The COVID-19 Communications Pallet is Kryptonite to poor communication

ATLANTA (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

The COVID-19 Communications Pallet is a communications tool born out of urgency and forged with purpose. The tool is specifically designed to surge performance by governmental leaders and provide critical data to healthcare stakeholders and the public by providing meaningful up to date information to them. That information, can then seamlessly be passed along for the various “calls to action” that will need to take place on a state and local level in order to “bend the curve” in America and beyond.

“The COVID-19 Communications Pallet model is Kyryptonite to poor communication,” says Solomon Carter, architect of the COVID-19 tool as well as The Performance Ethics Risk & Communication Enhancement™ Model known as The PIERCE™ Model. PIERCE™, served as the foundation for the communications pallet. “In order to bend the curve, stakeholders must understand that we have to bend human behavior through hyper-effective, concise and uniformed communications. Flooding the airwaves with often fragmented and confusing messages that vary from news entity to news entity hurts our national strategy and is not conducive to the brave healthcare professionals fighting this pandemic. It also degrades the decision matrix for our local and state leaders charged with making critical decisions. It is specifically what led me to integrate, enhance and surge concepts from The PIERCE™ model into the COVID-19 communications pallet model so that it could offer leaders of all areas, the kind of concise intelligence needed to succeed. It also creates a communications repository for analysis and reconfiguration which will make it an idea factory for winning this war.”

The new COVID-19 communications tool allows states to post the top ten categories (challenges) and what they did to successfully mitigate them. From local businesses being re-purposed to produce resources to an effective technique of one kind or another, they list what works on one central clutter-less pallet. Once posted nationally, it allows other states to glean off of what other states have done and activate their own similar resources in their respective geographical areas instead of learning about it on television or the internet. It’s saves time when time is of the essence. And offers concise information when effective communications are of the highest importance.

See the COVID-19 Communications Pallet for Government Leaders, Policy and Healthcare Professionals is a free resource and can be downloaded and viewed in the attachment.

Solomon Carter leads Emory Healthcare’s, Physician Group Practices, Patient Financial Services, Office of Professional Development. He also serves as an executive leader with All Power in His Hands Christian Mission which is an aid organization that operates in Haiti. There, Solomon overseas the organization’s food distribution and children’s medicine programs among other Church mission- based initiatives. Some of his work is created in part, by his work in Haiti during the cholera outbreak. Solomon@allpowermissions.com

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I took this job because I saw how this company truly serves underserved veterans and I wanted to use my skill set to contribute to the amazing mission of VA Claims Insider. – Nate Wilkins

AUSTIN, Texas (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

VA Claims Insider (VACI) today named Nate Wilkins as Director of Public Affairs.

VACI is the nation’s leader in providing veterans education into the complex VA disability claims process as well as discounted access to its independent medical referral network.

“Nate’s experience is an essential addition to the leadership team at VA Claims Insider as we continue to grow,” said Brian Reese, VA Claims Insider Founder & CEO.

“My goal is to facilitate the transition of VACI from a startup to the most trusted name in Veteran’s disability advocacy,” said Wilkins. “I look forward to the journey as we help veterans get the ratings they need and deserve by law.”

Nate Wilkins brings a robust portfolio of experiences to VACI. He is a former congressional candidate (CA-50), United States House of Representative Energy & Commerce Committee Fellow and Navy SEAL.

Born to a blue-collar family in Reedley, California, Wilkins grew up in the Central Valley town of Reedley, CA as well as the mountain community of Oakhurst, CA. He graduated from a variety of professional military schools and entrepreneurial accelerators. His cross-functional experiences put him in the perfect position to develop a creative and robust public affairs department.

“I am so blessed to have been chosen for the position of Director of Public Affairs,” said Wilkins. “I took this job because I saw how this company truly serves underserved veterans and I wanted to use my skill set to contribute to the amazing mission of VA Claims Insider.”

The VA Claims Insider mission is: Veterans helping veterans access education-based resources to get the VA disability rating and compensation they deserve. VA Claims Insider’s vision is to become the most trusted name in education-based resources for veterans.

