ACL Assisted Living Shops during COVID

I see that ACL has approximately 15 Assisted Living shops in and around Seattle. My 95 YO mother has been in lockdown for 10 months in a Seattle area Assisted Living home and for the last two in complete quarantine in her room. Conducting shops during this time seems morally irresponsible and don't know how it's permitted. The instructions read if a LIVE Tour is offered, you are to accept it. Anyone seeing these in other states? Any thoughts? Thanks

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@buddycocker wrote:

I see that ACL has approximately 15 Assisted Living shops in and around Seattle. My 95 YO mother has been in lockdown for 10 months in a Seattle area Assisted Living home and for the last two in complete quarantine in her room. Conducting shops during this time seems morally irresponsible and don't know how it's permitted. The instructions read if a LIVE Tour is offered, you are to accept it. Anyone seeing these in other states? Any thoughts? Thanks

IF the nursing home is mass vaccinated, then I could understand them doing shops. In Virginia, most I've read about just recently got their first shots of the Pfizer vaccine, so I would never consider doing them until I knew that particular location was fully vaccinated (meaning both shots).

I guess one would have to do some detective work to find out. It could be as simple as asking ACL.

If ACL said they were doing them w/o vaccination, I'd personally never shop for ACL again.

Is this shop designed to assess sales skills? Health & safety measures? Signs of insurrection or the inmates going stir crazy and taking over the joint? Not to be a poop, but.... it might be important to know if there are signs of pandemic stress anywhere within the location. For this reason, it is equally iffy to send someone into the location at all due to risks for elderly and vulnerable people and equally necessary (perhaps) to find out if any location needs additional support or assistance. People in the center of any issues might not notice little changes that could add up to something more serious.

Seriously. I hope your mom stays well.She must have some heckuva' strength in her that helps her to endure that isolation.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

Remember, not all staff members at these assisted living homes are taking the vaccine, some are refusing it.

I know. Everybody is just taking their chances...

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

Please remember that many assisted living residents are not legally capable of giving permission to accept the vaccine and may be at such high risk that their legal representatives hesitate or decline to give permission. Therefore, it may be quite rare to find "universal" vaccination in assisted living settings.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

I can see why. There are too many unknowns surrounding a first generation vaccine. Drugs, including vaccines, go through years of testing and trials before being realesed for public use.

@audrialyn30 wrote:

Remember, not all staff members at these assisted living homes are taking the vaccine, some are refusing it.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

@walesmaven wrote:

Please remember that many assisted living residents are not legally capable of giving permission to accept the vaccine and may be at such high risk that their legal representatives hesitate or decline to give permission. Therefore, it may be quite rare to find "universal" vaccination in assisted living settings.

Interesting.

I hadn't thought of that and it certainly does pose a difficult dilemma for legal reps.

I think I'd still ask about general vaccinations if I were considering such a shop. But, for me, I wouldn't even think about it until a few months down the line when we're more removed from COVID's most dangerous phase. Right now is just scary!

FWIW, one of my family members has received both doses and had no problems, other than a slightly tender spot on her arm where the shot was given. Anything could happen down the line, but the test subjects had their first and second vaccines months ago, and none of them have had medical issues that were caused by the vaccines.

As far as I know in my state the nursing homes are still closed to the public in which case if I called for an in person tour I would be refused, unless of course that home was breaking the law. In states where the homes are open to the public I would think it would be up to the shopper to decide, just as for any other ms job, if it was something they were willing to do.
I get job postings all the time for places that are not completely open for business. I do know that in other states those same businesses are completely open. The mystery shop companies can not track every county in the country and what their current pandemic rules are, esp since sometimes they change rapidly. So they throw the jobs out there and expect those that can and are willing will take them.

@sandyf wrote:

The mystery shop companies can not track every county in the country and what their current pandemic rules are, esp since sometimes they change rapidly. So they throw the jobs out there and expect those that can and are willing will take them.

I could see it being too burdensome to do that, but ACL could have also stipulated to the client that during this "sensitive time" of the pandemic, the company believes it is in the best interest of public health to not have shops done in nursing homes that have not yet gone through a vaccination process. That would place the burden on the homes, which would be easier to track from the client side.

That is a very good point. In addition why the nursing home industry would try to schedule in person visits during this time is not at all understandable to me. Every state is experiencing high numbers of virus. And even if the patients have been vaccinated that does not mean it would be beneficial for them to have anyone wanting a tour to be admitted and escorted around. The vaccine is not a total guarantee of immediate or lasting immunity. Whichever company is doing this does not have the best interests of their staff or their customers in mind.

@shoptastic wrote:

@sandyf wrote:

The mystery shop companies can not track every county in the country and what their current pandemic rules are, esp since sometimes they change rapidly. So they throw the jobs out there and expect those that can and are willing will take them.
I could see it being too burdensome to do that, but ACL could have also stipulated to the client that during this "sensitive time" of the pandemic, the company believes it is in the best interest of public health to not have shops done in nursing homes that have not yet gone through a vaccination process. That would place the burden on the homes, which would be easier to track from the client side.

Are you seeing shops that are in-person? The only senior living shops I see on the ACL boards in the Seattle area are the virtual tour shops. Virtual tours are done from home. You don't actually go in or near the facility, and they are normally handled by the call team, a selected group of shoppers that do phone and virtual shops like that. There were some childcare shops done similarly in Nov and Dec, all virtual tours from home.

Happily shopping the Pacific Northwest. Shopping since 2013

There have definitely been in person shops in my area.

Thank you for all your replies and thoughts on this. A direct quote from the listing: "Please do not accept this shop if you are unable to do an in person tour. If the location is allowing in person tours at this time you MUST accept an in person tour."

My feelings are this population is the most vulnerable to DEATH and for the client and MSC to put business before public health is reprehensible. In Washington State they have just begun to vaccinate the first round at some Senior Living places, so no, the residents will have not been thoroughly vaccinated, if at all. I have like ACL for the most part, but I may rethink working for them in the future. Thanks for your input

@buddycocker wrote:

I have like ACL for the most part, but I may rethink working for them in the future. Thanks for your input

If the location is allowing prospective customers to tour, why is it the MS company's fault?

"Most vulnerable to death" didn't mean anything to you?

The reason why the clients (the nursing home chains) are ordering mystery shops is sadly obvious:

Beds are empty because their occupants have died from COVID-19, and profitability is down as a result.

The sales consultants are charged with refilling those beds to increase profits.

If that isn’t a horrific scenario (and reason to put mystery shoppers in contact with vulnerable residents), I don’t know what is. I am sick at the thought of both ACL and their clients (I’ve received emails for other states, not just WA) doing this to turn a profit.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2021 08:57AM by ColoKate63.

I have seen these shops at other companies too..

Could it be they are being mystery shopped to make sure they are using the correct measures to help prevent the COVID spread?

For instance, are the people doing the tours wearing masks, hand sanitizer and social distancing. Are the facilities disinfecting hard surfaces that are being touched often, etc, etc. Are they doing onsite virtual tours verses walking tours?

I understand the need for profits. But what I don't understand is, with the easy availability to do Zoom (or other similar apps) live chats, why aren't all nursing homes or LTCFs doing virtual tours for now? I know there are some disadvantages with virtual tours....can't tell if there are any untoward smells, can't see into all the rooms, etc, but it does give you a pretty good view of the facility. You can still ask questions and watch the facial reactions to see if you're getting the answers you really need.

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