiyuan, the community will develop puzzle games with ethnic minority characteristics, such as dustpan painting, in the cultural and entertainment sector. In terms of health and wellness, Guiyuan will also provide services with Guangxi characteristics, such as moxibustion and Yao herbal baths.

Therefore, Taikang Community · Guiyuan not only provides long-term residential elderly care services and short-term health and wellness stays, but also leverages Guangxi’s abundant tourism resources to offer a third service: resort-style vacation stays.

"Snowbird-style vacationing is a direct embodiment of the 'migratory bird chain' feature of Taikang Community. Residents living in Taikang Community can enjoy seasonal stays and vacations across cities where Taikang Community operates, much like migratory birds."

Leveraging the network of Taikang Community campuses across various regions, residents are spared the exhaustion of lugging suitcases and numerous bags while rushing between major tourist attractions. Meanwhile, each visited campus can access residents’ health records through Taikang Community’s online health management system, enabling a rapid assessment of their health status and the prompt provision of support when medical needs arise.

“It is akin to a cruise ship on land, offering a journey of leisure with the comfort of returning home each night. Every Taikang Community you visit becomes your home; you are familiar with it, and it is familiar with you,” said Liu Shuqin, the head of community pre-opening preparations. “The establishment of Taikang Community·Guiyuan in Nanning not only extends Taikang’s mature integrated medical and elderly care system and services but also marks a significant step in Taikang’s efforts to build a high-quality medical and elderly care community network characterized by its ‘snowbird’ chain model.”