| CARMEN: 00:06 | So good afternoon, everyone. I’m Noelle Carmen. And on behalf of Niznik Behavioral Health and Discovery Point Retreat, I want to welcome everyone to the conversation. Today we are talking about real-time client monitoring and client safety as it relates to a new state-of-the-art technology, Early Sense. Let me go ahead and introduce our esteemed panelists. With us, we have Nick Fleming-Wood. He is VP for Early Sense. We have Greg Powers, our clinical director for Discovery Point Retreat. Noah Longino. He is the executive director for Discovery Point Retreat. And last, but certainly not least, Brittany Isabel. She is the nursing supervisor for Discovery Point Retreat. Welcome everyone to the conversation. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 00:56 | Thank you, Noelle. |
| ISBELL: 00:57 | Thank you. |
| LONGINO: 00:58 | How are you? |
| CARMEN: 01:00 | So, Nick, I’m going to start the conversation with you. You’re our subject matter expert. In terms of just giving us a brief overview of what Early Sense is and kind of a little bit about what it does. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 01:14 | Absolutely. So I appreciate you having us on today, Noelle. Thank you. |
| CARMEN: 01:18 | My pleasure. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 01:19 | Just from a broad overview standpoint, what Early Sense technology is designed to do is monitor the patients’, clients’, residents’ vital signs continuously without ever touching them. It’s a sensor-based technology, a sensor that slides right underneath the mattress and will continuously monitor the patient’s heart rate and respiratory rate and movement in the bed. So why would you want to do this? Well, we’ve seen studies from all over the world showing that continuously monitoring patients, whether they’re in hospitals, post-acute detox centers, or even at home, long-term patients that are continuously monitored have better outcomes than those that aren’t. And that’s really the bottom line for using the Early Sense technology. |
| CARMEN: 02:03 | So Greg, now I would like to turn the conversation to you, having kind of established that baseline. You are clinical director of Discovery Point Retreat. Tell us a little bit about what your core philosophies are and the practices you encourage in your staff. |
| POWERS: 02:22 | Sure. Thanks, Noelle, and thanks for the question. Really, here at Discovery Point, it’s about client first. And in that sense, it’s about helping the client feel comfortable, not only with their decision to go into recovery, but the decision that they made to come into recovery here at Discovery Point. Part of that really is taking that effort in that time to really get to know that client and to get to know what’s going on with them. And that includes their anxieties. So when somebody is coming into treatment, certainly the anxiety is there for the client, but also the families themselves. And we really try to encompass a holistic approach with the client and that includes with the family, so really taking a look at what are their fears, what are their concerns and helping them through that process. |
| CARMEN: 03:17 | Yeah. It occurs to me, if you think about what we in the substance abuse field attempt to give our clients, holistic care, medical, clinical trauma center, even practical life skills, that’s quite an endeavor. I feel like sometimes it’s easy to get so treatment-focused that maybe we lose track of the person at the core of that. So how do you, in all of that, not lose track of the main person that you’re talking to and addressing? |
| POWERS: 03:51 | Sure. So really, I mean, that starts at the beginning with all of our staff and really instilling in them that this is not a diagnosis, this is a person, and really breaking it down to, if you were in their shoes, whether you were the client or the family, how is it that you would want to be treated? What would you expect in this situation? So really taking that approach and really humanizing. And it’s not just another patient. It’s not just a number on my call sheet or a census. It’s a person that’s a family. And we really take that approach and really, kind of like you said, humanize it to the point of really getting in there. Our clients are our family, and it’s a matter of, if that was your brother or your mother, your sister, what kind of treatment would you want for them? And we really take that approach and really instill that in our clinical staff, so that’s how we treat everyone who walks in the door. |
| CARMEN: 05:02 | So you took the words right out of my mouth in terms of humanization, which is really, really what we’re all about. And I wanted to set the stage for the conversation. Let’s talk about the dehumanization factor in terms of healthcare and in terms of incorporating technology in that way. |
