In the Spotlight: Ed Kmetz from Pure Sight & Sound, Inc.

Pure Sight & Sound provides design, installation, and consulting services for residential and commercial technology systems in Pennsylvania. Ed Kmetz, president of Pure Sight & Sound, has been a long time visionary, as one of GrandCare’s early implementation & integration experts in the senior and disability market.

We had the opportunity last week to sit down with Ed and really find out what drew him to GrandCare and explore his passion for helping others, particularly in the aging and disability space.

Q: Thanks for talking with us, Ed. Can you start by telling us a little about your background? How did you become involved in technology for seniors?
A: My background is all in technology. After graduating with a materials engineering degree from Drexel in Philadelphia, I immediately went into international sales and engineering, studying in Japan and working globally in Asia, Canada, and Mexico for 15 years.

About 13 years ago, I started my own company doing audio/video and automation in homes and businesses. I hadn’t thought of technology for the aging/disabled market specifically until I learned about GrandCare. I thought it was such a great idea and it fit right in with an initiative I started years ago called “The Grandma Guarantee.” This means Grandma will be able to operate everything Pure Sight & Sound provides, and with little to no training.

Q: Why did you choose GrandCare?
A: In part, because GrandCare started developing their software technology in 2005, clearly making them the pioneer. When I started working with GrandCare, they were the only company that combined the various protocol-driven home and activity sensors, telehealth devices and touch-based socialization platform into one complete package. As great as it was then, they’ve come a long way since. And the support has always been fantastic.

Q: Who is your target audience for selling GrandCare?
A: We sell our GrandCare Systems to two main groups of people. Our first target is the clients of home care agencies, and our second target is hospice (end of life care) facilities.

Q: How do you approach marketing GrandCare?
A: I have a wonderful international business network that I’ve built through the years in this industry. So of course, I leverage that. But it was also important to make closer, personal relationships with local homecare agencies and hospices.

Q: What’s one misconception about aging that you’d like to change?
A: That aging folks are intimidated by technology. Some are, of course, but for the most part, if we can get them touching the interface, we can get them comfortable in a very short time. We bought my mom a computer for her 75th birthday, and had to upgrade her hardware for her 80th!

Q: If you could tell everyone in the world one thing about GrandCare, what would it be?
A: We’ve had better support from GrandCare than probably every other vendor we work with. (And we work with a LOT of vendors!)

Q: What are you most passionate about?
A: I’m passionate about making sure that my customers are comfortable with, understand, and can actually use everything we supply.

Pure Sight & Sound provides design, installation, and consulting services in Pennsylvania, for home theater systems, smart home technology, audio, video, automation, and a variety of other types of residential and commercial technology systems, including GrandCare technology, for assisting seniors and the disabled population. For more information about Pure Sight & Sound, visit www.puresightandsound.com, call 570-992-2992, or email Ed at ekmetz@puresightandsound.com.

For more information about GrandCare, and our growing dealer/reseller/aging service provider network, visit www.grandcare.com or email us at sales@grandcare.com. Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Upcoming GrandCare Affiliate Training:
July 25-27 at CEDIA HQ in Indianapolis, IN
August 17-19 at GrandCare HQ in West Bend, WI

GrandCare’s Training at CEDIA Makes the News

GrandCare has made the news again. Residential Systems, a magazine for professionals in the home technology arena, featured GrandCare’s 3-day, deep-dive training workshop, which is being offered later this month at CEDIA headquarters in Indianapolis.

The training is a comprehensive, three-day connected health and aging technology training, especially valuable for custom home integrators interested in the growing aging technology market. It’s a deep dive that includes a mix of instructor-led sessions, roundtable discussions, and hands-on labs, “to help home technology professionals understand key aspects of technology implementation in the growing aging and disability market.”

The training will be held at CEDIA’s headquarters in Indianapolis, July 25 – 27,

“This training is an excellent opportunity for home technology professionals to learn more about the emerging home health market and how those offerings could be incorporated into their business plan,” said Luke Amos, CEDIA senior director of learning.

