SignatureCare Emergency Center in Pflugerville, TX

As we bring SignatureCare ER to more Texas neighborhoods and closer to our fellow Texans, we have become increasingly aware of the need to serve our neighbors who participate in the Medicare program.

HOUSTON (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

SignatureCare Emergency Center, operator of 24-hour neighborhood emergency rooms (ER) throughout Texas announces that their emergency center locations are Medicare certified and enrolled.

Effective immediately, all SignatureCare Emergency Center locations, except South Austin and Pflugerville, are able to treat Medicare and Medicare Advantage participants. South Austin and Pflugerville are in the process of being Medicare certified. At this time, these two facilities can treat Medicare Advantage participants but not Medicare participants.

The company also announced that its emergency centers in Killeen, College Station/Bryan, Midland, Odessa, Paris, and Copperfield (Northwest Houston area), TX are now accredited to bill active military insurance plans. As accredited facilities, these ER locations can provide services to most military plan participants.

According to Dr. Kanti Bansal, a board-certified emergency medicine physician and managing partner at SignatureCare Emergency Center, the plan to achieve Medicare certification and enrollment has been in the works for a while.

“As we bring SignatureCare ER to more Texas neighborhoods and closer to our fellow Texans, we have become increasingly aware of the need to serve our neighbors who participate in the Medicare program. Our goal is to ensure that our neighbors can get quality healthcare within walking or short driving distance to their homes or businesses,” Dr. Bansal said.

SignatureCare Emergency Center ERs are located in most major cities in Texas including Houston (Montrose, Houston Heights, Cypress/FM 1960, Copperfield, Memorial City, Westchase, and Bellaire, Mission Bend/Sugar Land and Stafford), Killeen, South Austin, College Station/Bryan, Paris, Midland, Odessa, Texarkana, Lewisville and Pflugerville, TX.

These freestanding emergency rooms offer patients faster and more personalized service than a typical large hospital emergency room. They are conveniently open 24/7 so that patients can walk in anytime and be seen by a board-certified emergency room physician.

SignatureCare Emergency Center also announced that they have taken extra steps to keep the community safe when they visit our ER during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Everyone including our staff, patients and their family members wear masks while in the facility. We enforce hand hygiene for everyone. All our facilities are equipped with HEPA air filtration. Every room and piece of furniture is sanitized before patients enter the rooms. All linens are changed for every new patient and we have a negative pressure isolation room available should one be needed,” Dr. Bansal said.

“At SignatureCare Emergency Center, we go beyond the minimum standard required for the safety of our patients and staff,” he added.

Additional information is on our website at https://ercare24.com or by calling the nearest emergency room.

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nTIDE info-graphic with employment statistics

“Comparing April to May, we see increases in the employment-to-population ratio, as well as the labor force participation rate, for both people with and without disabilities,” said John O’Neill, PhD, director of employment and disability research at Kessler Foundation.

EAST HANOVER, N.J. (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

Kessler Foundation and University of New Hampshire nTIDE Report—featuring the New Jersey-based GI Go Fund’s programs for helping veterans transition from active duty to civilian jobs

As the spread of COVID-19 slows and restrictions begin to be lifted, people appear to be returning to work, according to today’s National Trends in Disability Employment – Monthly Update (nTIDE), issued by Kessler Foundation and the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability (UNH-IOD).

nTIDE COVID Update (month-to-month comparison)

In the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Jobs Report released Friday, the employment-to-population ratio for working-age people with disabilities increased from 26.3 percent in April to 27.7 percent in May (up 5.3 percent or 1.4 percentage points). For working-age people without disabilities, the employment-to-population ratio also increased from 63.2 percent in April to 65.2 percent in May (up 3.2 percent or 2 percentage points). The employment-to-population ratio, a key indicator, reflects the percentage of people who are working relative to the total population (the number of people working divided by the number of people in the total population multiplied by 100).

“Comparing April to May, we see increases in the employment-to-population ratio, as well as the labor force participation rate, for both people with and without disabilities,” said John O’Neill, PhD, director of employment and disability research at Kessler Foundation. “These findings may be an indication of people with and without disabilities returning to work as restrictions ease and businesses open up.”

