I Don’t Do Adderall - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
"A guest at the Century Plaza wants his Adderall refilled. Can you go?" asked someone from the office of a local concierge doctor.
Operations & Strategy
Bill Gates Says More Than 50% Of Business Travel Will Disappear In Post-Coronavirus World
The coronavirus will fundamentally alter the way people travel for and conduct business, even after the pandemic is over, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said Tuesday.
A Dog-Eat-Dog Business, Part 6 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
People often ask what sort of contract I had with hotels. The answer is none. Staff called because I was easy to reach and quick to respond. Once they called a few times, they were not inclined to change.
Bill Gates Predicts Business Travel Will Decrease by 50% Post-COVID-19
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates predicts that over 50% of business travel will disappear in the post-coronavirus working world. On top of that, he also predicts that "30% of days in the office will disappear." Gates made his predictions in an interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin during the New York Times' Dealbook conference on Tuesday. He added that from now on there will be a "very high threshold" for traveling to carry out business meetings.
U.S. Travel: Do Your Part for Public Health If You Choose to Travel for the Holidays
With tens of millions of Americans expected to travel for Thanksgiving next week despite spiking COVID-19 infection numbers nationwide, the U.S. Travel Association on Thursday released an update to its guidance for healthy and safe travel—along with a plea for everyone to closely heed recommended best practices if traveling.
How Much Does An Emergency Room Cost? - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
A lady had been vomiting for three days. She had felt better that morning but then relapsed. She sounded weary.
Losing the Chateau Marmont - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
The Chateau Marmont is a funky art-deco apartment converted to a hotel in the 1930s with nine nearby cottages acquired during the 1940s. John Belushi died in a cottage in 1982, but that was a few years before I became its doctor.
Risk of COVID-19 exposure on planes 'virtually nonexistent' when masked, study shows
United Airlines says the risk of COVID-19 exposure onboard its aircraft is "virtually non-existent" after a new study finds that when masks are worn there is only a 0.003% chance particles from a passenger can enter the passenger's breathing space who is sitting beside them.
Cheating Medicare - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Hearing my fee, the guest announced that he was on Medicare. I explained that I am not a Medicare doctor, so he would have to pay me up front. Unlike most elderly callers, he preferred another source of care, so I gave directions to a local clinic.
Support Grows For Hotel Industry’s Safe Stay; Former CDC, Who Official, & Infectious Diseases Society Of America Endorse Guidelines
Support for the American Hotel & Lodging Association's (AHLA) Safe Stay initiative continues to grow with endorsements coming from leading scientists, physicians and public health experts in epidemiology and infectious disease. The new endorsements come from the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the Association for Linen Management which represents the personnel involved in the textile care industry, as well as a certified industrial hygienist and former infectious diseases epidemiologist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention and World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Murray Cohen.
Expert Views (10)
Tatjana Ahmed, Housekeeping Manager, Hyatt
The revision of cleaning standards in hotels had started immediately with the outbreak of the pandemic as some kind of panic erupted. Traditional cleaning methods and the way rooms are checked and released had to be looked at.Hotel Housekeepers who keep themselves in the loop on new hygiene practices and are pioneers in the testing and evaluation of new cleaning techniques surely could adapt quickly to new cleaning practices.In fact, infection control has been a subject for many years and should have been implemented in hotels a long time ago.
Christoph Hoffmann, Owner & Editor, hsk-knowledge.com UG
Housekeeping professionals always played an important role in delivering the guest journey: behind the scene and guest-facing. While the service delivered by housekeeping professionals in hotels is designed to be invisible - just as cleaning happens by magic, the presence of the housekeeping team as ambassadors of the hotel was always part of the role.
Circa Resort & Casino Implements the InvoTech Uniform System for Contactless Uniform Distribution and Inventory Management
InvoTech Systems Inc. announced the recent implementation of its Uniform System at Circa Resort & Casino. InvoTech Systems is the leading provider of advanced Linen Management, Laundry and Uniform Systems that integrate the latest RFID technology to increase profitability for hotels, resorts, casino operators, sports arenas, convention centers, theme parks and production plants. The InvoTech System installed at Circa Resort & Casino manages the uniform inventory and assignments for 1,300 employees. Circa Resort & Casino joins InvoTech's extensive client portfolio of hotels and casinos worldwide. Click here for more information on InvoTech's Linen, Laundry and Uniform Systems.
A Dog-Eat-Dog Business, Part 4 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Danielle, chief concierge of the Ritz-Carlton, called me when her allergies were acting up, but this wasn't the reason. It was an awkward situation, she explained, but she hoped I'd understand. A guest has complained, I thought. I racked my brain to think who it might be.
She Has a Deal Announces Its Signature Hotel Pitch Competition for Aspiring Women Hotel Owners
She Has a Deal, an education and investment platform for aspiring women hotel investors and developers, announced today its first annual hotel pitch competition taking place on October 24 at the Hilton McLean in Virginia. During the competition, the five finalist teams consisting of 12 women will pitch their strategic hotel projects to industry experts and investors as they vie for $50,000 in deal equity.
Something Better Than the Best - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
She had a fourteen hour flight to Australia, explained a woman with a French accent. Unfortunately, she had thrown her back out again. Would I come and give something to relax her muscles for that long journey? Her doctor always prescribed something that did the trick.
RLH Corporation Launches GuestHouse Extended Stay Brand
RLH Corporation (NYSE:RLH) has relaunched GuestHouse International as GuestHouse Extended Stay, targeting its efforts to meet the demand for longer-term stays with an upper-economy offering ideally suited for conversions. The concept will feature streamlined housekeeping services, community-centric guest amenities, and right-sized brand standards designed to maximize owner return on investment.
An Unwelcome Visitor From the Past
A young man's cough, present for two weeks, had grown worse. He had a fever, and my stethoscope revealed lung noises typical of pneumonia.
The Roger Smith Hotel and the New Working-from-a-Hotel Model
Who is Roger Smith? As the hotel's Director of Marketing and Co-Owner, John Knowles, jocularly explained during our time together, the enigmatic 'Roger' is many things to many people. The personified alias that has given this Midtown Manhattan property its name has always represented a place where great ideas are born and where bold actions are made reality. Now, however, the 136-room Roger Smith Hotel offers an archetypical example of a trendsetting post-COVID adaptation in a major urban center, and hoteliers would be wise to take note.
By Larry Mogelonsky and Adam Mogelonsky
IHG Owners Association Board of Directors Holds In-Person Q3 Meeting at InterContinental Buckhead
The IHG Owners Association, which represents IHG® (InterContinental Hotels Group) franchise hotel owners worldwide, held its Board of Director's third-quarter meeting in person, September 22-23 at the InterContinental® Buckhead in Atlanta, Ga.* The meeting is seen as a significant step towards returning to normal business practices and restoring consumer confidence in business travel.
How a Hotel Doctor is Like a Prostitute - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
After 2013 I made over 50 percent of my hotel visits at the request of national housecall agencies, international travel insurers, airlines, and a sprinkling of miscellaneous sources including other hotel doctors. That was fine with me.