The bootcamp-style training will be hands-on, and will include installation and implementation of an actual system and peripherals, including Bluetooth health devices, integrated HIPAA-compliant video chat, and activity of daily living monitoring. The training also includes strategies for breaking into the market, a comprehensive sales and marketing session focused on sales strategies, effective online marketing campaigns, the competitive landscape, healthcare reform, long-term care opportunities, and how to brand your company as the “go-to” in the aging and health technology space.

“We are enthusiastic about working together again with CEDIA and its members,” said Charlie Hillman, CEO of GrandCare Systems. “This training goes beyond a typical technical product training and educates on the extensive and fragmented healthcare, aging, and senior housing landscape.”

The event is co-hosted by GrandCare and CEDIA, and will include special guest speakers Michele Ahlman, CEO of ClearSounds Communications on hearing loss in the aging population and Jeff Hill, CEO of MyGait on easy senior computing solutions.

“This training goes beyond a typical technical product training and educates on the extensive and fragmented healthcare, aging, and senior housing landscape.”—Charlie Hillman, CEO of GrandCare Systems

Learn more or register online.
Or contact GrandCare at info@grandcare.com, or (262) 338-6147.

See the complete text of the Residential Systems article here.

 

Charlie Hillman Recruited for Technology in Aging Expertise for Aging 2.0 Event

Charlie Hillman, founder and CEO of GrandCare Systems, has been selected to join a high-powered group of aging industry innovators for a Digital Aging roundtable in March. Hillman and three other industry veterans will share everything they’ve learned through the years in the recently intersecting senior housing and technology industry. The forum will also include Pete Celano, Director of Consumer Health Initiatives at the MedStar Institute for Innovation; Myron Kowal, President and CEO of RCare; and John Rydzewski, General Manager of Technology Solutions at Direct Supply.

Hosted by Aging 2.0 and sponsored by RCare, the roundtable will be moderated by aging and technology expert Laura Mitchell of Laura Mitchell Consulting. Hillman and his fellow panelists will share stories, experiences, successes, mistakes and advice for getting ahead in the aging industry.

The roundtable event is being held in conjunction with the LeadingAge Peak Summit in Washington, DC, a unique conference that brings together the highest-level executives and business leaders in the aging and technology industry. The conference fosters education, strategic thinking, and networking. The Fireside Chat event is scheduled on the Sunday just before the conference.

This reservation-only Fireside Chat is an event you won’t want to miss!

For Reservations:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/aging20-washington-dc-digital-aging-successful-technology-implementation-in-senior-care-tickets-22199669810

Fireside Chat Schedule

Where: Stone’s Throw Restaurant, Marriott Wardmann Hotel

When: 7:00-8:30pm, Sunday March 13th

7-7:30pm Networking/Registration

7:30-7:35pm Welcome & Introduction to Aging 2.0

7:35-7:45pm Opening Remarks by Myron Kowal, CEO of RCare

7:45-8:15pm Roundtable Panel Discussion, moderated by Laura Mitchell of Laura Mitchell Consulting

Panelists: Pete Celano (MedStar), Myron (RCare), Charlie (GrandCare),  John Rydzewski  (Direct Supply)

8:15-8:30pm Networking Cocktail Reception

General Admission from Feb 26 at 5pm –  March 9th at 5pm

Last Minutes tickets available after March 9th, until 6pm on March 13th

To find out more about what GrandCare is up to, visit us on the web at grandcare.com. Ask us about our discounted pricing for senior care providers at sales@grandcare.com today!

GrandCare Announces Certified Dealer Training in April

System2.pngGrandCare Systems announced today the re-launch of their platinum distribution channel by certifying authorized custom integrators, dealers, installers and other organizations. GrandCare will be offering a 2-day intensive training session on market opportunities, aging and health conditions, the competitive landscape, as well as complementary products and services. The training will also cover sales and marketing strategies and a deep dive into the GrandCare technology.  Participants will learn to successfully customize, implement and install GrandCare, while offering additional value-added services to help individuals remain healthy and happy at home.