For working-age people with disabilities, the labor force participation rate increased from 32.7 percent in April to 34.2 percent in May (up 4.6 percent or 1.5 percentage points). For working-age people without disabilities, the labor force participation rate also increased from 73.6 percent in April to 74.8 percent in May (up 1.6 percent or 1.2 percentage points). The labor force participation rate is the percentage of the population that is (a) working, (b) not working and on temporary layoff, or (c) not working and actively looking for work.

“There are concerns that workers who lost their jobs permanently (immediately or after being on furlough for a period of time) will stop looking for work and thus exit the labor force,” explained economist Andrew Houtenville, PhD, research director of the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability. “Seeing an increase in the labor force participation rate of people with disabilities is a very encouraging sign. People are remaining engaged in the labor market.”

Traditional nTIDE Numbers (comparison to the same time last year)

The employment-to-population ratio for working-age people with disabilities decreased from 30.7 percent in May 2019 to 27.7 percent in May 2020 (down 9.8 percent or 3 percentage points). For working-age people without disabilities, the employment-to-population ratio also decreased from 74.5 percent in May 2019 to 65.2 percent in May 2020 (down 12.5 percent or 9.3 percentage points). The employment-to-population ratio, a key indicator, reflects the percentage of people who are working relative to the total population (the number of people working divided by the number of people in the total population multiplied by 100).

For working-age people without disabilities, the labor force participation rate for working-age people with disabilities increased from 32.8 percent in May 2019 to 34.2 percent in May 2020 (up 4.3 percent or 1.4 percentage points). For working-age people without disabilities, the labor force participation rate also decreased from 77.1 percent in May 2019 to 74.8 percent in May 2020 (down 3 percent or 2.3 percentage points). The labor force participation rate is the percentage of the population that is (a) working, (b) not working and on temporary layoff, or (c) not working and actively looking for work.

For reference, in May 2020, among all workers ages 16-64, there were 403,900 workers with disabilities, which represented 3.1 percent of the total 128,693,000 workers in the U.S.

New! nTIDE COVID Update – Friday, June 19 at 12:00 pm Eastern

Stay tuned as we follow the impact of COVID-19 on the employment of people with disabilities, and look at the numbers in more detail. Check @KesslerFdn on Twitter, and @KesslerFoundation on Facebook for postings of registration link.

Beyond the Numbers

Transition from military service to the civilian sector presents challenges for veterans, especially for those with disabilities. With recent shocks to the economy caused by the spread of COVID-19, these challenges are magnified. Among the organizations dedicated to helping veterans is the Newark-based GI Go Fund, a nonprofit that assists veterans with finding employment, accessing housing, and claiming their educational and medical benefits.

Employment initiatives, implemented with community partnerships, are a major focus of the GI Go Fund, according to CEO and co-founder Jack Fanous. One initiative, Disabled Veterans to Work, enabled veterans with disabilities to work from home, providing customer service for PSEG, a New Jersey utility. The Disabled Veterans to Work Program, which was funded initially by a Kessler Foundation community employment grant, has expanded to other major cities, where Fortune 500 companies are staffing their U.S.-based call centers remotely with veterans with disabilities. “This program helped show that working from home benefited employers, as well as workers with disabilities,” noted Fanous, “a concept that has rapidly gained widespread acceptance with the closures of corporate headquarters and businesses made necessary by measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The GI Go Fund is home to the Jackson Drysdale Veterans Center, an incubator for veteran-owned small businesses that is the only center of its kind in New Jersey. The current crisis is stretching the resources of the Center, which anticipates a tripling of the number of veterans seeking assistance. The Center remains open with the help of a COVID Emergency grant from Kessler Foundation. “This additional support means we can provide microloans to our veteran entrepreneurs,” said Fanous, and assist them with applications for disaster relief, including options available through the Small Business Administration.”

Fanous is also CEO and co-founder of JobPath, a technology platform that connects veterans and employers, and includes a unique system for matching military skills with civilian jobs, resources for job preparation and training, a database of jobseekers, and a job board where major companies list open positions. Justin Constantine, a retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel, is the chief development officer of JobPath, which has a growing list of major corporate clients such as Apple and Panasonic, and more than 200,000 active veteran users.