| POWERS: 05:23 | Sure. So in incorporating technology, what we really want to do is help the client understand that, “We’re with you.” Right? So what we do is we take this technology. “And even though maybe I can’t see you constantly 24/7, we’re still with you.” And EarlySense allows us to do that, in that, when a client comes into detox, they feel miserable. They want to try and sleep. They don’t want to see a whole lot of people. So they do what we all do when we’re not feeling good. We go to bed early. EarlySense allows us to continue to monitor the client as far as with the respiration and their heartbeat and making sure that they’re still in the bed. That humanization piece of it comes in in the fact that we’re able to know, “Okay. If they’re out of bed, why is it that they’re out of bed?” They may be sick and need help. And by that warning that EarlySense will give us, we’re able to go and check on them in the room and go, “Hey, I noticed that you weren’t in bed. Are you doing okay?” So it’s taking that piece of technology and not having to see the client every single second, but we are with them. And I think that gives the client a peace of mind that they know, “We’re always with you and are going to help you through this process.” |
| CARMEN: 06:48 | Nick, back to you. Glad to see you again. |
| POWERS: 06:52 | I’m not nearly as elegant in explaining that as Nick is, so I’m glad you’re back. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 06:56 | No. And I apologize. I don’t know what happened there. No. I think Greg probably just covered this. It’s really designed to allow the caregivers to really use another set of eyes and ears on those patients. So even when they’re taking care of other patients around the building, there’s always someone something there watching that particular client. So if there is something that happens, if that client needs a caregiver at a point in time, the system is going to alert the staff, let them know that somebody needs to get in there and just check on them. So it’s really designed to allow them to do their jobs more thoughtfully and without the worry that something’s going to be happening in one of the rooms when they’re not there. I’m sure Greg mentioned that. You mentioned about them being able to sleep too. Yeah, that’s one of the key things, is being able to make sure that we know what’s happening with them while they’re getting their rest so they don’t have to be woken up every few hours just to make sure that they’re okay. |
| CARMEN: 07:52 | In some of our past conversations, I was actually surprised by some of the information you were giving us in talking about leveraging technology in health care, what have we seen by comparison in the medical field versus the addiction field? You said some interesting things about monitoring and kind of what that looks like in the medical community. Can you talk to that, Tom? |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 08:22 | Definitely, yes. So even in hospitals, if somebody checks into a hospital and goes into the med search area– if they’re not in the ICU, there’s probably a 90% chance that they’re not going to be continuously monitored. How how the staff keeps up and checks on these patients is every four hours somebody comes in, wakes them up, does a full set of vital signs on them, and then goes away. So you’ve got a physician trying to connect the dots on these people. Every four hours, they’re going to get a snapshot of what this patient looks like. So even in the hospitals, they’re not not utilizing this continuous monitoring system on all patients. We’ve seen this sort of migrate out into the post-acute world and now into the behavioral health area and especially in the detox world. But even in home care, what we’ve seen is studies all over the world have shown that if you continuously monitor a patient, catch their deterioration or their changes early on in the in the progression that we can monitor their outcomes. So it’s all about watching your patients for change, and then being able to step in and hopefully make sure that they’re not going to have a poor outcome by being able to intervene early and make sure that their needs are being taken care of. |
| CARMEN: 09:28 | So Noah, I’m going to turn the conversation over to you and kind of wanted to get your take. So as executive director for Discovery Point, what are your thoughts on some of the overarching goals for treatment, for substance use for our clients, for their families, especially where technology is concerned and more specifically, early sense? |
