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For more
past HME Excellence Awards winners, click
here
2002
Best Home Medical Equipment Provider
At Lifeplus, familiarity
breeds quality
Lifeplus President April Mason says consistency
is the key to her company's success. "Otherwise,
we're not walking the walk," she said.
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If Lifeplus Inc. were a wheelchair,
it would have a titanium frame, padded leather
seat, magnesium wheels and deluxe casters. In other
words, top of the line. And that’s just where
the company finished in the Home Medical Equipment
category of the HME Excellence Awards. Although
judges said selecting a winner from among the finalists
proved to be a daunting task, Lifeplus demonstrated
an overall consistency that tilted the scales in
its favor.
Lifeplus earned a superlative
rating on many individual components, including
customer service, clinical quality, employee retention,
accreditation, innovation and creative thinking,
marketing, staff development/training, and community
involvement.
“If a company scores high in all of those areas, it is reflected in the
financial performance,” one judge said. “Financials are an unbiased
report card and Lifeplus has earned good marks. They are an excellent company.”
Lifeplus President April Mason says consistency is far from happenstance. It
springs from having a firmly entrenched management team, loyal staff and devotion
to the company’s mission statement.
“We have to show consistency, otherwise we’re not walking the walk,” Mason
said. “We have to be true to what we say our company is. That comes from
following policy and procedure, and because we have had good retention at the
management level, we share the same discipline.”
Mason joined the 25-year-old firm in 1984, when it consisted of four people.
The staff has since grown to approximately 100 people, of whom many are committed
to staying put, she said. It is this retention rate that solidifies the company’s
quest for excellence, she said.
“We foster an environment that fuels individual growth, such as sending
all employees to MED University,” Mason said. “In tandem with that,
we expect 150% from our staff. It sounds cliché, but it’s integral
to our decision making.”
Judges cited the company’s innovation and creative thinking as strong
suits, which Mason says again stems from the camaraderie of a staff that has
been together for a long time.
“We’re creative because our decision making is consultative,” she
said. “Any decision about a new market, new product or market penetration
is made through the group process.”
Among the company’s marketing ideas is a tool for referral sources called
Rapid Referral. The quick reference card contains a list of instructions on
how to expedite the referral process.
Lifeplus also co-hosted a Maine clambake recently with Puritan Bennett to promote
the Helios personal oxygen unit. About 50 people showed up. However, since
the event was promoted to the public through advertising, the numbers could
have been higher — and costlier. Mason shrugged it off. “No risk,
no gain,” she said.
Community involvement — a common theme among this year’s finalists — is
a priority at Lifeplus as well. In particular, judges honed in on the company’s
political activities. “They have a very effective grassroots program,” one
judge said.
Mason, a member of the Seacoast Federation of Republican Women, has arranged
facility site visits from political luminaries, such as former Sen. Bob Smith.
And she recently met President Bush during a swing through New Hampshire.
By utilizing the collective experience of the staff, Lifeplus has managed to
excel in every area of its business, Mason said. And in her view it all stems
from following the mission statement.
“It helps us focus on providing superior products and services to customers
as well as focusing on taking care of our employees,” she said. “It’s
our guide.”
Lifeplus Inc.
Headquarters:
Raymond, N.H.
Age: 25-year-old company
Employees: 100
Accreditation: JCAHO
Memberships: NEMED, The MED Group
Business mix: 54% Medicare, 31% private pay, 9% Medicaid, 6% cash
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