The virtual tour was guided by the district’s technology director, Mike Wellin. Wellin demonstrated how the new Sharepoint program allows teachers and administrators to share their lesson plans and other information with one another through classroom computers. He also highlighted a new security camera system which was purchased through the fundraising efforts of the PTO.

Using a computer in the board offices on Cherry Street, Wellin accessed live feeds from one of the cameras in the high school auditoria on Park Avenue. He explained that the same live feed would be available to law enforcement personnel whose cruisers are equipped with computers linked to the system.

According to Wellin, “Mount Gilead school district took an enterprise-wide approach when implementing the Cisco IP telephony system across all of its schools. This approach seamlessly added applications and technologies to the network, such as video streaming, IP video cameras, and wireless alerting devices including panic buttons, window and door sensors, smoke detectors and glass break sensors.”>

He explained that when a panic button is activated, a voice or text alert is sent, either to an administrator, or to law enforcement.

“The PTO at Park Avenue wanted to support efforts being made by the district to improve safety technologies already in place,” Wellin said. “They allocated $5,000 toward the purchase of video surveillance technology to be used across the school system. Outdoor cameras typically retail for $950 each, while indoor cameras are about $450.”

The PTO purchased one indoor and three outdoor cameras, the video server and necessary sensors. An additional four cameras, alerting devices, and labor costs were funded through a drug free grant in the amount of $8,391.

In addition to providing increased security, the camera system has also lowered the costs of the district’s liability insurance.

Royal Park Place - an Independent Living community by Providence Life Services - in Zeeland, MI, will soon be using SARA's wireless emergency call capabilities to address life safety in their community.  SARA is a simple to use, yet powerful alerting engine, which sends voice and text alerts to in-building pagers, email, telephones, cell phones, radios, CCTV and paging systems.  This allows both staff and residents to be notified of important events at any time, no matter where they are located.  Staff members can quickly address safety and security concerns or environmental problems before they turn into emergencies.

"We chose SARA and Status Solutions because of their ability to integrate multiple, disparate systems and to consolidate all of the systems we had in place to allow us to manage these various components from an enterprise perspective," states Carl Goodfriend, CIO of ProviNET - IT division of Providence Life Services.

Providence Life Services, formerly Rest Haven Christian Services, started as a single nursing home in 1959 and has since expanded to provide more aging services to even more people.  Providence Life Services operates under the core value that people deserve better care, and they continue to develop new services to meet new needs.  Providence Life Services is headquartered in Tinley Park, IL and has four Rehabilitation and Skilled Care communities and eight Independent and Assisted Living communities. Providence also offers Hospice services in Illinois and other in-home services throughout Illinois and Michigan.  Two additional communities are currently under construction in Illinois and Indiana.

As Providence Life Services began offering more and more healthcare options, they developed in-house technology expertise. ProviNET Solutions was formed as a technology division that could offer comprehensive technology support to Providence Life Services, as well as to a wide range of other organizations.
SARA provides staff a better means of communicating with residents, as well as system ease of use in terms of adds, moves and changes.  The two communities currently using SARA can leverage internal IT resources at ProviNET as their first line of technical support.  ProviNET is versed in the SARA solution, so that they can support Providence Life Services communities as needed.  With remote access, the ProviNET IT staff can easily log into a community's SARA server, diagnose and resolve a problem, only engaging the Status Solutions support team when needed.

"Status Solutions was selected as the vendor of choice because of their knowledge of the senior housing and healthcare industry, as well as their ability to demonstrate the benefits of SARA during the discovery phase of the selection process.  Customer references speak volumes in terms of clearly understanding the benefits a community can expect from implementing a new solution.  Status Solutions customers are happy to share their experiences with other potential customers, which speaks volumes to the level of service they receive," stated Carl Goodfriend, CIO of ProviNET.

The key advantage of implementing SARA across multiple communities is the ability to integrate various low voltage systems into a central point for more efficient management.  Prior to SARA, each of the Providence Life Services managed communities made their own decisions in terms of acquiring systems such as nurse call.  Providence Life Services used this consolidation model previously when streamlining their phone systems.  They chose a single vendor to service their 12 communities and have realized a vast improvement in efficiency, as well a significant cost savings.  They expect a similar scenario when eventually implementing SARA across all of their campuses.

