SmartCompanion and Friendship Village Execs Speak at National Home Care Technology Conference

SmartCompanion CEO, David Laiderman and Carmen Fronczak, Chief Revenue Officer at Friendship Village Senior Services addressed a large gathering of senior care professionals during the Home Care Technology Conference, September 7th at the Gaylord National Harbor Resort in National Harbor, Maryland.

The two senior care execs discussed how Alexa-powered voice technology can assist caregiving based on lessons learned from residents of Friendship Village in St. Louis who piloted the SmartCompanion system. Laiderman is also CEO of VHC’s affiliated company SmartCompanion Care.

Friendship Village is a St. Louis area not-for-profit senior living community serving 1,100 older adults with independent living, assisted living, memory care, rehabilitation, skilled nursing care and home services.

Friendship Village began testing the SmartCompanion system last fall. The system combines voice-activated emergency response connection, audio and video calls, and Alexa’s virtual assistance. After testing the devices on their two separate campuses, the senior living community is now integrating SmartCompanion into their facilities’ communications systems with the goal of driving resident engagement and boosting staff efficiency.

Friendship Village residents reported what they like about SmartCompanion. “When my husband or I are alone, it gives us a much greater sense of security in case something were to happen,” said Friendship Village Chesterfield Resident Bernadette Travers. “The things Alexa can do are also very nice. We can have her read off the daily activities happening around the Village, and we can also access the dining menu. Alexa’s my new bestie!”

SmartCompanion is an effective way to keep all residents engaged with their community while reducing strain on the staff. “With this technology, we’re living out our promise to enhance the lives of our residents, extend their ability to live independently, and live life to the fullest,” says Fronczak.

The SmartCompanion is pre-programmed and customized for each user. It can be purchased by individual older adults at smartcompanion.care. Certain wartime veterans or their surviving spouses who qualify for the VA’s Aid and Attendance benefit may receive the Alexa-powered system with no out-of-pocket costs.

“We want more seniors to gain access to the ‘Internet Of Things’ (IOT),” says Laiderman. “The Companion system, with users from age 62 to 100+, is designed for seniors who don’t embrace technology.”

Home Care Technology Conference speaker, SmartCompanion CEO David Laiderman fields questions at the September 7, conference in National Harbor, MD.

Once installed in a home, this HIPAA compliant, video-enabled system can help other senior care providers deliver virtual care options. “Ideally, we’d like to see more providers utilize the system to remote in and monitor their client’s care.”

“The Home Care Technology Conference is an excellent forum. We’re all looking toward innovation and technology to help us meet the rising demand for home care, caregiver shortages and the silver tsunami,” says Laiderman.

The Home Care Technology (HCT) Conference was attended by home care and senior living providers, a spectrum of caregiving technology companies and payers from managed care, Medicaid HMO and Medicare Advantage plans and accountable care organizations (ACOs).

ABOUT SMARTCOMPANION CARE
SmartCompanion Care LLC was launched in 2020 by the same senior care experts who founded Veterans Home Care to bring cutting edge technology and software solutions to disabled and older adults. The SmartCompanion system is a breakthrough hands-free phone and video calling system, a voice-activated medical alert device and a virtual Smartcompanion powered by Alexa. It reduces isolation keeping older adults engaged and enabling easy access to the internet. Each SmartCompanion system is pre-programmed and customized for each user. The identical system is branded VetAssist Companion for certain wartime veterans or their surviving spouses who qualify for the VA’s Aid and Attendance benefit who can receive the Alexa-powered system with no out-of-pocket costs. For more information: https://smartcompanion.care, https://veteranshomecare.com/companion , 855-488-1081, or info@smartcompanion.care