COVID-19 stayed under control at two continuing care communities, thanks to a digital engagement platform provided by LeadingAge CAST Supporter Caremerge, which supported the communities’ crisis communications plan.

A new LeadingAge CAST Case Study, “How Friendship Senior Options Leveraged Digital Crisis Communications with Caremerge to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19,” tells how the platform worked.

Friendship Senior Options (FSO) operates two continuing care retirement communities, Friendship Village of Schaumburg and Greenfields of Geneva, near Chicago.

Before the pandemic began, FSO had adopted Caremerge and its resident engagement technology. Yet the advent of COVID-19 meant that FSO needed to expand its existing crisis communications and disease management plans. Leadership quickly put together a 60-person task force for COVID-19, led by the director of risk management.

The goals were twofold:

• To inform all community members of prevention protocols and operational changes.
• To give transparent, timely, and accurate COVID-19 updates to all residents, staff, and family members. 

With Caremerge’s Community Engagement platform, Family Engagement platform, Caremerge Voice (Alexa technology), and Digital Calendar already in place, they knew they could easily adapt the system’s functionalities and reach all audiences through community email, apps, and print.

Approach

Through Caremerge, FSO sent daily updates and videos by CEO Steve Yenchek to the whole community. Caremerge was effective because it was scalable and quickly delivered hundreds of tailored updates to various audiences, from residents to staff to family members. It was easy for FSO leaders to use, and it supports compliance with government regulatory standards.

Outcomes

Staff and residents complied with the communities’ screening questionnaires. Those who tested positive for COVID-19, along with any people in contact with them, swiftly self-quarantined. As the communities identified positive cases following screening, they were able to administer fewer tests. This process enabled staff and residents who tested positive to isolate while home or receiving treatment. Once they recovered, they could safely return to work and residence.

Residents also quickly followed the stay-at-home order and respected internal community guidelines communicated over the Caremerge platform’s different channels. Many residents spoke highly of how FSO managed the COVID-19 crisis and communicated with its stakeholders.

For more information, including challenges and lessons learned, read the full case study.

COVID-19 and Tech Featured at CCHIT Summit

Learn more about how COVID-19 and technology are transforming care at the Collaborative Care & Health IT Innovations Summit, to be held virtually Sept. 15-17, 2020.

LeadingAge CAST and the LTPAC Health IT Collaborative bring you this outstanding conference and hope you will register today.