To ensure the support of employers, JobPath partners with SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) the largest membership organization for human resource personnel. “Human resource professionals are key to the recruiting, hiring, onboarding and retention of veteran employees,” said Constantine, who has SHRM certification. Supported by the Drysdale Center, Constantine developed an elearning series for SHRM members, providing knowledge of best practices for diversifying the workplace with veteran employees. There are plans to expand the elearning series to help employers recruit civilians with disabilities and jobseekers who have histories with the criminal justice system. “Tools that can support transition to the workplace are critical to adapting to the post-COVID economy,” Constantine said. “JobPath is a flexible platform that can be adapted and scaled to help other groups overcome barriers to the workplace, and connect employers with the talent they need.”

Ask Questions about Disability and Employment

Join our nTIDE Lunch & Learn series today, June 5, at 12:00 pm Eastern. This live broadcast, hosted via Zoom Webinar, offers attendees Q&A on the latest nTIDE findings, provides news and updates from the field, as well as invited panelists to discuss current disability-related findings and events. Jack Fanous of the GI Go Fund and Justin Constantine from JobPath join Dr. Houtenville, Elaine E. Katz, senior VP of Kessler Foundation, and Denise Rozell, Policy Strategist at AUCD. Join live or watch the recordings at: ResearchonDisability.org/nTIDE.

NOTE: The statistics in the nTIDE are based on Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers but are not identical. They are customized by UNH to combine the statistics for men and women of working age (16 to 64). nTIDE is funded, in part, by grants from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) (90RT5037) and Kessler Foundation.

About Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation, a major nonprofit organization in the field of disability, is a global leader in rehabilitation research that seeks to improve cognition, mobility, and long-term outcomes — including employment — for people with neurological disabilities caused by diseases and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Kessler Foundation leads the nation in funding innovative programs that expand opportunities for employment for people with disabilities. For more information, visit KesslerFoundation.org.

About the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire

The Institute on Disability (IOD) at the University of New Hampshire (UNH) was established in 1987 to provide a coherent university-based focus for the improvement of knowledge, policies, and practices related to the lives of persons with disabilities and their families. For information on the NIDILRR-funded Employment Policy and Measurement Rehabilitation Research and Training Center, visit ResearchonDisability.org.

For more information, or to interview an expert, contact:

Carolann Murphy, 973.324.8382, CMurphy@KesslerFoundation.org.

“The goal of the monthly micro steps program is to provide various coping resources and improve the overall well-being of our Associates,” said Angela Calderone, Vice President of People and Organization at BluePearl.

TAMPA, Fla. (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

BluePearl Specialty and Emergency Pet Hospital today announced the launch of its Micro Steps to Wellness Program, which aims to help Associates cope with work-related stress, create healthy lifestyle habits, and reduce elevated health risks. This year-long wellness program consists of small, monthly behavioral steps that each of BluePearl’s more than 5,900 Associates can practice daily.

The Micro Steps to Wellness Program takes a holistic approach to improving Associate well-being by issuing practices that can be utilized both in the hospital and at home. Each micro step is intended to be “habit stacked,” meaning each action can be simultaneously practiced throughout the day, month, or year. The first micro step, titled Paws for Wellness, launches June 1 and encourages Associates to take short, frequent breaks while working to improve their overall attitude, reduce stress, and increase concentration and happiness.

“At the center of every effective wellness program are wellness activities, or calls to action, that enable employees to adopt and maintain healthy behaviors in the workplace,” remarked Lori Harbert, MSW, LCSW, Director of Health and Well-being at BluePearl. “This program encourages our Associates to take their wellness as well as the wellness of their colleagues seriously. By implementing proven to work, positive behavioral habits in our practices, we hope to open the gateway to healthier living across the veterinary profession.”

The BluePearl Health and Well-being Team—consisting of veterinary social workers and health and well-being trainers—will work closely with hospital leadership across the country to support the initiative’s efforts and encourage Associates to learn and implement the various micro steps. A new micro step will be announced at the beginning of each month.

“The goal of the monthly micro steps program is to provide various coping resources and improve the overall well-being of our Associates. Our Health and Well-being Team, in coordination with hospital leadership, will play a major part in helping Associates continue their wellness journeys,” said Angela Calderone, Vice President of People and Organization at BluePearl. “Now more than ever, we as an organization have a responsibility to recognize the mental health and well-being needs of our Associates and provide them easy access to the tools and professionals they need to help cope with the mounting pressures they face each day.”

Additional micro steps will include a guided meditation video, healthy eating potlucks, participation in National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, an introduction to gratitude journaling, and more! Learn more about veterinary social work at BluePearl here.