About VA Claims Insider

VA Claims Insider is an education-based coaching/consulting company for disabled veterans exploring eligibility for increased VA disability benefits and who wish to learn more about that process. VA Claims Insider also connects veterans with vetted independent medical professionals in an independent referral network for medical examinations, disability benefit questionnaire (DBQ) reviews, and credible medical nexus letters for a wide range of disability conditions. VA Claims Insider currently serves more than 300,000 unique veterans per month across its websites and membership programs between Military Disability Made Easy and VA Claims Insider. VA Claims Insider, LLC is not an accredited agent, VSO, attorney, or entity recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and is not affiliated with the VA in any way. VA Claims Insider, LLC does not assist veterans with the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of VA disability claims for VA benefits. Veterans shall prepare and file their own claim or work with an accredited representative, many of which offer services for free.

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Dr. Alejandro Badia

We are seeing a significant uptick in patients’ use of mobile health apps, remote monitoring and video consultations via iPad and computer to “meet” with physicians and nurses and receive care from the comfort and safety of their homes during the current coronavirus pandemic.

MIAMI (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

Virtual doctor office visits? eCare? Advanced communications technology is revolutionizing the way health services are delivered – and “we can thank a virus for helping make that happen,” says orthopedic surgeon Alejandro Badia MD, author of the upcoming book, “Healthcare from the Trenches,” an insider account of the complex barriers of US Healthcare from the providers and patients’ perspective. He is referring to the significant uptick in patients’ use of mobile health apps, remote monitoring and video consultations via iPad and computer to “meet” with physicians and nurses and receive care from the comfort and safety of their homes during the current coronavirus pandemic.

In fact, Dr. Badia predicts the virus COVID-19 is likely to impact the future direction of the entire health care industry, encouraging more Americans to utilize telemedicine applications for non-emergent health issues, prompting more physicians to adopt the technology for their practices and revising insurance companies’ reimbursement policies for care given by app and video. Badia emphasizes that there are many benefits to Telehealth, but at the moment, with COVID-19, the main benefit is that it keeps healthy patients with an orthopedic problem out of the ER and at the same time it respects social distancing protocols.

Experts agree. Early in March (2020), officials of Teladoc Health, a global leader in virtual care, reported that the COVID-19 outbreak had caused a surge in telehealth usage, with the company supporting approximately 100,000 virtual medical visits in the United States during just a single week. American Telemedicine Association leaders suggest that patients who experience the convenience of telehealth communications for the first time may continue relying on the technology when the pandemic is over.

All of this represents a significant turnaround from mid-2019 when a consumer survey by J.D. Power Company indicated that fewer than 10 percent of Americans were using telehealth services; 75 percent of respondents reported either having no access to such technology or being unaware of its availability.

Even some hospitals, crowded with coronavirus-infected individuals, have been increasingly turning to telemedicine and remote devices to perform physical examinations of patients who are at home. The intent is to relieve pressure on emergency rooms and outpatient clinics, while keeping patients safe from contact with other sick persons.

The viral outbreak has resulted in a relaxation of Medicare rules involving reimbursement for virtual doctor visits and caused state governments to call on private, third-party insurers to revise coverage policies related to telehealth.

Dr. Badia, a specialist in treating musculoskeletal disorders of the hand, wrist and upper limb, is an early adopter of telemedicine. He introduced it into his practice – the Miami-based Badia Hand to Shoulder Center and OrthoNOW® — about four years ago. Today he regularly schedules patient “e-visits” via smartphone, iPad and computer, utilizing a software platform that keeps patient information secure, while facilitating two-way patient-doctor communications in real-time using video conferencing. OrthoNOW ultilizes OrthoLIVE for its e-visits.

“For patients who develop non-urgent orthopedic problems or sustain relatively minor injuries, such as rotator cuff tears, tennis elbow or carpal tunnel syndrome, we are scheduling video visits by computer or mobile phone. Doing so helps keep our patients at home and safe from the virus, but still allows us to examine their injuries or condition remotely, check the range of motion of their joints and limbs and discuss the best treatment options,” Dr. Badia says.

