Balance Concierge

Covenant HealthCare Announces Concierge Service

2011-07-06T06:22:00.000-07:00

Covenant HealthCare is making a strong statement about being an employer of choice and Saginaw being a community of choice for the best and brightest health care workers to live and raise their families with its innovative new concierge service. This concierge service is designed to help physicians and employees better balance the demands of stressful jobs with their families and personal lives. It will also serve as an enhancement to some of the services our volunteers currently provide, helping patients and visitors cope with sudden illness and unexpected hospitalizations. At the same time, it will bring fresh opportunities for local businesses.

The concierge desk, increasingly popular in health care settings, will provide information, research and assistance on a broad variety of requests such as lodging and travel reservations, on-site pick-up and delivery of dry cleaning and automotive services, gift ideas, restaurant reservations, and much more. It is estimated the service can save users up to four hours each week.

Local businesses are partnering with Covenant HealthCare to market special services and savings to Covenant HealthCare employees to help them stretch their pay-checks and have easier access to services that can be difficult to schedule, such as auto repairs.

The service will be accessible through onsite concierge staff, by phone and through a virtual online concierge. For patients and visitors, the service can be utilized to assist with such things as pet care and household management as well as adding comfort to their stay through amenities like movies and books.
"With this concierge service, Covenant HealthCare strives to distinguish itself as one of the best health care organizations while strengthening its commitment to remain a hospital of choice," said Al VanArsdal, Director of Human Resources at Covenant. "Implementing an on-site concierge program takes our services to the next level. By providing this service at no extra fee other than the cost of the goods and services themselves, we are helping our employees and physicians save time and money, and reducing the stress in their lives."

The new service, being implemented by Balance Concierge, a company specializing in work-life balance and engagement strategies for health care organizations, presents a unique opportunity for local businesses to reach out directly to the more than 4,200 Covenant HealthCare employees and employed physicians and at no cost to the business.

- Saginaw, Michigan

Hospital Concierge Service Offering iPad Capabilities at Patients’ Bedside

2010-10-19T05:07:00.000-07:00

Only two weeks after the release of the iPad, Balance Concierge is proud to announce the release of their iPad-compatible online concierge software, further complementing the work of their onsite concierge staff.

Balance Concierge’s tag line says it all: For Work and Life. Judy Foley, founder and owner of Balance Concierge says, “We offer innovative, customized hospital and health system based services to employees as
an added benefit. To patients, physicians, volunteers and guests, we grant access as an important convenience service, and loyalty builder.”

Foley continues, “We are constantly looking for ways to innovate our already user-friendly personalized web applications for our clients.” Balance Concierge believes in constantly looking for ways to improve the healthcare environment for the patients as well as for the staff and physicians. “There are times when a patient is admitted to the hospital - possibly very abruptly - without proper time to plan for childcare or care for their pets. They may have been in the middle of an important task, critical to their own work-life balance. Balance Concierge has developed this technology for them as well. We meet patients where they are, whether it is in the Emergency Department or at bedside while in one of the nursing units.”

The iPad will act as a lightweight, portable device that is always securely connected to the internet and the hospital’s intranet. Patients will now be visited at bedside and offered services through the Concierge web-based program so they can manage the life they left at home. Balance Concierge offers a system for patients and staff alike to shop for a gift, request help in planning a vacation, to researching mechanics and so many other life tasks that are important for their individual and household balance.

The services of Balance Concierge help healthcare providers build deeper connections and relationships, thereby increasing loyalty to the institution while helping their bottom line. Healthier, happier staff creates a better environment for the patients and therefore a reputation that is hard to beat.

“Going above and beyond the new technologies the iPad has brought about, we are also proud to be offering mobile capabilities for our clients, via Smartphone access. We are confident that these value added
technologies will add even more convenience to our already successful concierge service,” concludes Foley.

Balance Concierge is a unique blend of technology and a personal touch that everyone is striving for in the hustle and bustle of life. Balance is in high-demand for people visiting, working and volunteering in a hospital. Patients especially need that care-centric focus. Balance Concierge understands that it is a 360 degree process and that paying attention to what makes life easier, makes the environment better; essentially, Balance Concierge is balancing budgets… one patient, one employee, one experience at a time.

For more information on Balance Concierge, please visit www.balanceconcierge.com.

Photos available upon request. Please call Rochelle Rizzi, 517.708.2111 or email her at rochelle@rizzidesigns.com

Lansing-based Concierge Service Proud of Award Winning Client

2010-04-14T05:04:00.000-07:00

Lansing, Mich. — Judy Foley, CEO of Balance Concierge, is proud to recognize one of her clients, Heartland Health, as one of 5 distinguished businesses to receive the distinguished Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award. The award, named after former Secretary of Commerce Malcolm Baldridge, is given to manufacturers, service companies, small businesses, education and health care providers and non-profit organizations that instill quality, innovation and an unending quest for excellence in their services relating to the medical field. With the growing threat of an unhealthy population, the goal of the award is to help strengthen our nation and brighten the future for all Americans.

Balance Concierge is a medical service-based company out of Lansing, Michigan that takes great pride in helping balance the lives of both medical staff and patients through providing services such as fulfilling personal, home and career chores that, at times, can feel overwhelming to accomplish. For patients, most visits and stays in a hospital are unexpected, leaving family members or friends to have to pick up where you may have left off. This is where Balance Concierge can step in; helping to find pet care, pick up dry cleaning, (re-)arrange travel plans and locate lodging, food or other information for visitors not familiar with the area.

“When you live a lifestyle that may already seem hectic, whether working as a medical professional or the patient, and you throw something unexpected into the mix, it can make life seem simply overwhelming. We are here to help in any and every aspect possible to help you feel balanced and calm” Foley states. “This is why I am proud of my job. It is more than fulfilling.”

Foley continues, “I also feel so blessed to have clients such as Heartland Health that take such pride in their work. They continue to reach for higher and higher standards while following true core values and principles that were set for true success.”

Although Heartland Health is merely one of many clients across the country that Balance Concierge proudly calls their own, Foley states that she hopes for the same success for all current and potential clients.