ResponderHub offers senior communities a crisis communications solution
News of, and response to, COVID-19 has spread like the virus itself. School classes, worksites, large gatherings, sport leagues, dine-in restaurants/bars, and more are being canceled by the hour. Global quarantine seems inevitable.
And as the epidemic reaches ever greater proportions in the public conscientious, many senior communities are already several steps ahead.
Headlines and health agencies warn that senior citizens are most vulnerable to the disease. To be sure, the coronavirus is cause for significant concern, and senior communities are particularly inundated with inquests into how they're managing the rapidly evolving situation.
While the attention is predominantly on the elderly population, the senior living industry is uniquely qualified to prepare for contagious ailments, care for affected seniors, ensure that others are shielded from the spread of infectious diseases, and quell panic and misinformation.
With medical staff offering residents easy access to medical care, aware of their individual baselines, senior communities have a singular advantage over other entities, especially in epidemic and pandemic conditions. What's more, protective precautions for residents, staff and visitors as well as regular communications with government health agencies are "business as usual" for professionals in senior housing and services.
As such, esteemed organizations like the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) strongly emphasize the heightened safety and protection residents in senior communities have, under both "normal" and extraordinary circumstances.
With respect to infectious ailments in general and the coronavirus in particular, retirement communities across the country are doing more than following common-sense guidelines and mandates from their state health departments and the Center for Disease Control (CDC). As almost everyone now knows, these measures include staying home when sick and avoiding contact with those who are, washing hands often, keeping over an arm's length away from others, covering mouths and noses when coughing or sneezing, and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces.
Indeed, senior communities began implementing additional measures to keep their residents and campuses safe and informed of the ever-evolving situation as soon as the first news of the novel virus came to light.
Such measures include, but are not limited to: providing consistent updates and communications to those who live and work at senior communities as well as their families and stakeholders; closely monitoring local, state and federal health agencies to ensure that they can respond quickly and effectively to mitigate risk of outbreak; putting plans in place to remove staff who are or could become ill until they are deemed healthy; barring outside visitors; canceling outside events and onsite activities that involve volunteers or paid facilitators; practicing emergency preparedness and response measures in the event that a virus impacts their campus or the outside community; making changes to travel and visitation guidelines for all employees, partners and guests.
As the COVID-19 virus continues to unfold, senior communities in particular will find it increasingly necessary to communicate quickly and effectively about how they're handling crisis.
ResponderHub, the first crisis communications solution designed specifically for the senior living and services industry, allows users one centralized platform where they can communicate with all interested parties about actions they're taking in crisis situations. What's more, the cloud-based ResponderHub tool resides in a secure, HIPAA-compliant environment.
While no one can be certain how or when the current coronavirus outbreak will be resolved, one thing is for sure: senior living communities are among the most experienced and prepared to effectively handle whatever is to come.
ResponderHub is the first crisis communications solution designed specifically for the senior living and services industry. It is a product of IVY Marketing Group, a 30-year veteran in marketing and public relations, specializing in senior housing and services. IVY's team of professionals also manage crisis response and are certified in content marketing and crisis communications by the Public Relations Society of America. In addition, they are media trained and educated in crisis communications by the Institute of Crisis Management. IVY has received multiple national awards for excellence in content marketing, web and print design.