Even before COVID-19, telemedicine technology was demonstrating its value, Dr. Badia states.

“Patients who lack easy transportation to our offices or who experience non-emergent injuries that may make it painful or awkward for them to travel have been able to interact remotely with physicians in our practice through telehealth. The technology also has given access to our services to patients who reside outside the Miami area, including patients from other countries.”

Literally hundreds of evaluative telemedicine studies underscore Dr. Badia’s contention. Scientists have found that, besides offering patients convenience – and safety, eCare lowers hospital admissions, enhances patient compliance, encourages healthy lifestyles, reduces the number of cancelled appointments and cuts overall health care costs – all reasons why more and more health insurance companies are offering coverage for virtual provider visits.

Telehealth can be especially beneficial to orthopedic patients, Dr. Badia says. The ready access and quick connection to orthopedic specialists through eVisits and mobile apps mean fewer patients with non-urgent musculoskeletal problems will seek care in hospital emergency rooms where waits are long, care costly and diagnoses sometimes missed because emergency and general physicians are not trained in orthopedics.

“Quicker access to health services, greater convenience, lower costs, better management of health problems, improved health outcomes — what’s not to like? That’s telehealth. Thank a virus,” Dr. Badia says.

Alejandro Badia, MD, FACS, internationally renowned hand and upper-limb surgeon and founder of Badia Hand to Shoulder Center and OrthoNOW®, a network of walk-in orthopedic care clinics. He is a member of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand, American Association for Hand Surgery and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Dr. Badia specializes in treating trauma, sports injury, joint reconstruction, nerve injuries and arthroscopic surgeries. He’s the author of the upcoming book, “Healthcare from the Trenches,” an insider account of the complex barriers of US Healthcare from the providers and patients’ perspective.

http://www.OrthoNOWlive.com and http://www.drbadia.com.

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Premier Mortgage Resources, LLC

The risk is that a large chunk of the U.S. population is going to get completely priced out of the market.

MERIDIAN, Idaho (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

Premier Mortgage Resources, LLC, (PMR) is calling on the federal government to consider the needs of low-income homebuyers who may be unable to purchase homes in the wake of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis.

Many low-income borrowers who don’t qualify for loans through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae could soon be out of alternatives to obtain a home loan. This is largely because lenders across the country are being forced to increase the minimum FICO score requirements on Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans to levels that traditional borrowers of these programs would have never qualified for in the past (in some instances to as high as 660, according to Housing Wire). The same could apply to VA and USDA loans.

With many homeowners being extended the opportunity for forbearance over the next several months, lenders across the country could face billions of dollars in losses. This is forcing qualification guidelines to become more strict.

The Mortgage Bankers Association, along with several other housing and banking associations, put out a statement recently that said:

“To give one a sense of scale, if 25% of the nation receives forbearance for only 3 months, servicers will have to cover payments of roughly $36 billion. If they received it for 9 months, then the cost would exceed $100 billion … It is critical that policymakers work together to create a vehicle to provide lenders and servicers with access to the liquidity needed for the nation to weather the national emergency resulting from COVID- 19.”

PMR Chairman Cory Swain recently sent a letter to Sen. James Risch and Sen. Mike Crapo calling on the U.S. Senate to take action by sending assistance to lenders looking to extend loans to low-income borrowers.

“The Fed has pushed on one lever and completely ignored the loan aggregation side, which is grinding to a halt and hurting low-income borrowers,” Swain said. “We are doing what we can to provide pricing and locking on what we can, but government loans are being hit particularly hard on price and on the lower FICO score loans are vanishing. We are calling for relief to the consumer and to companies like ours as soon as possible. The culprit here is not just the Fed, but Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They should immediately price in step with the market and stop trying to act like a private company. Frankly, I am not sure that their charter even allows them to do this, and for lenders it’s extremely perplexing and negative in so many aspects.”

