Long-term Care Facilities Excited by CAREQ-ENS, a New Emergency Communication Service.

Long-term care facilities across Atlantic Canada are excited by CAREQ-ENS, a new communication service that provides the ability to communicate with all staff within minutes.  The need for fast, efficient and accurate communication during an emergency is crucial.  Coordination and mobilization of staff in long- term care facilities must be quick and efficient in emergency situations.  CAREQ provides fast two-way communication that allows administrators of long-term care facilities to communicate with all staff in a matter of minutes. 

CAREQ-ENS is a communication service comprised of voice, text and email technologies.  It provides control of communication, ensuring efficient and effective communication in multiple ways.   It can be used to contact all facility staff at one time or specific staff organized into groups; it can be used to contact family and next-of-kin; and it can be used to connect with community partners.  CAREQ also allows recipients to provide verification of response; and, both communication and responses are trackable.  CAREQ saves time, energy and resources by expediting communication while increasing the effectiveness of that communication. 
 
The idea that eventually evolved into CAREQ came when a fire marshal (and user of the FIREQ communication service) and long-term care facility administrator started to discuss how emergency communications and planning could be improved.  Like firefighters, care facility staff and partners need to mobilize quickly and efficiently, with as much information as possible.  CAREQ is the solution that emerged from those first discussions that started with “what if we could…?”.  CAREQ provides administrators with multiple layers of communication and verification of action from responders.  It ensures time is spent where it matters most. 

Administrators from care facilities first learned about CAREQ at a meeting of professionals dedicated to the special emergency planning required for long-term care facilities.  As more facilities adopt the new communication system, its value as a communication tool grows.  Cheryl Deveaux, Administrator of the Cove Guest Home, says “CAREQ offers peace of mind that the Cove Guest Home is prepared to respond to an emergency situation in an expedient and efficient manner, where time can hold the balance between life and death.

Breton SmarTek is a Nova Scotia-based technology company that is driven by uncompromised ingenuity, local strength, and global expertise.  Drawing upon more than 80 years of collective technology experience, the Breton SmarTek team is fusing industry standard and commercially available technologies to serve the unique communication needs of multiple industries.