Launched in 2006, GrandCare Systems is the pioneer in connected living and connected health in the private home. GrandCare is a comprehensive, fully tested and rugged system that combines social interaction with activity sensors and telehealth devices. Family members and other caregivers can monitor activity patterns, assess health readings, and send personalized messages and reminders to the GrandCare touchscreen platform in the private home.

If you or someone you know would be a good fit for the GrandCare distribution direct to consumer channel, we would like to hear from you.

What?
GrandCare Dealer Training

Who?
Anyone that would like to resell GrandCare technology and services

Where?
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

When?
April 12th – 14th (Training begins at 1pm on the 12th and ends at 1pm on the 14th)

Early Bird Special: $1500 (register before March 15th)

Regular Training Rate: $2500

Additional rewards for previously authorized GrandCare Dealers

Details will be provided upon registration

[REGISTER HERE]

GrandCare Showcased at Innovative LeadingAge MN Conference

GrandCare, the industry leader in comprehensive eldercare technology, will be featured at the LeadingAge Minnesota conference in St. Paul tomorrow, February 10. The mission of LeadingAge Minnesota is an important one: ensuring that “older adults in every community live with dignity, meaning, and purpose.” GrandCare will be at the conference in booth 257 to help deliver on that mission.

How? By introducing new and innovative functionality like the Emergency Broadcast Alert System and enhanced community features like event calendars, meal schedule and digital signage. GrandCare founder and CEO Charlie Hillman commented, “GrandCare is delighted to reinforce our partnership with LeadingAge of MN and be on display at this innovative event. Together we are reinventing the care delivery model to be more proactive, predictive and cost-effective.”

To find out more about what GrandCare is up to, visit us on the web at grandcare.com. Ask us about our discounted pricing for senior care providers at sales@grandcare.com today!

Erick Eiting at the Louisville Innovation Summit

grandCARE’s Chief Medical Officer, Erick Eiting will be speaking as a panelist at the Louisville Innovation Summit

Creating the Future of Aging Care

Louisville Innovation Summit
Kentucky Center for the Arts
October 14–15, 2015 Louisville, KY

500 healthcare executives and technology entrepreneurs provide insight, share expertise and explore new avenues to create the future of aging care.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWtzpKoT-6E

Dr. Eiting

Erick Eiting

Dr. Eiting serves as chief medical officer to digital health industry pioneer, grandCARE. He specializes in providing access to care to vulnerable patient populations using innovative technological solutions.

At grandCARE, he focuses on allowing seniors to continue to live independently at home.

Using remote sensors and smart data collection, he helps to provide patients and providers with the necessary solutions to keep them out of the hospital and prevent 30-day readmissions.

Dr. Eiting is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He serves as Associate Medical Director at LAC+USC Medical Center and Medical Director of USC Correctional Health where he oversees inpatient, emergency and sub-specialty clinic services for incarcerated patients and helps to facilitate access to care for patients released from custody.

grandCARE slated to speak & exhibit at Digital Health Summit, CES 2015

For the 8th consecutive year, GrandCare will be showcased at the largest consumer electronics show in the world, CES 2015. grandCARE will be exhibiting in the Digital Health Summit at the Sands Expo, 2nd LEVEL Booth 73240.
2015 International CES Exhibit Hours

Tuesday, January 6: 10 AM-6 PM

Wednesday, January 7: 9 AM-6 PM

Thursday, January 8: 9 AM-6 PM

Friday, January 9: 9 AM-4 PM

grandCARE will be unveiling a new brand mark, the grandCARE better care logo.
grandCARElogo
The new branding reflects grandCARE’s approach to truly person-centered care, care coordination and self empowerment. grandCARE’s better care method insists that in order to achieve better outcomes, the individual needs to be fully engaged. In order to achieve engagement, the experience needs to be intuitive, entertaining and empowering.
Without the better care method, better outcomes is less likely.

grandCARE’s chief marketing officer and co-founder, Laura Mitchell, has been chosen to speak on a panel in the digital health summit.