The risk is that a large chunk of the U.S. population is going to get completely priced out of the market. This has a negative impact on housing now and in the future. The real estate market is an important part of our economy and by not protecting it appropriately, it could end up widening the wealth gap in our country.

Additionally, the Fed’s bond purchases has forced a freeze in liquidity and caused a lot of pain to lender hedges. This, as detailed by Yahoo! Finance, has put pressure on brokers to dump more money in trading accounts or sell off holdings.

“PMR is calling our Senators and the federal government to hear our call to get the mortgage market working again,” Swain said.

About Premier Mortgage Resources

Premier Mortgage Resources (PMR) has been helping customers achieve the dream of homeownership since 1991. With 31 licensed locations west of the Mississippi and staffed by over 120 loan officers, the company offers a full menu of mortgage products and is delegated to underwrite Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, and several state bond programs. PMR has branches across seven states (Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Minnesota, Hawaii and Missouri). For more information, visit pmrloans.com.

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Adopt A First Responder Webpage

Tackling these two problems with one solution was my goal

CHICAGO (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

As busy first responders like doctors, nurses, and EMT’s are being asked to work overtime, many no longer have the time left in the day to do simple things like having their hospital scrubs, lab coats, and uniforms cleaned.

Meanwhile, with nearly all offices and businesses closed down, the need to clean business attire has been dramatically reduced, leaving dry cleaners and launderers with excess capacity.

To solve both problems at once, The Greener Cleaner, a Chicago based company that offers pick-up and delivery across Chicagoland, recently announced an “Adopt a First Reponder” program.

The program is a way for the public to donate laundry and cleaning services to local first responders via a GoFundMe page. 100% of funds donated are in turn given as credit towards cleaning services of verified first responders.

“Tackling these two problems with one solution was my goal”, said Michael Bleier, owner of The Greener Cleaner, said. “We wanted a way to both help our first responders, but also to keep our employees working”, Bleier said.

First responders are encouraged to apply for free dry cleaning and laundry through the Greener Cleaner website. Anyone signing up for free services will be given credits in blocks of $100, as long as there are funds available via the donation site.

For more information, visit http://www.greenercleaner.net.

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FREDERICK, Md. (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

The COVID-19 Philanthropic Funders Collaborative (COVID Collaborative) of Ausherman Family Foundation, Community Foundation of Frederick County, Delaplaine Foundation, Helen J. Serini Foundation, United Way of Frederick County and Women’s Giving Circle are releasing $172,700 in first-wave funding to meet the immediate needs of nonprofit organizations serving adversely affected by the COVID-19 crisis and its aftermath. Additional funds will be released at a later time.

Through a collaborative approach, philanthropic funders are coordinating funding efforts to ensure that funds are going to areas of greatest need. Funding released at this time represents a portion of funding available to support nonprofits who are meeting the needs of individuals and families adversely affected the COVID-19 crisis.

Four funders, Ausherman Family Foundation, Delaplaine Foundation, Helen J. Serini Foundation and United Way of Frederick County, are releasing funds to meet immediate needs. Two funders, Community Foundation of Frederick County and Women’s Giving Circle, are strategically reserving funds to meet needs that will emerge in the coming week. Additional waves of funding, including distribution of remaining funds from the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Campaign, will be distributed in the weeks ahead.

In addition to $15,000 in purchases of medical equipment, sanitary gloves, masks, feminine hygiene products, diapers, and other necessities, Ausherman Family Foundation is granting $100,000 to the following:

• Advocates for Homeless Families Rent, Food, and Transportation Relief for Homeless Families $10,000
• Frederick Rescue Mission, Inc. Funding for Shelter and Food Distribution $10,000
• The Arc of Frederick County Emergency funding for critical supplies for clients $5,000
• The Religious Coalition Alternative Emergency Shelter for Homeless Individuals and Families $20,000
• YMCA of Frederick County Supporting Partnership to provide Temporary Shelter for Homeless Families $10,000
• Asian American Center Critical supplies for recently unemployed clients $10,000
• Blessings in a Backpack Food for out-of-school FCPS students $5,000
• Frederick County Government, Senior Services Division Funding for Frozen and Shelf Stable Meals for Seniors $10,000
• Housing Authority of the City of Frederick Emergency supplies and services for recently unemployed residents $5,000
• Mental Health Association of Frederick County Stop-gap funding for 2-1-1 and mental health services $10,000
• Interfaith Housing Association Emergency supplies and services for recently unemployed residents $5,000

