On Time Is On Brand: Why Every Minute Matters

Think about the last time you were kept waiting. A very important meeting. A date. A birthday party. A dinner reservation with someone you love. Now think about how it felt to sit there, checking the clock, wondering if you'd been forgotten.

That feeling doesn't disappear just because the setting is a nursing station instead of a restaurant. It's the same feeling an off-going Associate has when their relief is late.

We all know things happen. Life is unpredictable, and Coastal Care has never expected perfection. But there's an important difference between the occasional, unavoidable delay and what our industry calls a "repeat late." One is life. The other is a pattern — and patterns communicate something, whether we mean them to or not.

Someone Is Always Waiting

Every time an Associate arrives late to a shift, someone is standing there waiting for them: a resident who needs care, an off-going Associate who wants to go home to their own family, and the facility's management and leadership, who are counting on Coastal Care to show up as promised.

The moment an Associate is late, they've placed themselves — and their shift — in a negative light. It doesn't erase the great care they'll go on to provide that day, but it does gray the first impression, and first impressions carry weight.

5-Star shifts begin on time, or a few minutes early. Arriving early isn't about being anxious or overeager — it's about respect. Respect for the Associate you're relieving. Respect for the residents in your care. Respect for the facility's leadership and for the Coastal Care team that scheduled you because they trusted you'd be there.

Running Late Once In a While? Here's What To Do

Life happens — traffic, car trouble, a sick child. For those one-off situations, Coastal Care has made it simple:

• Open the Coastal Care app and mark that you'll be arriving late.
• The facility is automatically notified — no waiting, no guesswork on their end.
• If you call your Account Manager instead, we will also notify the facility on your behalf.

To keep reporting fast and consistent for everyone, we ask that late notifications be submitted directly through the app whenever possible.

What Counts as a "Repeat Late"?

Arriving late three (3) or more times moves an Associate into repeat late territory — and at that point, it's no longer viewed as an isolated incident. It becomes a mark against professionalism.

Managers, fellow CMTs, CNAs, LPNs, RNs, Staffing Coordinators, ADONs, and DONs may never say it to your face. But make no mistake — the impression is made, and it's remembered.

It's rare for an Associate to be removed from a facility's schedule (DNR'd) solely for repeat lates. What we do see far more often is that late Associates get quietly flagged for closer performance review, and they lose their shot at something great: our monthly 5-Star recognition.

Protecting the Shine: Our Updated Late Policy

Coastal Care's reputation is built shift by shift, and on-time performance is a cornerstone of that reputation. To keep Coastal Care shining bright for our facility partners and to give every Associate a fair chance to earn 5-Star recognition, we're introducing an updated late policy:

If an Associate is late more than five (5) times — even by as little as five (5) minutes — they will be moved to Hold status.

Hold status gives dependable, on-time Associates the opportunity to pick up more shifts, while giving those who've been placed on hold the chance to reset their habits before returning to full scheduling privileges.

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We Believe You Can Shine

This policy is about excellence — it's about protecting what makes Coastal Care different. Our facility partners trust us because our Associates show up, on time, ready to care. Every Associate who walks in early, clocks in on time, and treats the shift before them with respect is helping build that reputation, one shift at a time.

We love every one of our Associates, and we believe in every one of you. Be the Associate who chooses to shine — because when you shine, Coastal Care shines, and together, we can all be 5-Star.

Questions about the late policy or how to mark a late arrival in the app? Reach out to your Account Manager — we're here to help you shine.

Love, Care, Serve

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