It would be safe to say that the healthcare industry cannot sustain itself without the support of the nurses and other hospital staff. The pandemic has been harsh to everyone and has made the healthcare industry work extra hard for the sake of mankind, and the medical professionals have delivered exceptionally to the cause, but it would have been impossible to do so without the support of the foot soldiers of the industry.
Helping Hands Healthcare has been a prominent company in offering the same foot soldiers of the industry since 1997. Situated in Mississauga of Toronto, Helping Hands Healthcare has efficiently and successfully serviced the society in these trying times of Covid.
In the following interview, Christopher Albion, the President and Managing Partner of Helping Hands Healthcare, tells us about the secret behind their phenomenal healthcare services.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Please brief our audience about your company, its values, vision, and mission.
For over 20 years, we have been known for the quality and care that our staff demonstrates, coupled with our responsiveness to our clients’ needs. Since 1997, we have been determined to redefine the meaning of personal care, hospital staffing, and testing programs with our patient and client-centered models, as recognized by their Exemplary Standing Award, given to us by Accreditation Canada.
Since 1997, our high ethical standards have been a key ingredient of our success, one that we will continuously foster and protect. We strive to keep our values of integrity, respect, and accountability as constant pillars of our healthcare and customer service. We measure our success based on the client’s experience with our suite of nurses and personal support workers. We believe that our value-driven organizational culture is the key to providing a successful healthcare experience. Not only for you and your loved ones but for us, to always ensure we are sending you the most dedicated healthcare support staff that Toronto and the GTA have to offer.
Mission: Integrity to expand and diversify our organization to deliver patient and client-centered superior service, innovative opportunities, and exceptional care.
Vision: To be an industry leader in providing exemplary private care and health care staffing.
Values: These core values define who we are and how we work. They are embedded in our leadership culture and guide us in making decisions, delivering care, and working with our clients, staff, and patients:
- Responsiveness
- Integrity
- Accountability
- Leadership
- Innovation
Brief us about how you have set yourself apart from the competition through your expertise in healthcare staffing?
Quality Healthcare | Our exceptional service is what has made us this successful and reputable throughout our tenure in the healthcare industry. We ensure that all our staff members are well trained in accordance with healthcare standards. The healthcare we offer our clients, whether a hospital, medical facility, long-term care home, private patient, or customized screening and testing program, is always exceptional, award-winning, and the gold standard that our company lives by. Our quality healthcare is their bread and butter.
Award-Winning Process | Our process of onboarding includes servicing the clients before anything. We ensure that our clients’ needs and their unique requirements, whether it be for a large facility or a single individual household, are properly identified and taken care of from the start. Our suite of nurse educators and trained staffing coordinators work alongside the client every step of the way, making sure that every single element of their care mirrors Helping Hands Healthcare’s exceptional reputation.
Staffing & Hiring Process | Our regimented hiring process is rivaled in the industry, with the 24/7 staffing coordinators available for our clients and always ensuring that each healthcare professional is properly background checked, vetted, and trained in the specific care they will be offering. They work tirelessly, without exception, to verify each of the thousands of individuals on their roster to make sure their values and reasons for entering healthcare are the same as Helping Hands Healthcare’s.
Accredited with Exemplary Standing | Helping Hands Healthcare meets the highest standards of excellence in the healthcare staffing industry proven by their Exemplary Standing Award, given to us by Accreditation Canada.
Most Hospital Partners | We have more hospital partners than any other Healthcare Staffing Agency in Toronto & the GTA. Therefore, making the transition from Hospital to Home easier and more convenient for you and your loved ones.
What services does your company offer, and how are you making an impact in the global healthcare industry?
We offer certified and trained healthcare professionals for Private Care, Hospital, and Healthcare Facility Staffing Services and Testing and Screening Programs throughout Canada. We have a staff of helpful client care coordinators available to book your required healthcare staffing needs. It is difficult to name a style of healthcare that we do not only offer but specialize in.
Private Care | We offer a customized plan for each of our private care clients, designed specifically for their unique set of needs. These types of private care include, but are not limited to, In-Hospital, Post-Operative Care, Mental Healthcare, Pediatric Care, Rehabilitation Care, Palliative Care, and Maternal Care.