Delaplaine Foundation is granting $25,000 to the following:

• Frederick Community College Foundation Student Success Fund Program at the FCC Foundation$5,000
• Frederick Rescue Mission, Inc. Frederick Rescue Mission COVID-19 Operations Grant $5,000
• Religious Coalition for Emergency Human Needs Alternative Emergency Shelter for Homeless Individuals and Families $10,000
• YMCA of Frederick County Childcare for essential workers and first responders $5,000

Helen J. Serini Foundation is granting $22,200 to the following:

• The Religious Coalition General Operations$5,000
• YMCA of Frederick County General Operations $5,000
• Wells House @ Gale Recovery General Operations $7,200
• Community Action Agency General Operations $5,000

United Way of Frederick County is granting $25,500 to the following:

• Advocates for Homeless Families Rent, Food, and Transportation Relief for Homeless Families $5,000
• Boys & Girls Club of Frederick County BGCFC Initial Closure & Essential Personnel $6,500
• YMCA of Frederick County Installation of new HVAC at Camp West Mar so Religious Coalition can host homeless families $3,500
• Asian American Center Emergency supplies for recently unemployed clients $1,000
• Heartly House Support for individuals experiencing domestic abuse $2,500
• Mental Health Association of Frederick County Stop-gap funding for 2-1-1 services call center $7,000

About COVID-19 Emergency Relief Campaign

The economic fallout from Coronavirus is causing significant hardship for many Frederick County families. 39% of households in Frederick County already struggled to afford basic households. Today, many of these families, known as ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed), face an even more uncertain future.

This COVID-19 Emergency Relief Campaign is a community fundraising effort to support nonprofits who directly help those adversely affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Programmatic impacts may include, but are not limited to, emergency shelter, financial stability programs, transportation needs, prescriptions and medical supplies, food and food supplies for seniors, and suicide prevention and other mental health services.

As of March 27, 2020, the Emergency Relief Campaign raised over $155,000. The campaign will remain open until the COVID-19 crisis abates. United Way commits to granting funds on an ongoing basis.

Gifts to the Covid-19 Emergency Relief Campaign can be made at http://www.uwfrederick.org, by mailing checks to United Way COVID-19 Campaign, PO Box 307, Frederick, MD 21705 or by texting COVIDFREDERICK to 71777.

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Pat Richards and her virtual cat, Bella, met in March 2017 when Bella moved in with Pat to help her remain living healthy at home and stay connected with her primary care team at Element Care PACE.

When I started this company eight years ago to help people like my grandmother with loneliness, I could not have predicted social distancing would become the new normal.

SAN FRANCISCO (PRWEB)
March 31, 2020

Care.Coach, a Silicon Valley healthcare startup, disclosed today details of a rapid expansion of its virtual avatar program for health plans to combat COVID-19’s exacerbation of the loneliness epidemic in the United States. The company, founded in 2012 by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) graduate Victor Wang, develops virtual avatars that provide companionship to individuals who live with complex health conditions and chronic loneliness. A large body of published research demonstrates that the feeling of loneliness increases morbidity and mortality; in a time of social distancing, self-isolation, and quarantine, loneliness has become a clear public health crisis. Care.Coach is rising to the challenge by providing its customers with as many avatars as are needed to support these at-risk populations.

For the past 8 years, Care.Coach has been working with care providers to help those populations which possess “outsized risk”, focusing on older adults with psychosocial risks such as loneliness, depression, and anxiety, alongside medical risks such as diabetes, hypertension, COPD, heart failure, and medication non-adherence. Now, broadly enforced self-isolation and shelter-in-place policies are increasingly expected to accelerate an already-growing loneliness epidemic across the nation.