| LONGINO: 09:54 | Yeah. Thank you, Noelle. At Discovery Point Retreat, we really want to build our reputation on quality of care and client safety. We currently have two residential locations. The one in Waxahachie has over 80 acres of real estate. And it’s a really peaceful and tranquil country setting. And since the beginning, DPR strive for quality care to be second to none. So that includes a strong evidence-based clinical program. But it also includes the safest medical care that we are. Our ultimate goal is to give the absolute best treatment for anyone suffering from drug and alcohol addiction. And Early Sense is another great tool for us to continue to strive for that mission, which is the highest quality of care. Like Greg said earlier, we know that it’s an anxious time for families of friends when they’re taking a loved one into treatment. And it can be very confusing and stressful. And on top of all that, the family members are giving over their care to someone else. And we don’t take that lightly at all. I’ve worked with many different treatment centers across the country. But I can tell you this technology does not exist for the vast majority detox and residential programs. Now as the system becomes more well-known, I’ve got no doubt that others will follow. But it shows you how much Discovery Retreat is committed to the highest quality of care. And we feel the same responsibility for a family’s loved one as they would in their own home. |
| CARMEN: 11:36 | So you’re talking about detox, which again, it’s like you guys are reading my mind because that’s where I want to go with the conversation now. And this is where we’re using– at Discovery Point retreats using early sense in the detox phase of treatment. So Greg, talk us through detox because there is that notion that detox is no big deal, just quit, have some willpower, make some good decisions. We’ve all heard this. I’ve heard this growing up. First of all, please debunk this. Never was it so real to me when I started working in the substance use field, and I was like, “Oh, that’s a really dumb thing to think or say,” so can you talk us through that, please? |
| POWERS: 12:27 | Sure. So a lot of people have that idea that, okay, well, I just started drugs or alcohol. I can just stop at any time. That’s not always the case nor is it an appropriate thing to do. Coming off of alcohol and some drugs is very dangerous, and you want to have somebody there who’s monitoring you and keeping an eye on you. That being the case– so with DPR and EarlySense and our detox program we bring the individual in. We’re going to kind of let them know a little bit about what is going to happen. They’re already probably not feeling great. They’re anxious, and they’re concerned and maybe starting to feel a little sick themselves at this moment. And we kind of talk them through that and kind of explain this is what it’s going to look like for the next 24 hours, the next 48, 72 hours, and you’re not going to feel great. One of the things that prior to having EarlySense was– and Nick kind of talked about this a little bit, is that because we knew that the client wasn’t feeling well, and it’s a medical situation in which we need to continue to keep an eye on somebody. We were going in sometimes every 15 minutes to check on a client. It’s hard to get rest when somebody keeps coming in your room, and you’re already not feeling good, and you’re a little anxious. So people did not get a lot of sleep. And so on the therapy side, what we heard a lot of times during detox is, “You know what? See me in six, seven days because I don’t want to talk to anybody right now.” They’re tired. They don’t feel good. Who wants to delve into trauma and therapy at that moment? |
| POWERS: 14:15 | Well, by bringing EarlySense in what we’ve allowed the client to do is to get that rest and to get that time that they are starting to get their energy back. They’re feeling a little bit better every single day because they are resting. We’re not knocking on their door. We’re not coming in and shining a flashlight on them and going, “Hey, are you breathing?” “Yeah, I’m breathing. What do you want?” So that allows us to really start working with the client and the family at that point earlier in treatment so that they’re feeling a little bit more confident about the decisions that they’ve made coming into treatment, and we’re able to start that whole process four or five days actually earlier than we had been before. So in that allowing the clients to be able to do that has been huge. I, in fact, spoke to a client this morning who was like– my normal routine I kind of go around. I check with everybody and say, “How are you doing?” and this happened to be a person who came in the last couple of days. And I said, “Hey, how’s it going?” He’s like, “I’m feeling pretty good. I got a really good night’s rest. I’m about to go to group and things are pretty good.” Those are the things that we want to hear, right? It’s like, wow, this is really working, and they’re doing what they need to do to get into treatment. |
| CARMEN: 15:31 | Brittany, so I want to talk to you because I would like to get the medical– as nursing supervisor for Discovery Point, what are you seeing in the realm of detox? Again, moving to the idea that detox really is a dangerous space to be in and that’s where this kind of technology serves, not only the client but also the staff. So can you tell us what you’re seeing from your side of things? |
