Former Epic exec's company screening homeless, shelter residents for COVID-19

Bre Loughlin, RN, left her post as a nursing innovation and product lead at Epic in May to launch a company that screens online for COVID-19 and offers other virtual nursing services, according to an Aug. 31 Wisconsin State Journal report. 

As CEO of Nurse Disrupted, Ms. Loughlin and co-founder Tracy Zvenyach, RN, have been leading a team of nurses that provide COVID-19 screening to Wisconsin-based Porchlight's homeless shelter for men and the Salvation Army's women's shelter since late March and May, respectively. 

"I’m a nurse, and I’m a technology person,” Ms. Loughlin told the publication. “We can take two tablets and a WiFi and roll out an evidence-based protocol.”

For the screenings, one nurse uses a tablet to ask initial questions and record responses while offering prevention tips. Another is available to talk with shelter guests who reporting having symptoms. Nurses “have that ability to observe and ask for a little more information if needed,” Ms. Loughlin said. 

Fon du Lac, Wis.-based Marian University nursing students have helped with the COVID-19 screenings at the homeless shelters, which allows them to log hours needed for their degrees. Nurse Disrupted has set up similar arrangements with Marquette University, UW-Milwaukee, Edgewood College and Madison Area Technical College. 

Ms. Loughlin and Ms. Zvenyach are looking to expand their online COVID-19 screening business by working with more homeless shelters and talking to campuses and businesses about providing response planning and employee screening. Long term, they said they see a future for Nurse Disrupted providing virtual nursing services in places such as public schools and prisons to help alleviate nurse shortages. 

 

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