2015 Digital Health Summit – DAY ONE
Wednesday, January 7
Venetian, Level 2, Bellini 2004
4:30-5:00PM
Smart Homes? No Brilliant, Sensible Ones!
Seniors are the fastest growing demographic in America today. And as our loved ones are getting older, they may not be willing to leave their home. We worry about them. Fortunately, leading tech innovators in the remote passive monitoring space are using connected sensors to simplify everything for the consumer and make independent living a safe, reliable, and thriving life a reality!Come hear directly from these trailblazers addressing a key societal issue and discover what they have in store so that our most independent, energetic seniors can spend more time doing the things they love.
Speakers:
Laura MitchellLaura Mitchell, Chief Marketing Officer, GrandCare Systems
Kian Saneii, CEO, Independa, Inc.

The Las Vegas Convention Center North Exhibit Hall is open Tuesday January 10th until Friday January 13th. For more information on the CES Show, visit: http://www.cesweb.org/

grandCARE Unveils New “betterCARE” Brandmark, Announces Significant Shift Towards True Patient-Centered Care

December 15, 2014 – WI – grandCARE, a pioneer in digital health and remote monitoring technology, today announced its new Brand Mark called betterCARE, symbolic of grandCARE’s significant focus on better outcomes and cost-savings.

The new betterCARE logo will be showcased in the Sands Expo, level 2 in Booth 73240, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Digital Health Summit in Las Vegas, January 6-9th, 2015.  grandCARE will also be featuring a new “hospital-to-home” transition program, which helps professional care providers, healthcare providers, and patients to effectively coordinate care and safely remain at home.

grandCARElogo

The branding change coincides with grandCARE’s focus on better outcomes for individuals and professional care providers who want clients to remain healthier and connected at home, while reducing or avoiding unnecessary and costly doctor visits and hospitalizations.  The grandCARE betterCARE Brand Mark represents true patient centered care, using grandCARE’s three “B’s”: Better experience; Better engagement; and Better patient outcomes.

“The new betterCARE Brand Mark signals a shift that is following an industry where avoidable hospitalizations will no longer be tolerated,” said grandCARE Chief Marketing Officer, Laura Mitchell.  “We believe that in order to achieve better outcomes and healthier patients, one must engage the patient to participate in his/her own care and wellness.  The patient experience is critical to ensuring full compliance.  grandCARE focuses on better experience and better engagement, which are essential for better outcomes”.

grandCARE has a proven hospital-to-home transition program in which organizations use grandCARE to reduce hospital readmissions and successfully transition and keep the patient out of the hospital.  A 2013 Hawaii study on discharged patients using grandCARE technology, showed significant outcomes in using grandCARE technology with high risk patients.  grandCARE offers a large, intuitive interface for the patient at point-of-care, providing 24/7 patient support through discharge instructions, medication prompts, scheduling reminders, patient/provider HIPAA compliant video chat, health assessments, automated, wireless vital/biometric recordings, patient analytics, and more.  In the spirit of true patient-centered care, grandCARE enables all remote caregivers and professionals to log in to a secure dashboard portal, communicate with the patient, view reports, coordinate care, and identify red flags that could mitigate a readmission.

