Dear colleagues and friends,
The first half of 2021 has been both challenging and inspiring for many people and businesses. At Kennedy Care, we are encouraged by the unwavering dedication of our Life Care Professionals, the growth of our programs, and the increased availability of the COVID-19 vaccine. At the same time, we remain vigilant about COVID-19 safety procedures for the sake of our employees, our clients, and their families.
The pandemic has shown just how important it is for people of all ages to be safe and comfortable in their homes. At Kennedy Care, we are actively working to meet the current needs of our community while focusing on better days ahead.
CEO & Founder
Kennedy Care
Introducing CuraVitae!
Our newest program, CuraVitae, combines high-quality home care services with the 24/7 wraparound support of a concierge. Members receive the care needed to safely age in place, with support for the many details of living – from transportation and pet care to hiring vendors for your house (landscaping, electricians, etc.) and organizing your doctor appointments.
The intent of CuraVitae is to replace the service offerings we once had in place for private paying families. It is also our innovative approach to franchising as we are empowering individuals to become small business owners within the CuraVitae model. Please reach out to us if you would like some more details on how we are reimagining private pay home care!
Program Updates
- Patriot Care, Kennedy Care’s home care service for veterans, continues to show steady growth/ through a record number of referrals and an expansion of our service area to new regions of Northern Michigan while receiving a record number of referrals. We have also grown significantly in northern Ohio and are actively working on acquiring an Ohio-based agency.
- Safe At Home saw a significant spike in first-time clients in 2020 due to the pandemic. However, as families continue to adapt to school and work hybrid lifestyles, trusted care professionals for children remain invaluable. Our Safe At Home nannies are able to provide consistency and safety for children as their parents manage their busy family lives.
- Catastrophic Care (CAT Care) is developing in several areas including merging with Complete Care, adding several new clients, and contracting with therapy companies to provide Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech Language Pathologists. “We are excited about our new growth,” said Program Director Kim Newman. “We are working hard to improve our processes and increasing our qualified staff to meet the needs of high acuity clients.”
- Share the Care began working with All Seasons in January 2021. All Seasons is a new luxury independent living community in Ann Arbor where clients live independently but might need help with activities of daily living. Program Director Melissa Burkett is also working on expanding into a third facility by mid-2021.
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Kennedy Care Life Care Professionals get paid to learn! Kennedy Care Academy provides courses to help LCPs meet compliance requirements, expand professional skillsets, and increase their paychecks!
We are pleased to offer a COVID-19 Vaccine course for LCPs to learn about the phases of administration, addressing myths, and safety.
Serving Our Dedicated Employees
Kennedy Care has initiated and is exploring a series of human resource updates to better serve our employees:
- Launched a new payroll system to increase payment efficiencies
- Evaluating daily payment models
- Paying $150 for successful Life Care Professional referrals
- Holding giveaway drawings to reward employees for model behavior. Examples include $25 bonuses for registering in the new payroll system and free t-shirts for turning in completed COVID-19 vaccination cards.
Congratulations to our promoted team members!
Kennedy Care leadership believes in promoting from within. We are pleased to offer growth opportunities for employees at every step of their journey with KC.
- Jennifer Pargoff was promoted to the Payroll Manager and HR Generalist role after excelling as a field recruiter since 2019.
- Jessica Rock, former Director of Patriot Care, will be moving into the role of VP of Care Operations to provide oversight and support of all 5 of KC’s programs.
- Tara Konwinski, Patriot Care Program Manager will assume the role of Director.
- Ashley Hummel has been promoted from Care Coordinator to Lead Care Coordinator to assist with employee onboarding and scheduling.
- Tiffany Roberson has been promoted from HR Generalist to HR Manager as she continues to help lead the human resource efforts of KC.
Kennedy Care’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee was founded in June 2020 in recognition that we can improve our organization’s efforts to value the underserved and underrepresented portions of our population. Since then, the committee has undertaken several initiatives to ensure KC is an equitable and supportive workplace, while also looking for opportunities to recognize the extraordinary work of our BIPOC caregivers.
In addition, we are working with Michigan Roundtable, a third party, to develop a diversity assessment that will show us what we can be doing better, which we will then turn into an administrative team training. We expect the results to be delivered in the next few weeks.
We are looking for caregivers to join our growing team
We have open positions for high-quality caregivers and people who love caring for families in need.
If you or someone you know is currently seeking employment, we encourage you to share this message with them.
