Integral Senior Living

THE CHALLENGE

To modernize the COVID-19 sign-in and health screening process for staff, visitors, and third-party caregivers.

THE OUTCOME

Integral Senior Living shifted from cumbersome manual systems to a streamlined, paperless approach with Accushield’s touchless sign-in, temperature scanning, and health screening kiosks.

THE IMPACT

New streamlined workflows have freed up staff time by health screening individuals appropriately and efficiently.

There was a time when visitors to Integral Senior Living communities had to turn in their driver’s licenses in exchange for a guest badge to take a tour or visit someone. Keeping track of people coming in and out of buildings where elders reside was once a paper-based endeavor rife with the risk of loss and error. This was how Kevin Knopf, Integral’s regional vice president of operations, described his experience before Accushield was installed into 15 of the Carlsbad, Calif.-based company’s buildings.

“In the old days, when we didn’t have technology, guest sign-ins were always a challenge because you had a booklet and sign-in sheet and a separate book for private-duty caregivers and home health staff who were visiting a building,” Knopf notes. “The problem with that type of paper system is if you have an emergency, you have no idea, in real-time, who is in your building and who needs to be accounted for.”

Process Revolutionized

Knopf, who has worked with at least 10 Integral-managed communities to implement their Accushield kiosks, is impressed with the system’s ability to easily credential people and integrate items to meet multiple states’ requirements.

“When we first began dealing with COVID, we had paper questionnaires, and we had to screen people at the front door for everyone entering the buildings we managed, including residents, visitors, and staff,” notes Knopf. “We had different questionnaires for each company that we worked with. And now that we have implemented the Accushield kiosk and its integrated technology, they can easily answer the questions at the kiosk. It’s been spectacular; Accushield is very forward-thinking.”

He adds that having the peace of mind of knowing who is in a building for contract tracing and emergency preparedness purposes is a bonus. “With visitors, contractors, and families coming in and out of our communities each day now, I am thankful for Accushield’s ability to streamline the process,” he says. “It’s a technology tool that has really helped us have a high level of confidence that we are appropriately health screening folks and adhering to all guidelines.”

On-Demand Data Spurs Confidence

Knopf is also impressed with the system’s ability to pull data instantaneously and have it available on the spot. “And adding to the system an integrated thermometer was just genius,” he says.

What’s more, Knopf is happy with the added benefit of Accushield’s ability to absorb into communities’ emergency preparedness plans. “In the unlikely case of an emergency, we are able to know who is in building and who isn’t,” he says.

Communication Key to Customer Service

Since Integral manages some buildings that are under construction and not yet occupied, Knopf notes that Accushield has been very helping in letting them utilize a kiosk at the welcome centers.

“We have kiosks with health screening abilities, including touchless thermometers, inside the welcome centers that we will move over to the buildings once they are open,” he says. “They’ve been very good about partnering with us on getting those kiosks there even though we don’t have residents yet. All of it comes down to communication.”