| ISBELL: 16:05 | Check. Like you said, detox is very dangerous, especially if you come in on alcohol or benzodiazepines. That’s Valium, Ativan, Xanax, those kinds of meds. You can start off with anxiety, a little shaky, and then it’ll progress to hallucinations. You’re seeing things, hearing things that aren’t there, feeling things on you. And then you start getting a high pulse, high respirations, and then your heart can’t keep up. And that could be within a matter of 48 hours, but it could also be up to 10 days. So it’s really important that you have someone here monitoring you all the time. And that’s where the EarlySense is really reassuring because it tells us what their heart rate is all the time. Because 15 minutes is quite a long time if something happens since your last round. It could be life or death. |
| CARMEN: 16:56 | Nick, let’s talk about client experience. This is a perfect time for you to address what EarlySense does for client experience. Not being hooked up to wires and cords, being monitored continuously, the safety and the comfort that kind of comes with that. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 17:17 | Well, I think you just nailed it right there, Noelle. Honestly, that’s part of it. So even in the best of times when you’re completely healthy, the last thing you want to do is be covered with sensors and wires and be anchored to a particular place in order to be able to get your heart rate and respiratory rate. And anyone who’s ever had those vital signs taken, that’s always what it’s been. It’s been wires or leads attached to you, and it’s really inhibited the mobility. So the biggest problem that we have with most monitoring technology is compliance and getting somebody to sit still long enough and to keep the leads on them so that we can get good readings. And that’s really the benefit of the EarlySense system. With the sensor underneath the mattress, the client forgets it’s there completely. So they’re just going to bed in a normal manner. And as soon as they sit down in bed, a couple of minutes later, the system will automatically show heart rate and respiratory rate. It will update that twice a second, and then it trends all of that data for over a seven day period, so that Britney or Greg or any of the physicians involved can now go back and see and look for changes as well. Patients are different. We can have older patients, younger patients, patients with different comorbidities. We see the general population is getting a little more unhealthy as things happen. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 18:35 | So we do see things like COPD and CHF and diabetes and other types of things that can have an impact on a patient’s overall health and can be exasperated by the detox experience. So we can set the limits and the thresholds on the EarlySense system to match up with each of the individual’s care patterns and needs. So if you’ve got somebody who’s breathing a little more quickly, they may be a little older, we can bump up the high respiratory rate alert. Or if you’ve got an athlete in there whose heart rate starts to drop at night just naturally, we can set the limits so that it matches up with each individual patient’s goals in there. So it’s designed to be customized for each resident as well as, excuse me, not hindering them at all, not giving them something to worry about or something to have anxiety about. It just works in the background. |
| CARMEN: 19:28 | Britney, what have you seen in terms of patient feedback? Again, your experience, boots on the ground, no cords, no wires, patient compliance. What have you actually experienced? |
| ISBELL: 19:42 | So we have a few patients that come in there. They’re curious about, “What’s that on the wall?” Or they didn’t know we had EarlySense. And so we tell them it’s going to monitor your heart rate and your respirations continuously as long as you’re in the bed. I mean, I’ve had a lot of patients like, “Oh wow, that’s really cool. That does make me feel better because a lot of places don’t have that.” So they get a reassurance that they are being monitored all the time when they’re in the bed, whether someone’s actually in the room or not. |
| CARMEN: 20:10 | Greg, I wanted to talk to you a little bit about the fact the coolest thing to me about all of this is the larger point, right? Which is all of this facilitates client recovery. This speaks volumes about Discovery Point Retreat, your dedication to being on the cutting edge, not only in client experience but just the relationship between the staff and the client. You guys are among the first in Texas to adopt EarlySense. Can you talk to that some? |
