Based in Palm Beach, FL, the Coronavirus Crisis Emergency Response Group was created to provide proven business continuity solutions for industry and government to prepare, respond and recover from public health threats such as the novel coronavirus (COVID19). One of its overarching goals is to help you return your facility to operating status as quickly as possible and then work on solutions to maximize financial recovery.
“We were formed to specifically address this health threat as it relates to this pandemic,” says Dr. Attila J. Hertelendy, President and CEO of Coronavirus Crisis Emergency Response Group.
“Many of the individuals in our company are leading experts globally who have responded to previous health crises such as MERS, SARS, H1N1, and Ebola.”
Prior to starting the Coronavirus Crisis Emergency Response Group, Dr. Hertelendy worked as an emergency management advisor for industries such as large oil and petrochemical companies Aramco and SABIC in Saudi Arabia, and foreign governments including the Ministry of Health in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, before moving into healthcare administration, where he led the teams responsible for emergency departments, ICUs and trauma services and emergency medical services.
Originally from Alberta, Canada, Dr. Hertelendy received a Ph.D. in Clinical Health Sciences with a specialization in healthcare administration from the medical school at the University of Mississippi. He also received a master’s degree in Healthcare Administration from Charles Sturt University in Australia and a master’s degree in Biomedical Science from the University of Mississippi. Prior to joining FIU, he was the Director of the Emergency Health Services Program in the School of Medicine and a Professor at George Washington University in Washington, DC.
The company is also comprised of physicians who are working as consultants to the WHO, CDC, Public Health England, as well as emergency managers who have expertise in advising on mass gatherings, such as the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and the upcoming FIFA® 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Its mission is to provide the most up-to-date, accurate, science-based advice on how to prepare for, respond to and recover from any large spread virus including COVID-19. They will support the WHO and all national governmental public health agencies and all of its clients in providing exceptional professional services during this current emergency and beyond.
According to Dr. Hertelendy, the company’s goal is to help ensure that businesses and government entities can maintain continuity of operations. This includes preparedness, training, development and exercising of a crisis management plans and helping businesses recover and return to the new normal post COVID-19. They also support businesses to manage the psychosocial and mental well-being of a traumatic event such as a pandemic level crisis.
“In terms of planning preparedness, we can review an organization’s plans,” says Dr. Hertelendy. “We specifically review their gap analysis which many organizations have challenges with. We help them identify that gap, work with them to be able to figure out exactly how they’re going to manage that gap and provide expert advice so that they are in compliance with all emergency management regulations, specifically those tied to CMS or Joint Commission accreditation.”
Long after this is over healthcare organizations will need help with training and exercises to test their readiness for the next crisis. With table top and full-scale exercise, the company helps its clients determine whether their emergency preparedness plans will meet the test of a real world event. They follow Department of Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Protocol (HSEEP) with the goal of exposing weaknesses in existing operation plans to inspire change.
To address the current health threat to healthcare organizations in South Florida, Hertelendy says one of the ways they can help is with surge capacity contingency strategies, crisis communication, emergency operations staffing support and planning to maximize financial recovery post disaster. “We can work in their EOCs, help them stand up EOCs if they don’t have that expertise, and provide that support 24/7,” he says.
The company also offers:
• Incident response and management
• Crisis and risk communication
• Emergency preparedness evaluation and exercises
• Education and training,
• Psychosocial and mental health support for employees
Coronavirus Crisis Emergency Response Group is also helping organizations implement a telehealth strategy. In fact, it recently partnered with a company that is able to deliver a telehealth strategy nationwide through its organization. The new platform is expected to debut April 1, according to Dr. Hertelendy.
What distinguishes their company, he stresses, is its real world experience.
“What hospital administrators and healthcare providers want is someone established they can call now and who would be available,” he adds. “We’re available to help them, and we’ve been there and done that. We’re not being brought into a situation and then trying to figure it out ourselves.”