“grandCARE is perfect for high risk patients who are being discharged from my emergency room,” said grandCARE’s Chief Medical Officer and Emergency Room doctor, Erick Eiting.   “The system sends my staff alerts on medication non-compliance and red flag symptoms, such as an excessive weight gain, which can reduce unnecessary readmissions and increase patient self-care.  This all leads towards better outcomes for my hospital.”

grandCARE will be exhibited and demonstrated at the Consumer Electronics Show January 6-9th within the Digital Health Summit in the Sands Expo Hall, level 2, Booth # 73240.  To make press or demonstration appointments, contact media@grandcare.com or call 262-338-6147


About grandCARE:

grandCARE, founded in 2005, offers the most comprehensive and holistic professional caregiving and health coordination tool on the market.  grandCARE is a large patient-centered touch platform which providers health instructions, secure video chat, wireless vital recordings and analytics, medication compliance, activity sensing, and family communications into one intuitive and expandable platform.  grandCARE focuses on true patient center care, enabling better experience, better engagement, and better outcomes. For more information, visit: www.grandcare.com or call 262-338-6147.

Media Contact:

Laura Mitchell   Chief Marketing Officer    262-707-6726   media@grandCARE.com

GrandCare to PITCH and showcase at AgeTech West in Seattle

GrandCare has been selected as a “PITCH FOR PILOT” Candidate at the upcoming AgeTech West conference in Seattle.  GrandCare will be pitching a brand new product model designed for aging organizations to better manage patient chronic conditions, mitigate hospital readmission risks, successfully transition patients from hospital to home and adhere to true patient-centered care with GrandCare technology playing the centerpiece.

Dell Med Prompt

WHEN: Nov. 17-18, 2014 #syncinseattle

WHERE: Seattle, Washington Hyatt Olive 8 Downtown

IV. Live 2014 Pitch-for-Pilots, real-time voting by Holleran

Facilitator: Stephen Johnson, co-founder, Aging2.0 and partner, Generator Ventures

The 2nd Annual “Pitch for Pilots” (P4P) live pitch in partnership with Aging2.0 will provide the opportunity for 8-10 innovative companies to pitch in front of hundreds of long-term care providers. This year AgeTech is welcoming participation by start-ups as well as established companies with a new product launch. The P4P gives aging service providers an opportunity to get a jump-start down the road of strategic innovation and technology adoption.

More info on the conference:

This year’s conference will explore how technology can better synchronize aging services with consumer desires to transform the aging “user experience” for older adults and aging service providers alike.

Older adults will be directly involved in providing feedback and experiences on what they find appealing and empowering about various technologies – and what’s not – through interactive forums and “sync-ups.” Aging service providers will also give accounts of their experience in piloting new technologies to better meet older adult needs and desires.

Leaders in aging technology from the Seattle-based companies like Microsoft and A Place for Mom, as well as Google, Panasonic, Intel, Care Innovations, Caremerge, LivWell Health and several aging service providers will be addressing the bigger picture of how innovation and technology will continue to revolutionize services by better responding to consumer preferences and focusing on the aging experience.

The bottom line is that norms have changed; technology innovation offers real opportunities for better, more person-centered and efficient care and services for older adults. Service providers, payers and policy makers need to think differently about how care is provided, innovative work-processes and modify programs to take advantage of what technology has to offer in leveraging staff and improving service to sync with consumer needs and desires.

GrandCare SHOWCASED at Point Click Care User Conference in Orlando

International, leading technology innovation software, GrandCare Systems has been selected to be showcased at the Point Click Care Summit in Orlando Florida November 2-4pm.  GrandCare will feature an enterprise healthcare solution that enhances the patient experience leading to enhanced patient engagement and better outcomes. GrandCare HIPAA compliant MediKALL video chat allows a patient to virtually conference with a healthcare provider, remotely transmit vital and biometric readings, take on screen patient assessments, engage in instruction videos and help guides and live a more connected, happy and healthy lifestyle.

Each year the Point Click Care Summit offers the latest and greatest in innovation, education and trends throughout the aging service organization community.

Dell Med Prompt

This year’s Summit will illuminate and inspire you with top industry
speakers, new breakthrough tracks, great networking opportunities,
and an unforgettable experience.

Register Now: http://www.pointclickcaresummit.com/registration.php

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