About BluePearl Specialty and Emergency Pet Hospital

Founded in 1996, BluePearl is one of the largest specialty and emergency veterinary practices in the U.S. today. BluePearl has more than 90 hospitals in 26 states that together employ 5,900+ Associates, including 1,160+ veterinarians, 1,650+ veterinary technicians, and 3,000+ other professionals. Each year, our compassionate teams provide high-quality care for over one million pets and their families. BluePearl clinicians also participate in clinical studies to discover new treatments and procedures that improve pet health. As part of the Mars Veterinary Health family of brands, BluePearl is committed to its purpose—A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS®—because pets make a better world for us. Learn more at https://bluepearlvet.com/.

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Living Care Lifestyles residents regularly visit with family and friends on laptops donated by Net-Tech.

The donated laptops are an invaluable resource for our residents to connect with loved ones.

SEATTLE (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

Living Care Lifestyles residents receive free laptops during the lockdown

Caring for the community has always been a top priority for Net-Tech, Seattle’s only Professional Technology Organization (PTO). When the pandemic lockdown separated area senior living residents from their loved ones, Net-Tech put their always-present desire to help the community to work.

“When the virus hit, one of the first things we did was reach out to all our clients to see where we could help,” said Matt Bratlien, Net-Tech managing partner. “Assisted living facilities especially had their hands full protecting their residents from the virus.”

Living Care Lifestyles was searching for ways for their residents to stay engaged with loved ones during the stay-at-home order which prohibits visitors to assisted living facilities. Working alongside Tracey Harvey, Director of Community Solutions at Living Care Lifestyles, Net-Tech donated over 40 laptops so residents could keep in touch with loved ones from the safety of their homes during the pandemic.

The senior residents often have difficulty associating a person with a voice, so the ability to see the person they are speaking with makes it easier for them to connect during this stressful time. Quail Park, a Living Care Lifestyles community, staff members coordinate video calls with family and friends so residents can communicate regularly.

“Video calls for residents and families have made it possible for seniors to see the person they are talking with so they can communicate face-to-face during this stressful time,” said Harvey. “It’s been an invaluable resource for our residents to be able to connect with their loved ones.”

Watch the video here.

Net-Tech is a PTO committed to streamlining organizations’ IT through proven, scalable solutions. From help desk to network management to security, for over 35 years Net-Tech has helped thousands of trusted clients in all 50 states become more productive and simply do IT better. For more information, please call 425-452-8324 or visit us online or on LinkedIn.

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Edamam Launches an Immunity Supporting Diet and Meal Recommender for the COVID-19 Era

What motivated us in developing this diet was the potential to help millions, if not billions make better food choices that minimizes their risk of getting seriously ill or helps their recovery.

NEW YORK (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

Edamam, a leading provider of nutrition data solutions, announced today the launch of an immunity supporting diet and recipe recommender tailored to answer two questions: 1) What can I eat to potentially reduce susceptibility against COVID-19? 2) If I were to contract the infection, what might I eat in order to improve my chances of speedy recovery?

The company partnered with leading nutrition expert, Deanna Minich, PhD, who has recently served on three different COVID-19 task forces as a nutrition expert, including the American Nutrition Association taskforce for personalized nutrition and COVID-19, to create a science-backed, nutrient-driven approach to a diet that helps people deal better with viral infections. Edamam also leveraged the work of its existing partner Personal Remedies on specific foods that that support such diet. These raw ingredients were used by Edamam to apply against its large database of recipes and create a curated set of recipes that fit the scientific criteria.

To learn more about the diet, the people and organizations behind it and to try it as a recipe search, please visit https://www.edamam.com/covid-19/.

“What motivated us in developing this diet was the potential to help millions, if not billions make better food choices that minimizes their risk of getting seriously ill or helps their recovery,” commented Victor Penev, Edamam’s CEO and Founder. “We wanted to give people something actionable, like recipes, instead of pointing them to nutrients or even ingredients.”

Edamam intends to offer for free this diet and the associated recipe recommender to its existing and new partners and clients, including The New York Times, Microsoft, Anthem, The Food Network and many more.

“I welcomed the opportunity to partner with Edamam as I saw the significant positive impact we could create together by combining my years in the scientific field and Edamam’s technology”, shared Deanna Minich, PhD.

