Sentrics Answers Frequently Asked Questions About COVID-19 Policies

Sentrics Answers Frequently Asked Questions About COVID-19 Policies

MAY 15, 2020—As an essential business, Sentrics has been hard at work supporting our senior living partners with new solutions that improve engagement and communications, while ensuring that we keep everyone safe and healthy. As senior living communities start to open, we feel it’s imperative that we are open and transparent with you about our approach to COVID-19.

QUESTION: Which members of your employee force are working from home? When will your business be opening back up? When do you anticipate operating at 100%?

ANSWER: As an essential business, Sentrics has remained 100% open with every employee retained and working each day.  Sentrics leadership declared a “disaster” in early March, 2020, and implemented a documented Business Continuity plan that included a company-wide work from home program in support of national/local government provided guidance. We have used our integrated technology and communications platform to conduct weekly, all-employee town halls to keep everyone apprised, and in sync, with company and industry direction.

In support of our customers, our manufacturing team members continued to work in our state-ot-the-art production facility under strict shift control and documented COVID protocol.  Our installation and sales organizations were the first groups sent home to minimize any potential of exposure; they have remained available at all times to travel to customer locations under Sentrics’ and client protocol. Beginning the week of May 11, 2020, Sentrics launched a program allowing employees to return to the office, in a voluntary manner, following strict protocols.

QUESTION: How has your workforce been impacted?

ANSWER: To minimize impact to our employees, the Sentrics’ Senior Leadership team, which includes executives averaging more than 20 years of healthcare experience across the acute, post-acute, health plan and life sciences sectors, saw the potential of this pandemic to be a disruptive force and began taking proactive steps in early February, 2020 to reduce expenses, conserve cash and balance workloads. As a result, Sentrics has avoided any employee furlough, layoff and/or reduction of workforce actions. As a precaution, many Sentrics customers requested installation delays during the height of the pandemic. Sentrics is working with these customers to reschedule their installations to occur in the May-July 2020 timeframe. Because we are fully staffed, we are well positioned to handle this backlog, along with any “pent up” demand for new products.

QUESTION: How has your supply chain been affected by the pandemic?

ANSWER: When Sentrics saw the first offices in China closing in February, we proactively identified and contracted with additional suppliers to provide raw materials and parts previously obtained from our China-based suppliers. We have avoided any manufacturing slowdowns and have continued operations without issue. We are managing these relationships persistently from the senior executive level and will continue to do so to help ensure we are ready when our customers need us.

QUESTION: How do you anticipate COVID changing your business approach?

ANSWER: Sentrics believes that business partnerships begin and end with trust and honest relationships, and we will continue to use onsite, face-to-face customer interactions as a core part of our business approach. We also recognize that business is changing today. Our use of a single-technology platform for all communications and collaboration nets a high degree of efficiency, effectiveness, productivity and employee satisfaction. COVID-19 gave us an opportunity to experience the power of technology-based communications. We will continue to evaluate work-from-home and remote communication and collaboration initiatives in an effort to improve our customer service and flexible work strategies. We will also work closely with our customers to ensure our policies and procedures align with all new post COVID-19 government and customer safety, health and care regulatory changes.

QUESTION: Does Sentrics have any COVID-specific solutions to help senior living communities manage the COVID-19 pandemic?

ANSWER: Sentrics has remained focused on helping every senior living community minimize the impact of this worldwide pandemic. We worked with partners to provide access to free services to help with resident engagement and behavior, family communications and even physical movement. In addition, Sentrics has made several proven solutions easy for a community to implement itself.

Free solutions include:

• Internet broadcasted senior exercises. Chair based, chair-assisted and standing—via Spiro100—to provide safe, in-room physical activity to help residents maintain strength and balance.
• Music therapy and faith programming. Isolation can lead to higher levels of depression and anxiety. Sentrics has partnered with Coro Health to offer scientifically choreographed music therapy and faith programming to residents right in their rooms.
• COVID-19 Hotline. The ability to record a message and give family members the ability to access it via a toll-free phone number to eliminate messaging with each family member individually.

Easy-to-install solutions include:

• Emergency Nurse Call Kits. Stand up a wireless nurse call solution in less than two hours in any powered, temporary hospital.
• MessageNow. Transform the in-room TV into a live message board.
• Live Events Broadcast. Broadcast live events like BINGO and religious services to resident rooms over a dedicated channel.
• PlaybackNow. Schedule up to four DVDs or educational programing to play in-room.
• MassCall. Send a message to resident and family phones.