Operations &amp; Strategy

September 10, 2020

Rashes are Easy, Part 2 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

His client had developed redness over her eyelids. Could I come?

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

September 10, 2020

Graduate Hotels® Launches Graduate Cares® Program

As Graduate Hotels continues to reopen locations across the country, the company has taken additional steps to ensure the health and safety of its guests and associates through its Graduate Cares® program. Created in partnership with top medical professionals at the Cleveland Clinic and cleaning and disinfection experts from P&G Professional, the away-from-home division of Procter & Gamble, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), Graduate Cares was designed to meet the standards of the industry's most trusted experts and rethinks the end-to-end cleaning and guest interaction procedures.

AJ Capital Partners

September 3, 2020

Rashes are Easy, Part 1 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

A woman at a Sunset Strip hotel had seen a doctor for an allergic rash, and now she wasn't feeling right. Rashes are easy, and her symptoms were probably medication side-effects, so I expected no problem. That seemed to be the case, and she agreed to stop the medicine.

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

August 27, 2020

Googling a Hotel Doctor - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

If you get sick in a local hotel, you might google "hotel doctor" and the city. In Los Angeles my name turns up but only with links to my blog. I don't have a web site. Nor do my long-established competitors.

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

August 26, 2020

Survey: Frequent Travelers Cite Priorities For Hotel Stays

A new national survey commissioned by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) conducted by Morning Consult shows that a number of improvements to health and sanitation protocol at U.S. hotels would have considerable impact on guests' comfort levels staying there, with the top three including face coverings for employees (87% a lot/some impact) and guests (85%), suspending daily housekeeping of rooms (86%), and utilizing technology to reduce direct contact (85%), are the top priorities among frequent travelers to staying in hotels during this pandemic. These priorities align with AHLA's Safe Stay Guest Checklist and CDC recommendations distributed on behalf of the industry.

AH&LA

External Article

August 25, 2020

EPA To Approve American Airlines Use Of Surface Coating To Fight Coronavirus

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is set to announce on Monday it will issue an emergency exemption to the state of Texas permitting it to allow American Airlines to use a new surface coating that kills coronaviruses for up to seven days, sources briefed on the matter said.

cnbc.com

Why Hospitality Net Leads B2B in Hospitality

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Hospitality Net

August 20, 2020

More Competition - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

A caller from the Airport Hilton asked how much I charged. This is often the first question I hear. If I answer immediately, the guest is likely to thank me and hang up. So my first response is that phone calls are free and might be all he or she needs. What's the problem?....

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

August 19, 2020

Travel Channel Star & Industry Expert Anthony Melchiorri Calls on Congress to Save Hotel Industry

Anthony Melchiorri, CEO of Argeo Hospitality, host of Travel Channel's Hotel Impossible and one of the hospitality industry's top podcast, Anthony Melchiorri Live, appealed to Congress to address the liquidity crisis facing the nation's hotel owners as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

AAHOA

August 17, 2020

Choice Hotels' Midscale And Upper Midscale Brands Outpace Industry In First Half Of 2020

Known for their segment leadership, all of Choice Hotels International, Inc.'s (NYSE: CHH) popular select service midscale and upper midscale brands saw material year-over-year revenue per available room (RevPAR) and average daily rate (ADR) index gains versus local competitors through the second quarter of 2020. The company expects this trend to continue as leisure travel bounces back faster than business travel amidst the pandemic environment, with leisure travel now comprising over 80% of room nights across the Choice Hotels portfolio.

Choice

August 12, 2020

I Have Syphilis - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

Those were the first words from a young flight attendant in a hotel room as soon as we had exchanged greetings.

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

World Panel Housekeeping in Hospitality

July 28, 2020

New York’s M&R Hotel Management, Magnuson Hotels rebrand 285 room New Jersey conference center

M&R Hotel Management, a top US management company with operations across 5 states, has selected Magnuson Hotels, the fast-growing franchise alternative, to rebrand its 285 room Magnuson Grand & Conference Center Somerset-Bridgewater located in New Jersey.

Magnuson Hotels

Somerset, New Jersey, United States

HN Original

Does the post-COVID era require a different skillset from housekeepers?

By Soenke Weiss

Expert Views (7)

July 27, 2020

Craig Coughlin, Chief Executive Officer, LUXXE Outsourced Hotel Services

I have always believed that a well organized and vigilant housekeeping department could pass any hygiene test. Detailed training and record-keeping is the key and utilizing technology platforms to record this information is critical.

Soenke Weiss, Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Optii Solutions Pty Ltd, Optii

The sudden changes and swift momentum triggered by COVID-19 have placed many housekeepers outside of their comfort zone without advance warning. Just like other department heads, they suddenly found themselves having to deal with a situation they were not trained, nor prepared for.

Anemoon Schepel, Senior Lecturer, Hotelschool The Hague

Aside from skills relating to hygiene and perhaps even technology and hygiene, I believe the most important skill during this pandemic for housekeeping, but anyone for that matter, is resilience. To have resilience yourself, but also resilient leadership is vital to keep yourself, your department and your organisation going.

View all Answers

July 17, 2020

Americans Are Hitting the Roads and Heading to National Parks

Since the beginning of the pandemic, key consumer sentiment surveys have indicated that Americans will hit the road this summer and head to destinations that allow for physical distancing, such as national parks.

U.S. Travel Association

July 16, 2020

During the early months of 2020, once it was apparent that the novel coronavirus (COVID19) was a global pandemic, people everywhere started to think of creative solutions to help ease the problems of the virus. One solution was to convert hotels into hospitals (H2H ©) and into housing for healthcare workers. With the virus halting travel, many hotels were left close to vacant. On top of that, many healthcare professionals were worried about traveling back and forth between work and home, at the risk of infecting their household.

By Fred DeMicco, Executive Director (2019-2024), Full Professor in the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management, the W.A. Franke College of Business, Northern Arizona University

Why Hospitality Net Leads B2B in Hospitality

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Hospitality Net

July 15, 2020

I Prefer Vomiting and Diarrhea - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

Two women at the Holiday Inn were ill. The mother suffered low abdominal pain with vomiting and diarrhea. It seemed like the usual stomach flu. I assured her that it wouldn't last long and gave medication.

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor

External Article

July 13, 2020

Airline Passengers Are Finding 'Creative Ways' To Remove Masks, American Pilot Says

American Airlines pilot Dennis Tajer has taken several flights during the coronavirus pandemic, both in the cockpit and as a union official, and has noticed something unsettling lately: passengers removing their masks for more than eating or drinking.

USA TODAY

July 8, 2020

Study: SF Cleaning Ordinance To Cost Hotels $47 Million

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors' Healthy Buildings ordinance will cost San Francisco's 215 hotels $220,000 each adding more than $47 million in annual industry costs, extending hotel closures and extending joblessness for 15,000 employees, according to an independent analysis of the ordinance's cleaning mandates.

CH&LA

California, United States

July 7, 2020

Long Time No See - The Life of a Hotel Doctor

"Hey, Doctor! It's been a while." I love it when parking valets recognize me. That was the good news. The 'it's been a while' was not so good.

By Mike Oppenheim, MD, Mike Oppenheim M.D. - The Hotel Doctor