| POWERS: 20:45 | Sure. So one of the things that I often hear from clients as well as the family says, “Are you going to keep my loved one safe? Are they going to be safe coming to treatment?” A lot of times families, they try to do this at home, and they’ve been doing it for sometimes years. And it may have just gotten to the point that they don’t feel comfortable doing that. But at the same time, releasing that loved one to someone else’s care and saying, “Okay, here you go,” is scary. So I think part of what this is, is it’s really– the proof is in the action, we can say all day long they’re going to be safe, we’re going to take care of them, everything’s there. Having this type of technology is really showing the clients and the families we really mean what we say. We’re taking that extra step to make sure that no matter where you are, awake or asleep, we are paying attention. We’re here to help you and want to walk this journey with you if you will. It really is a matter of if I can’t be in the room with you, I’m still in the room with you. Even when you’re out, I’m still with you, and that’s comforting to not only clients, but the families as well. So it kind of takes some of that pressure off the family when they’re like, “Okay. Here you go. I’m dropping you off out in the woods on 80 acres in a nice house.” But I’m still like, “Oh my gosh. What’s going to happen with you?’ |
| POWERS: 22:24 | So by talking to the families and letting them know this really is a– it’s a 24/7 thing. We have some of the most amazing staff, and people who want to really be in this field, and care about the clients and their well-being. This is one more step to say, “You know what? We’re taking that extra effort, and making sure that everybody is safe. We’re taking care of you, and we’re going to get you through this process.” It does help, and I can’t tell you the number of times that I have heard from the clients and the families just going, “I really appreciate what you guys did. It meant a lot to me.” Everything from greeting the client, even before they walk on property to say, “Hi, welcome. We’re looking forward to you getting here,” all the way through the treatment process right to the point of discharge and say, “This was a big step you took, and this journey that you’re on is amazing, and we’re so proud of you. And, hopefully, that through all this, we’re able to have you go out and continue through recovery and be successful with that.” And that peace of mind is just– it’s immeasurable, and what that does for the client, but the families as well. So now we’re like, “Wow. That was really a good decision that we made, and we’re behind you and everything that you’re doing.” |
| CARMEN: 23:52 | What I love about what you’re saying, again, it’s just like you’re reading my mind. We’re going right into my next question, which really is about the family dynamic because when you’re talking substance use, this isn’t just this one person. You’re really talking about addressing the whole family, and it’s interesting to me that this technology not only helps healing with the client, but also healing with the family. Can you talk about the family dynamic and substance use just a little bit, and talk about how this– even this ease in discomfort of okay, we’re dropping off this client. Please fix this person, so we can be whole again. Kind of allows the family to redirect some of the responsibility on the things that they need to take care of as well if that makes any sense. |
| POWERS: 24:51 | No. That makes it makes a lot of sense, and we don’t function in a bubble, right. So when you’re talking about the client, the family, the facilities, the providers, it’s about a system, right, and so we work in that type of system. Families have done everything they can. Sometimes good, sometimes not so good, and in that, this allows them that opportunity, “Okay. My loved one is someplace safe. They’re being taken care of. They’re being looked at now it’s time for the family to also take a step back and go, “Wow. What’s my part in all this?” This obviously has impacted us as a family, me as an individual. My husband over here, he went and got treatment, and he’s doing good. Now it’s time for me to figure out what’s going on with me. So you can take that collective breath and go, “Okay, now what?” And so it allows families to really look at what their pardons in this– do they need to go get help? That’s huge. We encourage family involvement in the treatment of our clients. Sometimes they want to participate. Sometimes they don’t. If they’re not, we strongly encourage that they’re also seeking their help as well. As a therapist, I will always encourage you to go get therapy. It’s a great thing to do. Because I think that the family needs that opportunity to talk about their feelings, their concerns, not only prior to their loved one going to the treatment but what does that look like coming home. |
| POWERS: 26:38 | At some point in someone’s treatment, reality hits, “Oh, they’re coming back here. What does that look like for me?” And so engaging in the family and allowing them to do that, knowing that their loved ones taking care of kind of gives them that permission to go, “Okay, it’s my turn.” Whether we’re talking about alcoholism or any type of illness, sometimes just being able to have that break for a moment while somebody else is looking after them, gives them that opportunity to really take care of themselves. And so many times, they have put themselves on that backburner and not been able to do that. So this kind of gives them, again– when we reduce that anxiety and that stress of what’s going on with them, “Are they going to be safe? Are they going to be taken care of? How long are they going to be there? Okay, we’ve got them. Now go help yourself too.” |
