WEB ONLY PHOTO Business Digest Tyler Morning Telegraph stock 3.jpg

Pentecom receives HUBZone Certification

Pentecom’s CEO Kathy Rainbolt recently announced the company achieved HUBZone certification by the Small Business Administration (SBA). A HUBZone, short for Historically Underutilized Business Zone, is designed to promote job creation and small business growth.

HUBZone businesses are eligible to compete for the program’s set-aside contracts, and participants get preference in full and open contract competitions, According to the SBA website.

“With the SBA HUBZone certification comes additional federal contracting opportunities for Pentecom,” Rainbolt said. “Adding this new designation to our current qualifications strengthens our competitiveness significantly. More contracts, particularly large ones, means Pentecom will hire more people.”

Pentecom is now able to receive sole-source contracts up to $4.5 million, Rainbolt explained.

Another interesting aspect of the program is that the federal government has a goal of awarding three percent of acquisitions to HUBZone businesses.

The 3 percent goal has not yet been achieved by the government as a whole, although a few individual agencies have met the goal in certain fiscal years, according to a Congregational Research Service Report dated June 15, 2023.

Pentecom, a Texas-based technical data consulting and document conversion company began operations in Palestine, Texas, in 1997. The company has grown considerably over the last few years, more than doubling its employment. A satellite office was opened in Scottsboro, Ala., in 2020. The company has a roster of private and military customers.

The SBA released newly drawn HUBZone maps in July 2023, prompting the company to apply for the rigorous review process leading to certification.

In the company’s early days, Pentecom had success as a HUBZone certified business, said Pentecom’s Chief Operations Officer Caleb Byrd.

“Over the years, as the maps were redrawn, the boundaries no longer included us,” he said. “Being back in a HUBZone is good news for Pentecom.”

Both of Pentecom’s offices are in HUBZones.

HUBZone program participants must be certified by SBA. Requirements include being a small business according with 51 percent or greater ownership by U.S. citizens. In addition, the company’s main office must be located in a HUBZone and at least 35 percent of its employees must live in a HUBZone. Firms are required to recertify annually.

“We’ve always been proud of our small-town values and the many talented people who live and work with Pentecom. We will work hard to take full advantage of this new opportunity to improve employment where we are invested,” Rainbolt said.

Traditions Health Tyler branch honored

Traditions Health’s home health branch in Tyler has been recognized by Strategic Healthcare Programs (SHP) as a “Superior Performer” for achieving an overall patient satisfaction score that ranked in the top 20 percent of all eligible SHP clients for the 2022 calendar year.

“There are many benchmarks that measure the quality of care we provide, but a patient satisfaction award is the highest form of recognition. It reflects the commitment our teams have to providing quality, compassionate, patient-centric care,” said Tracy Cardin, RN, ACNP, SFHM, Senior Vice President of Clinical Services.

The annual SHPBest award program was created to acknowledge home health agencies that consistently provide high-quality service to their patients. The 2022 award recipients were determined by reviewing and ranking the overall satisfaction score for more than 3,200 home health providers.

“SHP is very excited to have the opportunity to recognize the hard work and dedication of our top performing customers with the annual SHPBest awards. We commend these organizations for their determination to provide top-notch care to the patients and caregivers that they serve”, said Kevin Vogel, President of SHP.

“Our mission has always been to provide superior quality in-home health care that includes home health, hospice, and palliative care to our communities, and this award is not only a reflection of that commitment but a testament to the incredible employees we have on staff,” said David Klementz, President and CEO of Traditions Health.

With the largest HHCAHPS benchmark in the nation, SHP is in a unique position to identify and recognize organizations that have made patient satisfaction a priority and have been rewarded for their efforts with high marks on the HHCAHPS survey.

UT Health welcomes Jennie Zheng

UT Health East Texas is expanding family medicine services in Bullard with the addition of Jennie Zheng, MD. Dr. Zheng is accepting patients of all ages, as this allows her to care for the whole family and build long-term relationships in her community. In addition to English, Dr. Zheng is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese, Fujianese and knows basic Spanish.

Dr. Zheng chose healthcare because she wanted to give back to the community and broaden her scope of knowledge. She finds good listening skills are important when treating her patients. Her favorite quote, “Listen to your patient, he is telling you the diagnosis,” resonates with her clinical practice.

Dr. Jennie Zheng is welcoming patients at 435 N. Doctor M. Roper Pkwy. in Bullard. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 903-894-3991.