Cambridge Caregivers COO Ernie Cote ferried caregivers from home to critical shifts during the winter storm, accompanied by his furry sidekick Stitch.
When the Weather Turns Dangerous, Care Doesn’t Stop
When a winter storm swept across North Texas on Saturday, Jan. 24, weather forecasters urged the public to stay home.
Roads turned into sheets of ice. Temperatures plummeted. Schools and offices closed.
But for first responders and those who provide vital care, staying home was not an option. As the leadership and staff of Cambridge Caregivers quickly recognized, this was not a time to pause operations. It was time to lean in.
That meant careful planning and “all hands on deck.” Cambridge CEO Adam Lampert and COO Ernie Cote spent much of the weekend personally driving caregivers to and from essential shifts.
“We have clients whose needs don’t stop just because of inclement weather,” Adam said. “Our clients trust us, and we never take that trust lightly.”
Adam was out navigating dangerous roads much of the weekend, making sure caregivers reached clients whose needs were critical. At one point, he stopped to assist a nurse stranded near Medical City Hospital. Along with another passerby, he helped push her car out of traffic.
“These are the people who were out in this weather,” Adam said. “First responders, nurses and other people whose job it is to take care of others.”
Ernie was on the road for hours Saturday and again on Monday, “sliding much of the way,” picking up caregivers at their homes and dropping them at client residences, or taking them back home.
One caregiver was on the phone with her client when Ernie arrived to pick her up.
“My Uber is here,” she told the client — not realizing Cambridge’s COO was at the wheel. Ernie just smiled and went along with it.
Not Closed for Business
At least one competitor, another Dallas-based in-home caregiving agency, simply closed during the storm. Families were told, “Sorry, we can’t send anyone today.”
Cambridge took a different approach. Before the storm arrived, a crisis team led by Director of Operations Lindsay Feldman identified the most critical situations.
“‘Priority’ is a tricky word because every single client is always a priority for us,” Lindsay said. “But we had to focus first on clients who truly could not be left alone. Then we worked with other families as best we could.”
Lindsay noted that some families engage Cambridge Caregivers to provide transportation or companionship for their loved ones. While that work is important and enriching, most of those shifts could be postponed for a few days.
Other families rely on Cambridge Caregivers to provide essential care. For clients living with dementia, for example, being left alone can quickly become dangerous. Confusion can lead to unsafe decisions, such as leaving a pan on the stove or wandering outside in hazardous conditions. Others require daily personal care, such as incontinence support or colostomy bag changes, which must be handled properly and on schedule by trained caregivers. Those critical engagements were identified and prioritized. From there, schedulers, operations staff and leadership worked together to allocate limited resources across a wide geographic area spanning much of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.
“It required real-time logistics and constant communication,” Lindsay said. “But that’s what our team does, because we know our families rely on us.”
Caregivers Who Stayed
While Ernie and Adam were on the road, many caregivers took extraordinary steps to ensure uninterrupted care, some on their own initiative, in collaboration with families and the scheduling team.
In Fort Worth, caregiver Monique stayed overnight with her client both Saturday and Sunday, ensuring the client’s care was never interrupted. (“I can’t think of a better person to be snowed in with,” said Rachel O’Brien, Community Liaison in the Fort Worth office.)
Another caregiver, Jessica, stayed with her client from Friday night, before the storm hit, all the way through Monday afternoon.
In Dallas, Community Liaison Lisa Kramer Morgan shared the story of caregiver Amina, who carefully followed the forecast and planned ahead.
“She was worried about the client, so she offered to stay over the weekend, until Tuesday evening,” Lisa said. “The client wanted her to stay and agreed to pay the overtime.”
When Adam picked up caregiver Cleo at her home, she was so excited that she danced out to his car. She also toted a large suitcase, planning to stay several nights if necessary.
Absorbing the Cost
Cambridge also arranged paid transportation whenever possible, even though rates were at a premium.
“We used Uber and Lyft when they were available,” Adam said. “But the ride services were totally challenged. Many drivers backed out, and the fares were extremely high.”
Cambridge absorbed many of the additional costs incurred during the storm.
“Some agencies just said, ‘We’re closed,’” Adam said. “We didn’t do that. We spent the time and money to solve as many of the logistical challenges as possible, so that we could meet our clients’ needs. I see that as an investment in our reputation and in both our clients and our caregivers.”
Lindsay noted that the winter storm posed challenges not only in serving clients but also in supporting caregivers who rely on consistent shifts to support their families. Input from schedulers who once worked as caregivers themselves helped keep that perspective front and center.
“Our schedulers who have worked as caregivers know what it means to miss shifts for several days,” Lindsay said. “They take their responsibility to our caregivers very seriously, because they’ve been there themselves.”
A History of Showing Up
For Adam, stepping in during dangerous weather is nothing new. During another winter storm in 2022, he stopped to help a stranded driver — only to discover that the driver was actually a Cambridge employee. Because of COVID-19 concerns at the time, Adam had not yet met the caregiver, Ade, in person, and she had no idea that the person helping her was the company’s CEO.
Now, most caregivers meet Adam during orientation. But his willingness to do whatever it takes to support caregivers and clients remains unchanged.
“This is our culture,” Lindsay said. “We have staff caring for our clients, but we also have leadership that cares for our staff. That thread runs through everything we do.”