| CARMEN: 27:34 | Brittany, can you speak to that? So from the medical standpoint, again, from the more boots on the ground aspect of things, what kind of concerns do you hear from the families themselves? |
| ISBELL: 27:49 | Usually, it’s just we get a lot of young clients here. Sometimes they’re not always happy to be here initially. And so I think it gives them peace of mind that we’re taking care of their family, and that we’re going to provide medically everything that they need to be safe and detox. And even though they don’t feel good right now, the family can go– if the client calls and says, “I want to come home. I don’t want to be here no more, they can be like, “I know they’re taking care of you.” Even though you feel bad, it’s going to get better. And so I think that helps the families kind of draw that line that they can feel like, “No, you’re going to stay, and you’re going to get the help you need. |
| CARMEN: 28:28 | Nick, let’s talk boots on the ground now in terms of early sense. So let’s go granular here in terms of where’s the monitor, how did they get alerted, what are the nurses doing, what are the clients doing. Talk us through what that really, really looks like? |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 28:46 | Sure. So as I mentioned before, the data collection and getting the information from the client is very simple. A sensor goes underneath the patient’s mattress. So they don’t even know it’s there. Never touches them. They have no notion that actually, things are happening in the background. But what we’re doing is being able to pick up the patient’s heart rate and respiratory rate and motion from the sensor, and we’ll send it to what we call a central display station. And we’ll put this in the nurse’s station or the med room, somewhere that staffed, and from that position, the healthcare workers from within discovery point, can see every patient Every client that’s in the building, if they’re in bed, if they’re out of bed, what their heart rate is, what their respiratory rate is, and how long they’ve been in the bed for. So they’ll be able to know if the patient’s asleep or not asleep by looking at the motion. There’s a lot they can get just from that. But, more importantly, it gives them the peace of mind from the standpoint that the staff can now go out and take care of the other clients, too. As Greg mentioned earlier, having to check on somebody every 15 minutes or half an hour not only puts stress on that one particular client that’s being woken up, but also on the staff members when they’ve got to leave somebody else and go in and check to make sure the other client is doing okay. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 30:07 | So we give them a little pager. And if everyone is fine, there’ll be no noise, no alerts, or anything. But if a patient does start to have a high heart rate, or low respiratory rate, or whatever happens and it comes out of the thresholds that the staff has said we want them in, it’ll send a brief alert directly to that nurse or that therapist and it will just say room 100, high respiratory rate. And they can go into that room immediately, check on that patient. And really what we’ve been so impressed with Discovery Point is the training that they’re doing with their staff to be able to then say, “Okay, we’ve got an alert, what do we do next? What’s the assessment that needs to be done on this patient to really understand what the underlying cause is?” And it’s questions. And in a hospital, it might be medically, always medically, a medical reason for a change in vital signs. But in the detox areas and in behavioral health, there can be a number of other reasons, physiologic reasons that can change the vital signs. So a lot of them are just questions, figuring out what’s going on with them. Are they anxious? Can we help you? That type of thing that really not only is it just a medical problem, but it’s all also a wellbeing type of alert for these guys, too. |
| CARMEN: 31:25 | Britney, you mentioned a couple of little experiences you and the nurses had. Tell us about that. |
| ISBELL: 31:32 | So the first time we had, she was in her therapy session, it had been really intense. She was having a lot of anxiety when she came out. So she went to her room and she was going to do some deep breathing exercises, help get her anxiety down. So she was taking deep breaths and holding it. And then take another deep breath. Well, it alerted us that her respirations were low. So we’re like, “That’s weird.” And we went in there and then that’s what we found her doing, which she also thought was really cool that we were there that fast and knew something was wrong. So we were kind of like, “Oh, wow. This really does work.” It was nice to see it in action working. And then we did have another patient who he liked jujitsu. So he was jumping on the bed and it was a really high motion. And so we’re like, we had never got that alert before either. So we went in there and he was doing jujitsu on his bed and all over the place. So it’s really interesting to get to see it working. |
