This article is sponsored by POM Safe. In this Voices interview, Home Health Care News sits down with AJ Leahy, Founder & CEO, POM Safe, to learn how providers can use technology to protect home health care workers in the field. He shares key success stories and feedback from partners using POM Safe devices, including how his organization has implemented this feedback to improve the user experience. He also offers an outlook on what the future holds for POM Safe and its clients as the home-based care industry evolves.
Home Health Care News: What inspired you to start POM Safe, and how does your personal story shape the company’s mission and goals?
AJ Leahy: Unfortunately, POM Safe started because of a tragic incident. One my best friends was killed after a random act of violence, and the circumstances surrounding the incident shed light on major gaps in the 911 systems we all rely on. My friend was walking home late one night in Philadelphia when he was jumped by a group of guys and knocked unconscious. One of the friends he was with called 911 but had to run to the nearest cross street to explain her location as 911 didn’t get her GPS and she wasn’t able to communicate where to send help. The first responders were delayed arriving on scene and he passed away. We were appalled to learn after the fact that 63% of cell phone calls to 911 do not share the caller’s location and, even when they do, it’s usually a cell tower location with a large enough radius that it’s of little help to locate someone. Our mission is to put peace of mind in everyone’s hands, and this is what we dedicate ourselves to achieving every day we show up to work.
How do POM Safe devices help solve the specific safety problems health care workers face in post-acute care settings?
Not many people realize this, but Healthcare workers are 5x more likely to experience workplace violence. It happens more often than against police officers and prison guards. In particular, home health workers are often by themselves, providing care in someone else’s home. Whether it’s aggressive patients, family members, neighbors, dangerous pets, substance abuse, or issues in the surrounding neighborhood, home health care workers are underequipped with safety tools to protect themselves in those unknown environments. The POM Safe devices help to proactively prevent incidents as well as get help in active situations where escalation is necessary.
The Check On Me feature allows caregivers to check-in and out of appointments by simply tapping the button on the device, and automatically escalates to a supervisor or our dispatchers if they don’t check out. This provides peace of mind by ensuring someone is always looking out for them, and the response from nurses has been tremendously positive. If a situation does escalate, you can tap the POM device 3 times to initiate an emergency alert that sends your exact GPS location, profile information and a two-way voice call through our device to a dispatcher who will coordinate the appropriate response. Nurses wear the device on their ID badges or keychains, so you can discreetly active it without having to fumble for a phone in a bag or pocket. It has its own LTE and GPS onboard the device so even if your phone dies or is left in the car, it still works.
What are some of the best success stories and feedback you’ve heard from organizations that have implemented POM Safe devices?
There’s been many incidents the POM has been used in, but one that always comes to mind happened with one our clients based in the midwest. A woman was off-duty in her own apartment when an ex-partner broke in and starting assaulting her. She activated her POM device, which was on her work lanyard nearby, and the dispatcher came through the speaker on the device asking if she was alright. The assailant heard the dispatcher and took off running, stopping the assault before it got worse. He was picked up a couple blocks away as the police arrived and he ended up going to jail. She was willing to share with us her experience afterwards, and we were told there was no way she was getting to her phone in that situation, and the POM was her only option. While horrified by the incident itself, we were proud of the role our technology played to help keep her safe and put a dangerous person behind bars.
How do you see technology, specifically POM Safe, evolving in the future to enhance caregiver safety?
Our focus has narrowed very specifically to the home health care space, and right now our emphasis is on enhanced proactive safety measures and integrations to engrain our solution into the daily work lives of healthcare workers more and more. They certainly don’t need any more things to do or worry about, there’s plenty for them to do already. So our focus is on preventing incidents from happening with improved situational awareness, predictive analytics for areas with high crime or sexual predators, and tying into systems they already use. We place an emphasis on being intimate with our customers so much of our product roadmap is co-developed with our client-partners. That’s where the Check On Me feature came from actually, where one of our clients was unable to locate a teammate for hours after they didn’t return home from a shift. We’ve cut that down to minutes and ensured there’s an auto-escalation path that can get help to them if needed, even if they’re unable to activate an emergency call.
What advice do you have for providers approaching new technology adoption in today’s environment?
Find a partner that’s going to support you and understand your specific challenges in your organization and in this market. It might sound obvious, but we’ve seen fly by night companies, we’ve seen companies that throw tech “over the fence” at clients and say good luck and disappear. The best roll outs are ones that are approached as true partnerships and you can rely on their team to show up, listen to you, and adjust if needed to make sure it’s a rousing success for all people involved. You want the best technology of course, especially when it comes to safety, and we have that. But you also want to work with good people, who care about your people as much as you do. There’s a reason why people come to work at POM Safe, and everyone’s had some type of experience that gravitates them to our company and the work we do. When you are rolling out an enterprise solution, especially one that’s net new, not just another EHR platform, you want a team that you know you can count on and who has the experience. You want the playbook to be well-baked and gone through its iterations, so this isn’t another headache for you and your team. If you have an issue or question, you want someone who’s going to respond immediately and resolve it for you.
What are some of the ways POM Safe has incorporated provider feedback into the product?
We are constantly talking with our customers and end users to understand how to improve the solution and drive the highest value possible for them. Features like Check on Me and the Fake Phone Call came directly from users and continue to be our most frequently used features. You can say the same for the crime and sex offender registry data that’s now incorporated into the app and will be released later this month. Our philosophy and our product pipeline is driven by feedback from customers.
Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, 2024 will be defined by…”
… an unwavering commitment to caregiver recruitment and retention, coupled with strategic efforts in caregiver safety.
The focus on caregiver safety directly impacts recruitment and retention. Potential recruits are more likely to join organizations that demonstrate a strong commitment to their well-being, and existing staff are more likely to stay when they feel protected and valued. Penn Medicine at Home’s success with POM Safe, where 82% of staff reported feeling safer and supported the purchase of POM devices, illustrates how safety investments can enhance staff satisfaction and loyalty.
The evolving landscape of home-based care in 2024 will also see tighter collaboration between technology providers and care organizations, ensuring that solutions are tailored to the specific needs of caregivers. This year will be marked by a collective effort to create safer, more supportive working environments, ultimately enhancing the well-being of both caregivers and the patients they serve. By prioritizing safety, we not only protect our caregivers but also build a stronger, more resilient workforce equipped to meet the growing demands of home-based care.
As the industry grapples with increasing incidents of workplace violence, the importance of robust safety measures cannot be overstated. Technologies like POM Safe are at the forefront, providing innovative solutions that ensure caregivers are never alone, even in the most challenging environments.
Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Packed with customizable safety features and enhanced by the POM 360 Safety Network™, the standalone POM Mobile is the leading device in home care. Learn more about how POM can help keep your caregivers safe here.
The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact [email protected].