"We did the due diligence necessary to determine that SARA is, in our opinion, the best system to provide the most value for our communities.  SARA's expandable platform, which includes extensive integration capability and broadcast communication, allows the technology to grow with our communities now and in the future," comments Bill Sherrard, CRSA's VP Purchasing & Operations Development and President of VIP Purchasing.

During this certification process the SARA system has undergone strenuous testing and has met the necessary requirements to be installed in either general or critical care areas.  This demonstrates SARA's ability to bring both traditional nurse call elements, as well as current generation communication tools together into a single solution.  SARA is the natural solution for communities looking to implement state of the art technology solutions across their entire campus regardless of the regulatory criteria required in certain areas.  By obtaining UL 1069 certification Status Solutions can provide a scalable solution that will meet the needs of communities as they grow and change to meet the needs of the aging population.

Many assisted living, independent living and senior nursing facilities have benefited from installing SARA.  While the benefits from the system are similar, the reason for choosing this flexible type of technology varies based upon the individual community's needs.  Kendal at Ithaca located in Ithaca, NY provides Independent Living, Adult Home, and Skilled Nursing Units.  The overarching goal for implementing SARA is to improve resident safety and mobility, and staff efficiency. Status Solutions will provide a new wireless infrastructure and devices where needed.  The SARA solution will also integrate to the communities' other monitoring devices and safety systems. SARA will become the central nervous system and therefore allow complete control of alerts, event reporting, and monitoring of all devices.  Using SARA's wander prevention and awareness capabilities will enable an integrated wander prevention solution that combines versatile alerting, rules based egress, and complete reporting of wandering events.

Kendal at Lexington located in Lexington, VA is a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) offering apartment and cottage options for independent living residents, the Webster Center for assisted living residents, and the Benjamin Borden Health Center for residents that require full level skilled nursing care.   The overall strategy is to leverage and extend the various life safety systems currently in place. An integrated and improved wander prevention system will also be installed. Improved resident safety and staff efficiency and productivity will be made possible through integrated event reports, staff reminders and campus-wide accessibility of vital system data.   "We are encouraged, as we have come to know the people and approaches of Status Solutions, that we will be creating a strategy and relationship for the future.  It is refreshing to feel the mutual excitement in our teams around the possibilities that can come out of our working together closely.  We expect, and look forward to, a very creative and productive partnership," commented John Diffey, Chief Executive Officer of The Kendal Corporation.

SARA will also enable the Kendal communities to make better use of their current technology investments by integrating to computers, email, and telephone systems already in place at both communities.  Because SARA can send alerts in text and voice format, on-site and off-site staff and/or emergency personnel will be able to receive vital alerts when needed via cell phone, pager, email or home phone.  SARA will also be used to improve resident satisfaction and involvement through the use of voice automated reminders.  This capability allows alerts for community events, scheduled activities, inclement weather updates, facility construction warnings, and medicine reminders to be scheduled and automatically sent via phone to designated residents and / or staff members.

Lakewood Manor, affiliated with Virginia Baptist Homes, located in Richmond, Va. selected SARA to improve their existing nurse call system through automation and integration to other systems and devices.  The building of 3 new independent apartment villas, made up of 10 units each, totaling 30 units gave Lakewood Manor the perfect opportunity to implement a solution that would allow their existing systems to work together more cohesively.  "We were looking for a way to have consistency from a safety standpoint across our entire campus.  We knew what we wanted and Status Solutions knew how to get us there," states Jim Jacobsen, Lakewood's Administrator of Support Services.

The wireless "bubble" that SARA has enabled at Lakewood Manor encompasses the entire community, and allows the staff to know both when and where an incident occurs.  With integrations to the nurse call system, the fire system and devices such as pull cords, pendants and motion sensors, the SARA system also enables reporting of historical events.  The motion based check-in component of SARA allows for an email to be sent to designated staff members when sensors in the specified residents' rooms detect movement before 11:00AM each morning.  If staff members do not receive the "check-in" message by the pre-determined time, then they know they should go to the resident's room to see if they need assistance.  "Family members think the motion based check-in process is a great enhancement to the community.  It gives them the peace of mind that their loved one will not be left alone in their room if an accident occurs," comments Jim Jacobsen.

Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge, located in Charlottesville, Va., chose to partner with Status Solutions and to implement SARA in order to overcome the increased communication challenges they were experiencing.  The community wanted to update and expand its technology capabilities where resident care and safety were concerned.  Their architect put them in touch with Status Solutions, and they are now currently implementing the SARA solution.

Westminster-Canterbury is considering the option of extending wireless pendants to all of their residents to enable notification of an incident, regardless of location, to staff members the moment the incident occurs.  They may also take advantage of the motion based check-in feature, as well as the automated voice reminders.  SARA can send alerts for community events, scheduled activities, bus departure and medicine reminders.  The reminders can be scheduled and automatically sent via phone to designated residents and/ or staff members.

Scott Hilles, Vice President at Westminster-Canterbury, comments,"We really feel that the sky is the limit.  SARA has so much to offer our community, and we are looking forward to exploring all of the enhanced capabilities this technology can provide to our staff and residents."

Many assisted living, independent living and senior nursing facilities have benefited from installing SARA.  While the benefits from the system are similar, the reason for choosing this flexible type of technology varies based upon the individual community's needs.

Springmoor Life Care Retirement Community in Raleigh, N.C. selected SARA to extend mobile safety coverage to their residents while leveraging their current infrastructure.  SARA will integrate to various systems, such as their fire safety system, to improve alerting.  Springmoor's Executive Director Kyle Dilday comments, "We chose Status Solutions because SARA was the only system we could find that would allow us to take our environment wireless in phases, while still utilizing our existing hardware, for example pull cords.  After implementing the alerting capabilities of the system we look forward to making use of some of SARA's additional features like the automated voice reminders."

Penick Village in Southern Pines, N.C. chose to partner with Status Solutions and to implement SARA in order to provide more freedom to their residents throughout the Healthcare facility, Assisted Living community and Independent Living apartments.  Jeff Hutchins, Penick Village's Executive Director, states, "After implementing SARA, we are able to provide better opportunities to our residents, for example through the use of wireless pendants that enable better coverage and service throughout the community."  Regarding the quality of service Status Solutions has provided Penick Village during and after the implementation of the system, Hutchins comments, "Status Solutions has been a great partner.  We feel like we can call them day or night if there is any type of problem.  They truly care about our residents, and the success of our community."

Both communities plan to utilize SARA's automated voice reminder capability that allows alerts for community events, scheduled activities, bus departure and medicine reminders to be scheduled and automatically sent via phone to designated residents and / or staff members.

There are also plans to leverage the motion based check-in component of SARA that allows for an email to be sent to designated staff members when sensors in the specified residents' rooms detect movement before 1:00PM each day.  If staff members do not receive the "check-in" message by the pre-determined time, then they know they should go to the resident's room to see if they need assistance.

Oct. 2, 2009—At Dogwood Village, a skilled nursing and assisted-living facility in Orange, Va., residents utilize RFID-enabled pendants and pull-cords to summon aid. The solution, provided by Status Solutions, is known as the Situational Awareness and Response Assistant (SARA). This system enables employees to know when a patient has pressed a pendant's alert button, as well as how long it takes for the staff to respond. Dogwood Village is now expanding its SARA deployment, and intends in the future to add temperature-sensing capabilities for such equipment as refrigerators and boilers, as well as locators to determine where in the assisted-living building a resident is when pressing a button.

Previously, Dogwood's skilled nursing rooms, which can accommodate a total of 138 residents, had two-way intercoms to allow residents to request help from the staff. When a patient pulled a cord attached to a switch mounted near her bed, it activated an intercom, enabling her to speak with a nurse working at a central station. That system, however, was not meeting the needs of the patients or employees, says Vernon Baker, Dogwood Village's president. A call could only be heard at the nursing station itself, making it more difficult for the appropriate staff members to respond if they were not at the station. What's more, the two-way calling confused many residents who could press the button for help, but had trouble understanding what nurses were saying over the intercom, or how they should respond. Workers also sometimes had trouble understanding the patients.

