When it comes to home care, the modern healthcare landscape often feels cold and impersonal, with providers focused more on tasks than people. This trend has been exacerbated by the overwhelming demands of the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving both caregivers and patients feeling strained and underserved. But what if there were a different way? What if home care could be a deeply personal, rewarding experience for all involved?
Ember is the first company in Canada to implement a profit-sharing program for frontline staff, demonstrating a commitment to their wellbeing and future.\ **Based on a statement made in 2023 and to the best of our knowledge.
A Passionate Advocate for Change
Meet Tammy, a seasoned nurse with a Bachelor of Science and an MBA, who brings 21 years of care experience to the table. Her family legacy of nursing and her unique mix of public and private sector experience provide her with a distinctive perspective on home care. With a deep-seated passion for care that goes beyond a mere exchange of services, Tammy embodies a vision for home care that is centered on empathy, emotional support, and personalized attention.
In this post, you will learn about Tammy's story, her innovative approach to home care, and her vision for the future.
A New Approach: Presence in Care
Ember, Tammy's brainchild, is born from a desire to bring presence back to care. This approach is about more than just completing tasks - it aims at creating a supportive environment where healthcare providers can provide the care they signed up to do. It's about helping families and clients, and it's about creating a safe and nurturing environment for caregivers who have experienced workplace trauma.
Tammy's mission is to treat people the way we would want our own families to be treated. She recognizes the distress and distraught that often comes with needing home care and strives to provide a consistent, comforting presence throughout the journey.
Leveraging Technology for Personalized Care
In a bid to be innovative and responsive to client needs, Ember is leveraging technology to fill gaps in home care. Traditionally, private companies offered services in 4-hour chunks, a model that was often prohibitive for individuals transitioning into home care. In response, Ember has introduced more flexible, 1-2 hour care services.
Ember's use of technology extends to partnering with blueBell Village to develop a dementia care portal that captures a client's personal history, work history, likes, music preferences, and more. This allows caregivers to provide meaningful, personalized care plans. The portal also includes a section for caregivers to make comments and share insights, fostering a collaborative, team-based approach to care.
Ember Healthcare is based in Edmonton, AB and launched in 2023. Find their website here: https://www.emberhealthcare.ca
Pioneering Home Care Innovation
Tammy envisions home care as an area ripe for revolution. With unlimited opportunity to support community care, she believes that private companies need to engage clients earlier in their caregiving journey, helping them navigate the complex healthcare system.
She sees the potential for home care to integrate more fully into the public space, sharing knowledge and resources. She dreams of a world where her dad, and others like him, can pass peacefully in their own beds, their disease progression tracked and managed through smart technology.
Next Steps for a Sustainable Future
In addition to improving patient care, Tammy is also interested in creating a sustainable future for caregivers. She recognizes that most healthcare aids don't have a clear retirement pathway and is working to change that. Ember is the first company in Canada to implement a profit-sharing program for frontline staff, demonstrating a commitment to their wellbeing and future.
Tammy's vision for home care is one of a generational company, built for sustainability, that will support future generations of caregivers. She envisions a future where care staff take pride in their work, families are benefited, and costs are kept low without compromising on the quality of care.
Home care, in her eyes, is more than just care. It's about creating a safe, supportive environment where everyone involved - from caregivers to clients and their families - feel seen, heard, and valued. This new vision for home care, one that is personalized, innovative, and sustainable, holds the potential to transform the landscape of healthcare as we know it.