| CARMEN: 32:32 | Like you said, Nick, you just, in substance use, you just really don’t know what’s going to– what you’re going to find. |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 32:41 | I think you’re right on. The real goal is just to get somebody into the room to have a conversation with that particular client and find out what their needs are at that point in time. And it might be different tonight than tomorrow night or last night. But it’s just getting somebody in there when they’re needed. |
| CARMEN: 32:58 | So, Britney, it seems like this offers a feeling of safety and comfort for your nursing staff. Have you gotten feedback from your nursing staff about how they feel better in terms of their client safety? |
| ISBELL: 33:13 | Yes. When we first got it, they came and they talked to us about coming and installing the monitors. And of course, I went and told nursing like, “Guess what we’re getting?” And then they were really like, that’s really amazing because this kind of technology isn’t available in this kind of setting a lot of the time. So really ever that I’ve seen. I’ve been in the hospital and have seen some monitoring, but nothing to this degree in this kind of setting. And so the nurses are really happy to have it. And I’ve never heard one client ever be like, “I don’t want that on.” They’re always glad to know that we see them at all times and that they’re okay. |
| CARMEN: 33:47 | Okay. Final thoughts in addressing client safety. Our philosophies, client-first– just all of these topics, final thoughts from you. |
| POWERS: 33:59 | Wow. So that’s a great question. I think final thoughts with this is that there is always an opportunity to grow. Not only as a client, but as a facilitator. There’s always something new. And being able to take those opportunities and say, “You know what? Let’s try this.” As we had mentioned earlier, we’re one of the very first facilities to implement this kind of technology into their programming. So it’s the ability for us to say, “Hey. There are new things out there.” And that does have an impact on our clients’ well-being and peace of mind. So being able to do that is fantastic. And I think just knowing that Discovery Point and all the staff and everybody from our housekeeper all the way up to administration are willing to take that extra step and really do what we need to do to make sure that our clients are taken care of. And their families have a peace of mind. |
| CARMEN: 35:06 | Noah? Final thoughts from you. What does the future look like for Discovery Point Retreat? I mean, you guys are way ahead of the curve as it stands right now. What do you see coming up in the future? |
| LONGINO: 35:18 | Yeah. That’s a great question. And I’d say, just to kind of get back to that family piece that we were talking about before. I can imagine if I were taking one of my children or a parent or a loved one in treatment, I’d want to know that they’re going to get the best care that’s available to break the chains of addiction. But my absolute first concern would be that of safety. And I would want to know that the medical team that’s now responsible for my family member cares just as much about their safety as I do. And I think that’s what we got here. The future is bright. Well, this is a really dark and destructive brain disease that wrecks families and lives. But the good news is that there is hope. And daily, we’re learning more and more of how to battle addictions and what works. The medical technology and clinical data is– as I said before, DPR Is founded on the belief that quality of care, medical attention, these are all directly tied to long-term outcomes for clients after they move on from our facility. So along with a top-notch medical team, a great medical staff, including Brittany and her team, we can leverage these technologies. |
| LONGINO: 36:35 | And the technology of EarlySense that almost no other treatment program is using in the country. So we’re going to ensure that clients have the safest possible experience in a really difficult time. We know how much it allows the clients to feel comfortable and safe, like we’ve all discussed. But we also know it’s just as important for the family to know that their loved ones are safe. So DPR will continue to look for new and cutting-edge technology that will give us every advantage we can get in this battle. The future is bright here. And it’s to remind everyone, again, that there’s hope and there are answers for the struggles that you’re going through. And Discovery Point Retreat will continue to be the answer for families looking for help. And we’re committed and invested in safety for the clients. |