Dogwood Village implemented the pull-cord version of the SARA system at its 138-patient nursing home in 2006, and is now installing the pendant version at a new 75-resident assisted-living facility. The RFID-enabled pull-cord devices and pendants, as well as the solution's other RFID hardware, are manufactured by Inovonics.

Each pull-cord or pendant contains an active RFID tag that transmits a 902-928 MHz signal encoded with a unique ID number linked to the resident's name, history, room number and other information stored in the facility's back-end system. The pull-cord device, wired to a power supply, can be attached to a wall or bed. The pendant, which contains an internal battery, attaches to a lanyard worn around a patient's neck, and the patient presses a button on the pendant to summon help.

Each type of device beacons its unique ID number intermittently at all times, in order to confirm it is operating properly. According to Deric Blattenberger, Status Solutions' product manager, an Inovonics repeater (17 such devices are installed at the facility altogether) receives the ID number and sends it to a second repeater, which forwards the data to a centrally located receiver.

If the device's status changes—in other words, if a patient pulls its cord—it sends a modified transmission indicating a patient seeks assistance. The receiver has a cabled connection to the back-end system, where Status Solutions' SARA software receives the data, uses the ID number to determine the name and room of the patient who placed the call, and sends a text alert to the appropriate staff members' pagers or phones.

When a worker receives a text alert on her pager or phone, she sees a display of the patient's name and room number, then reports to that room. There, she resets the switch on the patient's pull-cord device or presses a recessed reset button on the back of the pendant, thus indicating the call has been answered.

If employees do not respond to the call within five minutes, a second page is sent, this time including the charge nurse, and then once more, including the unit manager. If no one responds within 20 minutes, Baker says, he receives a phone call himself.

The assisted-living facility now has 38 residents, though that number is expected to grow to approximately 75. Residents utilize a pendant instead of the pull-cord device used by nursing patients, because assisted-living residents are more mobile.

In both cases, the SARA system not only ensures that every call receives a response, it also records how long that response took. Once the pendant or pull-cord device is reset, the system records the response time, as well as who responded. Management can then use those records to determine how well the staff responds to calls, and track a specific problem if one is reported after the fact.

One example of the system in action illustrates the numerous ways in which it can be used, Baker says. Several weeks ago, he spoke with a resident who indicated the staff had taken too long responding to her calls the previous night. Baker was able to check the SARA records, determine when the calls were placed and which staff member was on call, and speak with that employee. However, he adds, he was also able to surmise that the resident was experiencing high levels of anxiety at the time, pressing the call button approximately 30 times a day for a variety of needs. With that knowledge, he says, the staff was then better able to understand the patient's problems and address them.

In another case, Baker says, family members of a resident indicated she reported not getting responses to her calls. However, the system determined the number of calls she had placed during the night, along with the average response time (for example, 10 calls with an average response of 2 minutes 32 seconds).

In the future, Baker says, the facility intends to install SARA locators, which identify each pendant's location when the call button is pressed. In that way, if a resident requires assistance but is not in his room, the system can identify in which floor and wing he is located. That, he says, will require installing 12 locators at the assisted-living, facility—one each in the north, south, east and west wings of every floor.

Baker says he was initially concerned that employees would resist switching to the SARA system. However, he says, they appreciate seeing just how long their own response times are, and different departments have competed to achieve the quickest response times.

The residents at First Community Village in Columbus, OH, have something similar - but a bit more practical and versatile.

The Situational Awareness and Response Assistant (SARA for short) is an automated alert system.  It can be used for just about anything, from alerting staff in the event of a fall to letting residents know about upcoming activities.

SARA employs a multi-platform system that includes telephone, email and pager alerts for all staff members, as well as resident communications.

Its range of applications is the best part of the SARA System, says FCV Facilities Director Beth Anne Carmen. 

"The activities people love the automated resident calling feature; the nursing staff love the resident alert pendants," she says.

The mult-use SARA system can broadcast alerts to residents and staff, announce activities or emergencies, locate wandering patients or monitor delayed egress doors in a dementia unit.

Status Solutions, a Charlottesville, Va.-based company, provides Situational Awareness and Response Assistant (SARA), an automated alerting system and awareness engine, to vertical markets such as senior housing, health care, education and government.

