No one has gone unaffected during this COVID-19 pandemic. Across the world, the fight against the virus has waged on, and we at Santander Consumer USA are here in the struggle with our customers and dealers.
For Senior Associate Scott Isaacson, the struggle hit both at work and at home. Earlier this year, Scott scheduled an important triple bypass surgery for his father. While dealing with a major surgery is already a stress within itself, the situation elevated to another level as Scott and his family could not visit his father in the hospital due to social distancing measures.
“When the lockdown went into place, the hospital told us we were not going to be able to see him,” Scott said. “In fact, my mom couldn’t be there for him before or after the surgery. She had to be put in a special room where she couldn’t talk to my dad. It was tough on her.”
Post-surgery, as his father recovered, Scott’s daughter, Mackenzie, came up with an idea to not just call her grandad, but also create special decorative signs to tape to his first-floor hospital window. Mackenzie’s work carried on through her grandfather’s hospital stay. With each passing day, Scott’s father would look out the window to find a new and encouraging decoration from his granddaughter.
“She’s got a very creative mind,” Scott said. “It really made my father feel good. There were times when he wouldn’t be doing so hot, and then he would see those pictures, and they’d help him through it.”
Word of Mackenzie’s kindness spread throughout the hospital – so much so that the local Fox news picked it up as a story of hope during such difficult times.
As Scott’s father prepared for surgery, one of the Texas call centers at Santander Consumer USA requested for volunteers to assist with transitioning associates to work from home as a result of COVID-19. Scott was happy to help.
“Getting to do that actually kept my mind off the surgery,” Scott remembered. “It actually helped keep the stress away a little bit.”
Through Scott and the team of volunteers, the call center was able to safely transition employees to work-from-home. Scott and the team also maintained social distancing measures during this initiative.
As the volunteers assisted with the transition, the work and opportunity to help customers during this time provided some personal relief as Scott awaited for his father’s results. Additionally, Scott’s manager and co-workers consistently checked on him to see what the latest news was on his father, continuously encouraging and keeping him in their thoughts.
“One co-worker in particular gave me a lot of hope,” Scott said. “With the work I got to do, I think his perspective lessened my anxieties for the next few days as my dad recovered.”
Scott’s father’s surgery was a success, as was the ensuing rehabilitation. Scott continues on with his work ensuring that all work-from-home capabilities run smoothly. Today, he has his father back home, and all of his daughter’s signs fill the walls.