| CARMEN: 37:24 | So I want to invite our audience At this point, this is the most exciting part of the conversation, because I want to invite you all to ask questions. If you see the little Q&A bubbles down at the bottom, we have some questions coming in. So I’m just going to start reading these off and directing them to our different panelists. But please, feel free because I can see them. I’m not sure if you guys can. So, Greg, can you briefly go through the services Discovery Point Retreat provides? |
| POWERS: 37:56 | Sure thing. So Discovery Point Retreat is a full-service facility. We take clients from detox level of care, which would be your initial treatment, residential, PHP, IOP, and outpatient. So it’s really and truly the continuum of treatment. We will take you from the moment you decide, “Hey, I’ve got a problem,” all the way through, “Hey, I’m doing pretty good and need to just kind of touch base with a counselor once a week, once a month,” kind of thing. So it’s truly that full continuum of services that DPR offers. |
| CARMEN: 38:35 | Okay. So, Nick, this one’s for you. Can you talk about EarlySense, what kind of organizations would benefit from EarlySense? |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 38:45 | Well, that’s a good question, too. We are in acute care hospitals, teaching hospitals all over the world, monitoring patients in generally unmonitored areas outside of the ICUs and outside of their OR, their PACU suites where we’re in all of the– a lot of post-acute areas in skilled nursing homes, assisted living facilities, as well as now with companies that are as innovative as Discovery Point, starting to make way into the behavioral health areas too, really anywhere where patients have the possibility of something bad happening to them, a change in their status during this point of time where no one would know about it. So we’re anywhere that you don’t have one-to-one nursing care and that the patient does have the possibility of a negative outcome. |
| CARMEN: 39:45 | And does implementation look the same no matter where you guys set up or would implementation vary depending? |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 39:54 | Implementation varies greatly. We spend a lot of time. The actual hardware stuff is pretty straightforward these days. It’s just plug-and-play type technology. It’s the training of the staff, taking the time to understand the type of patients and the type of clients that they’re dealing with in that particular area, and then sort of directing the training to cover those types of patients. So a detox area would be very different. Niznik, as a behavioral health group, has other areas. They do eating disorders and things like that. And their training is very different in there to deal with the clients that are coming off an eating disorder as opposed to a detox. So we really do customize the training to better understand what their needs are, and then set the system up to work best in that particular area. |
| CARMEN: 40:41 | Another question coming in again. This is for you, Nic. Are there any drawbacks? What are some of the concerns or questions that potential clients should be asking in terms of EarlySense? |
| FLEMING-WOOD: 40:56 | Really, there’s not a lot of drawbacks to it because there’s no negative side effects to doing this. There’s no negative experience for the customers or for the patients in this. It’s really just making a decision that you’re committed to patient safety. And that’s really what’s been so exciting to work with a group like Discovery Point is their commitment to their clients, their commitment to their staff, and their commitment to good positive outcomes. And they’re willing to make investments in that type of technology, which is what we find really exciting. |
| CARMEN: 41:29 | Okay. So here’s an interesting question. This is from Daniel Martinez. So is there a goal to expand that early science technology to gather vitals at all times, so not just while the patient is in bed, but throughout the day? So– |
| LONGINO: 41:44 | I would say, Noelle, especially with the wearable technology that’s out there now, and the smartwatches and different things. I think we would love to explore that opportunity and work with EarlySense. And if we can figure out a way for a constant 24/7 monitoring, all the better, as long as it’s non-invasive. And right now, the beauty of EarlySense is that it’s completely non-invasive, and the client doesn’t even know it’s there. So if we didn’t find a way to do that and monitor them throughout the day, even better. |
| CARMEN: 42:24 | On that note, I want to thank everyone for listening in. Also, big thank you to Nick Flemingwood. Greg Powers, thank you. Noah Longino, Brittany Isabel, thank you. I hope everyone has an amazing day. And thank you so much for being here. |
| ISBELL: 42:43 | Thank you. |
| LONGINO: 42:43 | Thank you. |
| POWERS: 42:44 | Thank you. [music]. |