For more information about this new CAHSA member, please contact Amy Jeffs at 434-296-1789 or ajeffs@statussolutions.com.

About CAHSA (www.cahsa.org)

Established in 1968, the Colorado Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (CAHSA) is the state’s largest nonprofit organization representing a spectrum of providers that deliver services to the elderly. More than 200 member organizations belong to CAHSA, including nursing facilities, retirement communities, independent living housing and community-based services. CAHSA advocates public policy initiatives that support individual rights, quality care, equitable access and reimbursement for seniors. CAHSA is the state affiliate for two national organizations, the Assisted Living Federation of America and the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging.

According to John Baird, Status Solutions Co-Founder and lead developer of this innovative capability, “SPS is the process of SARA automatically creating a multi-dimensional model of the EchoStream RF Infrastructure on the property. The model consists of both fixed devices such as pull cords, wall mounted pendants, smoke detectors, etc. and virtual points of interest within the community.  When a resident activates their mobile device, SARA mathematically compares the location of the mobile resident in question to the model, and provides the closest positions.” 

Through SPS (a vector mapping technology), SARA provides highly accurate location data.  The location information provided to staff shows the proximity of the mobile user to a fixed device or virtual point of interest which can be as accurate as to the apartment. This level of accuracy is not available with traditional RF based systems, and has proven to help improve response times.  For example, a community who already had a good average response time to their alarms was able to reduce it by 45 – 60 seconds when using SPS.  

SARA with its SPS capability is currently deployed at Glenaire, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) which includes residential living - cottages and apartments, a Community Center with multiple dining venues, wellness center and other services, and a complete Health Care facility, located in Cary, NC.  Sean Huyett, Executive Director at Glenaire, comments “We chose SARA because of the assurance the system will give us that our residents are safe and secure no matter where they are on our campus.  In the event that a resident needs help, we will be able to locate them quickly and easily because of the SPS technology.  We chose Status Solutions as a partner because of the innovative solutions they continue to make available to communities like Glenaire.”

Another facility taking advantage of SARA’s cutting edge positioning system is Arbor Acres United Methodist Retirement Community located in Winston-Salem, NC.  Arbor Acres offers Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Skilled Nursing Care.  LD Burton, Director of Facilities at Arbor Acres, states, “Through SARA’s new Positioning System we can increase the accuracy of the location information that is sent to our emergency responders.  Programming a location into the system is as easy as depressing a pendant in any location and then assigning that location a name in the SARA system.  This gives our residents and their families, and the staff, the peace of mind that Arbor Acres will be able to respond quickly and precisely in an emergency.”

“We are confident that Canadian acute care providers, senior housing facilities, schools, municipalities, manufacturing facilities, etc. will benefit from our innovative alert solutions the same way as our US customers and partners have,” states Mike MacLeod, Status Solutions Co-Founder.

Status Solutions has retained the services of Access2Sales Inc. to expand its offering. Philip Hamlin, Canadian Territory Manager has been working with facilities for more than 20 years to manage challenges through the introduction of technically and financially feasible solutions.  Tim Cavins, Status Solutions SVP of Sales, comments, “Philip was chosen for this role because of his experience helping customers with technical project management including technology integration, network development, implementation and support.” 

This new territory will be supported by a strong dealer network and Status Solutions’ customer-focused implementation and support teams.

Status Solutions’ Canadian office is located at:

1 Yonge Street, Suite 1801

Toronto, Ontario, M5E 1W7

(866) 846-7272 x780

About Access2Sales Inc.

Access2Sales Inc. offers a highly defined set of sales outsourcing services designed to help vendors increase sales among the leading distributors and Value Added Resellers (VARs) in North America.  Based on its extensive network of contacts, certified sales skills and proven track record, Access2Sales expands or establishes new direct sales organizations and channel strategies.  From targeted sales research and coaching to channel partner and sales force deployment, Access2Sales helps domestic and foreign businesses to develop and execute sales strategies. www.access2sales.com

Access2Sales Inc

1 Yonge Street, Suite 1801

Toronto, Ontario, M5E 1W7

For additional information contact:
Philippe Gagne
(416) 306-2485
pgagne@access2sales.com

“There is the issue of ‘Big Brother,’ a kind of friction between the resident and the provider, and also the adult children.  There has to be a balance between the adult children’s thirst for knowledge about what Mom and Dad are up to and what it means, and Mom or Dad’s desire for privacy,” said Mike MacLeod, co-founder of Status Solutions, a Charlottesville, Virginia, manufacturer of alert services.