Edamam will offer initially its service as white label solutions to existing clients, but intends to open it up soon thereafter to developers and people using its recipe search engine.

“We are delighted to join forces with Edamam to expand access to our evidence-based information and provide the much needed guidance on how to improve the diet and health of our nation in the middle of this crisis,” added Katya Tsaioun, PhD, Chief Scientific Advisor at Personal Remedies.

Edamam, Deanna Minich and Personal Remedies make no claims that the jointly developed diet is a treatment for COVID-19. The diet has not been approved or sanctioned by the CDC, the FDA or any government organization.

About Edamam

Edamam organizes the world’s food knowledge and provides nutrition data services and value-added solutions to health, wellness and food businesses. Using a proprietary semantic technology platform, it delivers real-time nutrition analysis and diet recommendations via APIs. Edamam’s technology helps customers answer for their clients the perennial question: “What should I eat?”

Edamam’s partners and clients include Nestle, Amazon, The Food Network, The New York Times, Microsoft and Barilla.

For more information, please visit http://www.edamam.com or developer.edamam.com.

About Personal Remedies

Personal Remedies (http://www.personalremedies.com) is empowering patients with chronic illnesses to take control of their health. Its cognitive system provides science-based, fully-automated and personalized dietary guidance taking into account an individual’s multiple chronic illnesses, allergies and medications, serving as the world’s first e-dietitian. Organizations can access its largest food-disease interaction knowledgebase via an API. Personal Remedies is a StartUp Health company and member of Covid-19 Healthcare Coalition.

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Joe Stuczynski, CEO, Memorial Hospital Pembroke

“It is an honor to return to Memorial Hospital Pembroke and be given the opportunity to collaborate with a team of skilled health professionals who are leading the way through innovation and high-quality service,” said Joe Stuczynski, CEO, Memorial Hospital Pembroke.

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (PRWEB)
June 05, 2020

Joe Stuczynski has been named Chief Executive Officer of Memorial Hospital Pembroke, a community-based hospital offering worldclass care through its Emergency Department, freestanding 24/7 Care Center, medical and surgical services, Memorial Weight-Loss Surgery Program, Comprehensive Wound Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Memorial Medical Detoxification Program and more. Since 2005, Stuczynski has been with Memorial Healthcare System, most recently as Chief Financial Officer of Memorial Regional Hospital South and previously served as CFO of Memorial Hospital Pembroke from 2005 to 2015.

“It is an honor to return to Memorial Hospital Pembroke and be given the opportunity to collaborate with a team of skilled health professionals who are leading the way through innovation and high-quality service,” said Joe Stuczynski, CEO, Memorial Hospital Pembroke. “Together, we will continue to put our patients first, as we help our community find its way back to health during these unprecedented COVID-19 times.”

Stuczynski has more than 25 years of progressive administrative experience in large integrated healthcare organizations with almost two decades at the executive level. His strengths include extensive financial and operational leadership, long-range forecasting, service line and program development and innovative growth strategies. In his recent role as CFO of Memorial Regional Hospital South, he was responsible for the Rehabilitation Institute, Memorial Manor Nursing Home and Home Health Services. Previously, he served as CFO for Memorial Hospital Pembroke, where he also had responsibility for a number of operational departments.

Stuczynski holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration/Accounting from John Carroll University and a Master in Business Administration from Florida International University. A resident of Coral Springs, Joe and his wife Deneen have four children.

“Joe is a talented financial strategist with a keen eye for innovations that continue to position Memorial as a leader in providing excellent patient-centered care,” said Aurelio M. Fernandez, III, FACHE, Memorial Healthcare System President & Chief Executive Officer. “For 15 years, Joe has been an insightful leader within our healthcare system, and we are proud to have him take the helm of Memorial Hospital Pembroke.”

About Memorial Healthcare System

Memorial Healthcare System is one of the largest public healthcare systems (by revenue) in the U.S. and a national leader in quality care and patient satisfaction. Recently named the #1 healthcare brand in the U.S. (Monigle’s “Humanizing Brand Experience”), it features a patient and family-centered approach to care at facilities that include Memorial Regional Hospital, Memorial Regional Hospital South, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Health Specialty Center in Wellington, Memorial Hospital West, Memorial Hospital Pembroke, Memorial Hospital Miramar, and Memorial Manor nursing home. To learn more, visit mhs.net.

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