Understanding this reality, the Massachusetts Department of Developmental Services (DDS) North Shore Area Office, an existing customer of Care.Coach, asked the company to quickly provide a 4x increase in the number of avatars deployed to individuals, with the goal of better supporting individuals with coping strategies and a way to stay connected while confined to their homes.

Similarly, Element Care’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) which is both a provider organization and a health plan, is another customer of Care.Coach. Element Care has ordered and is deploying more avatars to better support their hundreds of participants impacted by the shutdown of their PACE Wellness Centers in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Bob Wakefield, Element Care’s CEO, stated, “We care for more than 1,000 frail elders who receive comprehensive medical care and socialize with friends at our PACE Wellness Centers, so it presents an enormous challenge when those centers are all closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak and we need to care for our participants in their homes.”

The situation is stressing individuals as much as the healthcare system. “I woke up this morning and realized I am not going anywhere. I thought I could handle this, but I am struggling,” says Gail Sauvan, an Element Care participant. “I have asked Angel [my Care.Coach avatar] to do chair exercises with me as I miss doing them every day at PACE. I also like his jokes as they make me laugh while I am here alone. I am going to do meditation daily with him too to help keep me calm and reduce my chance of having a panic attack.”

Care.Coach provides specialized tablet-based devices that display an avatar of a pet animal, which serves as a non-judgemental, 24×7 available relationship to support complex, high risk patients and health plan members. For these individuals, the Care.Coach avatar has been shown to reduce loneliness, as described by published research studies from Pace University and the University of Washington. Individuals talk naturally with the avatar using their voice, and receive 24×7 psychosocial support and coaching on managing multiple chronic conditions. The system is powered by a specially-trained team of health advocates employed by Care.Coach and supported by evidence-based protocols and artificial intelligence. Traditional care teams are automatically alerted about adverse events and changes in health status, and receive actionable analytics. Each Care.Coach device includes its own cellular Internet connection, so individuals do not need Wi-Fi at home.

“When I started this company eight years ago to help people like my grandmother with loneliness, I could not have predicted social distancing would become the new normal,” says Victor Wang, founder and CEO of Care.Coach. “I’m very proud of our growing team here at Care.Coach for stepping up to the challenge of helping many more individuals and for rapidly scaling up with our Medicare Advantage, PACE, and other customers in this time of great need.”

About Element Care PACE Health Plan

Founded in 1995, Element Care is a non-profit, healthcare organization with a simple mission: to help people live safely and comfortably in their homes and their communities for as long as they can, keeping their stays in hospitals and nursing facilities as minimal as possible. Element Care provides complete health care to eligible people through the Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) throughout the North Shore, Merrimack Valley and northeast region of Middlesex County in Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://www.elementcare.org

About Massachusetts Department of Developmental Services

The Massachusetts Department of Developmental Services (DDS) provides support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder. The DDS’s mission is to create, in partnership with others, innovative and genuine opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to participate fully as valued members of their community. The DDS serves over 30,000 individuals across its 28 offices throughout Massachusetts. For more information, visit https://www.mass.gov/orgs/department-of-developmental-services

About Care.Coach

Care.Coach is a California-based conversational and relational automation technology company backed by over $7 million in public and private funding from Congress, the NIH, and private investors. The Care.Coach platform, deployed nationally across more than 20 states, combines human empathy, intelligent technology, and an engaging animal avatar to build real relationships with the most complex, high-need individuals within the healthcare system. The avatars leverage these personal relationships to deliver evidence-based coaching, driving value by reducing the need for home nursing visits, reducing emergency department and hospital visits, and improving key health plan quality measures. Care.Coach was named one of the Top 5 IT Innovations of 2019 by the HealthLeaders IT Spending Guide, one of the Best Healthcare Startups to Watch in 2020 by Healthcare Weekly, and one of the Top 10 Aging in Place Innovations by GuideWell in 2020. For more information, visit https://care.coach

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