Providers need enough transparency to be able to monitor behavior and ensure safety, even as residents express their understandable desire to live their lives without the burden of undue observation.

The balance is found in “inferences,” MacLeod says.  “It refers to checking in on people and making an inference based on motion or audio, whatever events there might be, with medicine cabinets or refrigerators opening, for example.  If you open the refrigerator, I don’t know if you have had a drink of orange juice, but I can infer that.  There is a lot of interest in these kind of things.”

SARA will be implemented at three MRC facilities, and each will be leveraging the situational awareness and alerting solution to meet their unique needs.  “Methodist Retirement Communities has selected the SARA awareness engine as our preferred alerting solution.  SARA will allow our communities to create a single alerting platform, leverage existing investments and help us provide a better level of care for our residents.  We are excited about the ongoing partnership with Status Solutions,” comments Brad Stewart Chief Financial Officer for MRC.

PineCrest Retirement Community in Lufkin, TX is a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) offering elegant retirement living with a full range of care, including residential living, assisted living, and health care.  SARA will become the single alerting platform by integrating to the existing Simplex 5001-9000 series nurse call system and the Simplex 4100 fire panel system.  SARA will monitor wireless pull cords and mobile pendants throughout the campus, and will escalate and send alerts via email, phone, text, and pages to the community’s radio devices.  PineCrest will also be using SARA’s patent pending Positioning System (SPS) to provide highly accurate location data.  The location information provided to staff shows the proximity of the mobile user to a fixed device or virtual point of interest which can be as accurate as to the apartment.

Cornerstone Retirement Community in Texarkana, TX is a CCRC with residential and assisted living apartments, health care and Home Health services located on a wooded 56-acre site.  Cornerstone will leverage the wireless infrastructure to extend life safety to its apartment residents, as well as outdoor coverage for the patio homes currently under construction.  All alert notifications will be sent to pre-defined destinations per the modes and actions programming rules determined in SARA.

Crestview Retirement Community in Bryan, TX provides residential living, assisted living, and private pay, Medicare, and Medicaid health care.  Status Solutions will implement a wireless infrastructure for the Crestview campus including the skilled nursing facility, assisted living facility, memory care residence, as well as defined common and outdoor areas.  Wireless pull cords will be installed in each resident apartment and mobile pendants will be used by residents in the assisted living facility.  Hardwired pull cord devices and dome light controllers will be installed in the skilled nursing area in compliance with regulations in the state of Texas.  The Roam Alert wander detection solution will be utilized in the Memory Care unit and cameras will be installed to round out Crestview’s situational awareness solution.

Status Solutions will continue to partner with MRC to help their other communities achieve situational awareness.  Both Status Solutions and MRC are active members of the Texas Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (TAHSA).

The Personal Information Center, currently an advanced prototype in Alpha testing, is an interactive multi-media device delivering information through a touch screen enabled kiosk.  The in-residence devices will enable facilities deploying this unique technology to provide an amenity that will enhance the daily lives of residents, their families and their caregivers.

The Personal Information Center will be generally available in October of 2010, but there is already a growing waiting list to be one of the senior housing facilities throughout the US and Canada that will receive this amenity when it becomes available to the market.

Capabilities include touch-button emergency duress, reminders (activities, medicine), voice reply email, local weather details, etc. The Personal Information Center also carousels interactive advertising and has a directory option allowing sponsors to cover the cost of the device.  Other than set up, there will be no cost to the end user.

With years of experience and hundreds of customers in the senior housing market, Status Solutions understands the technology requirements of this particular market.  Technology must be intuitive and easy-to-use, the provider must be capable of integration and extension, the cost to consumers must be affordable, and products must be available on widely adopted platforms.  The Personal Information Center meets all of these requirements and more importantly improves the daily lives of those who interact with it.

To learn more about the Personal Information Center, visit the Status Solutions booth # 125 at the ALFA Annual Conference & Expo in Phoenix May 25-26.