Hospital & Long-Term Care Home Staffing | We employ a robust pool of experienced healthcare staff, allowing us to supply qualified professionals on demand, successfully meeting the staffing needs of hospitals and long-term care homes while establishing professional and positive healthcare experience for patients.
Testing & Screening | We offer the only, Start to Finish Testing & Screening Services in Canada with large organizations such as Amazon, Disney, Large scale shopping malls, and Government. We customize a plan for all types and sizes of organizations, businesses, or personal gatherings, ensuring that all clients receive white-gloved testing services, no matter the size, scale, or program scope. Following testing, we continue to work with the client throughout the entirety of the project, optimizing their healthcare procedures, screening protocols, and implementing health-centric procedures, ensuring our space is operating at peak healthcare efficiency.
Being an experienced leader, share with us your opinion on how the adoption of modern technologies in the healthcare discipline has transformed the industry and what more could be expected in the near future?
I believe that technology has given a new level of transparency to the individuals receiving and delivering healthcare, ensuring that the best and most efficient healthcare possible is given. Coupled with that, I believe that the extended reach technology has given to people living in rural areas, who may not be able to read doctors or staff, the ability to have a virtual checkup or doctor’s appointment has been an incredibly bright light for those who lacked the right type of care in the past due to their location.
We welcome the new adoption of technology in healthcare head-on and plan to further make our presence in the healthcare tech space.
Taking into consideration, the current pandemic, and its impact on global economies, how are you driving your company to sustain operations and ensuring safety of your employees at the same time?
We make the health and safety of our staff, both inside and outside the office, our first priority. Throughout the pandemic, we have implemented several new processes and procedures that ensure for a safe and smooth transition to work-from-home if the restrictions require. In conjunction with that, our organization offers internal rapid virus testing to all of our staff, should the situation call for it and there has been a risk of exposure, presenting itself to any staff member in the office.
Technology has played a critical role in the success of our 24/7 client care model, ensuring that all calls, messages and communication do not go interrupted when it is needed most. We understand the key role they have played throughout this pandemic and have taken the challenge head on, without allowing for weaknesses in their systems, ensuring that the brave healthcare professionals have the right support.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the healthcare sector?
As a seasoned entrepreneur, having developed and nurtured 3 companies myself, I believe that there are elements of nature and nurture for young entrepreneurs.
Being nurtured or encouraged from a young age to be hard working is absolutely paramount to the success of your business and one of the most critical characteristics of a successful entrepreneur. I believe that beyond anything, you need an exceptional work ethic and a drive for achieving the impossible or unimaginable. Entrepreneurs need to be resilient, tough and be able to bounce back from any potential issue or speed bump you may encounter.
Coupled with that, being born with the gift of leadership can be the ace up any entrepreneurs’ sleeve. I believe that being a leader is an enormous responsibility that cannot be taken lightly and driving your organization into the future with a strong front is an important aspect of showing strength and innovation in an industry that can be as difficult as healthcare.
Where do you envision your organization to be in the long run and what are your future goals?
We have grown exponentially in the past year and a half, both technologically and through process, continuous improvement, and client base. We have a unique advantage of being one of the largest in Southern Ontario, giving us the infrastructure and ability to expand into markets that have not yet been touched by this type of healthcare staffing.
We are committed to expanding further into the testing and screening, vaccination, private care, hospital staffing, long term care homes and public healthcare facilities with more ferocity than ever before, ensuring our name continues to be the best in healthcare staffing into the future.
About Christopher Albion
Chris Albion is the President and Managing Partner of Helping Hands Healthcare. He works directly with all hospital partners and private patients to collaborate on their healthcare staffing needs, ensuring Helping Hands Healthcare is well positioned to anticipate and meet every staffing need for both hospital and private patients alike.
“My parents worked in healthcare; my sister is a selfless doctor. I am not interested in taking advantage of people’s vulnerability. I want to offer affordable, at home healthcare, testing and screening protocols and hospital staffing to the people of Canada. Healthcare has always been the end goal for me, and I am privileged to be working alongside some of the bravest frontline workers I have ever met throughout this unforeseen pandemic,” says Chris.
In his previous role as President of an Engineering company, Emcara, Chris developed relationships with international automotive companies such as Toyota, Daimler, and BMW while navigating through the alternative fuel industry. Chris specializes in strategic partnerships, contract negotiations, financial and strategic planning, and market analysis.
