K4Connect Seniors ‘Hotline’ Receives Boost from Bandwidth to Assist with Pandemic Needs

Through our partnership, we can bring K4Community Hotline, an effective and simple tool for critical senior living communications during COVID-19 and beyond, across the nation.

June 17, 2020

RALEIGH — K4Connect is teaming up with software communications firm Bandwidth to deliver a newly enhanced “hotline” for its staff and residents.

The Raleigh startup, which creates technology solutions for older adults and individuals with disabilities, is leveraging the Bandwidth API and telecom platform to build and manage its K4Community Hotline.

The recorded phone message keeps residents, their families, and community staff constantly updated with the latest, including safety protocols, visitation policies, and other information like dining menus and virtual or socially-distanced activities.

Since the feature’s initial release this past March 20, K4Connect said the hotlines are averaging over 280 calls per day.

“This is how K4Community Hotline was created and we’re glad to see communities valuing it,” said K4Connect CEO and co-founder Scott Moody, in a statement.

Scott Moody of K4Connect, talks to a resident at The Cardinal, where technology is custom designed for seniors to engage and enjoy.

“This solution enables us to continue supporting the industry with an incredibly efficient and easy-to-use tool as it prepares for the anticipated second wave of COVID-19 impact in the fall,” Carl Tarbell, executive director of Masonic Village at Burlington, said the hotline has been a “lifeline” to families, residents, and staff members. “It has given our team the ability to update each group with daily updates and critical information. The impact has been immeasurable,” he said.

RALEIGH NATIVES COLLABORATING

In recent years, K4Connect has become one of the fastest-growing companies in the Triangle. It currently serves tens of thousands of residents at over 800 continuing care, independent living, assisted living and memory care communities across the nation.

The Bandwidth team at Nasdaq

Bandwidth is also a big success story from the Triangle. Founded in 1999 by attorney-turned-entrepreneur David Morken in a Raleigh spare bedroom more, the firm went public in 2017 valued at around $300 million. Last year, it hit the $2 billion mark. Companies like Google, Microsoft, Rover and Zoom use Bandwidth’s APIs to easily embed voice, messaging and 911 access into software and applications.

“Given that they are also Raleigh natives, we were eager to find a way to work together,” said Adam Covati, vice president of Research & Development at Bandwidth. “We’d been in talks previously, and after K4Connect built the prototype for the hotline, partnering with Bandwidth emerged as a natural choice. Their communities’ need for local numbers made our national coverage incredibly appealing. Plus, they needed a long-term provider they could trust as they continue to grow, and our customer-focused team helped them find the easiest way to get the K4Community Hotline up and running.”


Read the article from WRAL TechWire, here!

Bandwidth and K4Connect Partner to Deliver Critical Communications Tool for Senior Living Communities; Release Enhanced K4Community Hotline

Raleigh companies team up to keep older adults, their families, and senior living staff connected during COVID-19 and beyond

RALEIGH, N.C., June 17, 2020Bandwidth Inc. (NASDAQ: BAND), a software company focused on communications for the enterprise, and K4Connect, a mission-driven technology company that integrates the best in technology to serve and empower older adults and individuals living with disabilities, announced today a collaboration to deliver a newly enhanced critical COVID-19 communications tool to senior living communities – K4Community Hotline. K4Community Hotline is a recorded phone message feature that keeps residents, their families, and community staff constantly updated with the latest community information. K4Connect is leveraging the Bandwidth API and telecom platform to swiftly build, deliver, and manage this solution at scale. 

The senior living industry is continuing to manage the challenges brought on by COVID-19, and most essential is keeping residents and their families informed and connected as strict quarantine protocols continue. Technology has quickly emerged as an avenue to diversifying and expanding these communications both within and outside of communities. With K4Community Hotline, residents and families have 24/7 access to the latest information and caregiver stress is reduced as the hotline augments high volumes of daily inbound and outbound informational calls. Since the feature’s initial release this past March, 20 K4Connect senior living communities have activated hotlines and are averaging over 280 calls per day. 

“In early March we anticipated the Coronavirus would impact senior living like nothing we’d seen before, so we quickly pivoted to accelerate high impact solutions that provide communities immediate resources and relief. This is how K4Community Hotline was created and we’re glad to see communities valuing it,” said K4Connect CEO and Co-Founder, Scott Moody. “Leveraging Bandwidth’s enterprise communications expertise to deliver and manage this solution enables us to continue supporting the industry with an incredibly efficient and easy-to-use tool as it prepares for the anticipated second wave of COVID-19 impact in the fall.”

K4Connect customers are using the hotline feature to promptly deliver key communications including safety protocols, visitation policies, and daily community updates such as dining menus and virtual or socially-distanced activities. As the solution is fully managed outside of the community, no burden is placed on staff teams to configure or manage the hotline; staff need only update the recorded message with the latest information. “The K4Community Hotline has simply been our lifeline to families, residents, and staff members. It has given our team the ability to update each group with daily updates and critical information. The impact has been immeasurable,” said Carl Tarbell, executive director of Masonic Village at Burlington.

“K4Connect is a great group with an amazing mission,” said Adam Covati, Vice President of Research & Development at Bandwidth. “Given that they are also Raleigh natives, we were eager to find a way to work together. We’d been in talks previously, and after K4Connect built the prototype for the hotline, partnering with Bandwidth emerged as a natural choice. Their communities’ need for local numbers made our national coverage incredibly appealing. Plus, they needed a long-term provider they could trust as they continue to grow, and our customer-focused team helped them find the easiest way to get the K4Community Hotline up and running. We love what K4Connect is doing and look forward to a long partnership together.” 

For more information about K4Community Hotline, you can reach out to the K4Connect team at Hotline@K4Connect.com. K4Connect is the leading provider of enterprise-grade senior living technology solutions, currently serving tens of thousands of residents at over 800 premier continuing care, independent living, assisted living and memory care communities across the nation. The company’s flagship solution, K4Community, brings together the best in technology to serve residents, staff and operators alike. 


About Bandwidth:

Bandwidth (NASDAQ: BAND) is a software company focused on communications for the enterprise. Companies like Google, Microsoft, Cisco, Zoom and Ring Central use Bandwidth’s APIs to easily embed voice, messaging and 911 access into software and applications. Bandwidth is the first and only CPaaS provider offering a robust selection of communications APIs built around their own nationwide IP voice network – one of the largest in the nation. More information available at www.bandwidth.com.

About K4Connect:

K4Connect is a mission-driven technology company that integrates the best in technology to serve and empower older adults and individuals living with disabilities, together with the people, communities and organizations that also serve them. We believe the future of senior living is in enabling Smart Senior Living Communities through tech-based solutions that truly impact the lives of older adults, wherever they live. Our premier solution, K4Community, provides smart products and features across Home, Wellness, and Engagement for residents, and Productivity, Building, and Insight for staff and operators. 

Based in Raleigh, N.C., K4Connect is currently serving tens of thousands of senior living residents and staff at over 800 continuing care, independent living, assisted living and memory care communities across the nation. For more information, please visit www.k4connect.com.