COVID-19 has put its spotlight on the healthcare system and its inefficiencies, whilst leaving a tragic impact on the long-term care home systems and nursing homes. The pandemic produced a significant crisis in care homes and nursing homes, where over 85% of the residents are among the most vulnerable part of the population: the elderly.

As we look towards the second year of the coronavirus pandemic with vaccine rollouts and restrictions, what would be our plans for care home systems? What are the small yet crucial changes that you need to implement to make sure your staff can do their job perfectly? And how does technology can play its part in improving the overall efficiency and quality of care in nursing homes?

But before we go into that, let us take a look at some facts and figures:

• There are now over 15.5 million people aged 60 or over, making up 23% of the UK population.
• There are nearly 18,000 care homes across the UK. About 70 per cent of these are residential care homes, while the remaining 30 per cent are nursing homes.
• The UK care home population is nearly 500,000.
• The UK care home workforce totals nearly 700,000 people.

Coping with the growing demands of a rapidly ageing population is challenging. As the costs of long-term care are projected to rise significantly as the population ages – a concern faced by many countries – the implementation of technological solutions is critical for utilising resources more efficiently and saving costs of care.

The sustainability and efficiency of our nation’s care homes ought to be a great priority, and this blog post explores technology’s role to contribute to this sustainability.

Address Staffing Needs

Staffing has always been the biggest single challenge for the care sector. Skills for Care estimates suggest that approximately 440,000 directly employed social care staff in England left their jobs in 2018-19. This amounts to a turnover rate of 32.2% for directly employed staff in local authorities and independent providers. The turnover rate has increased by 9.1 percentage points since 2012-13.

Maintaining the right number of staff is a crucial factor in ensuring a positive work environment, resulting in better care for the residents. Care homes and nursing homes need to implement an effective staffing system that anticipates shortages and mitigates them proficiently. 

With the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic and the staff taking unspecified lengths of absence, care homes need robust employee scheduling software to keep staffing in line. If you plan to employ an automated rota system or workforce management system for your care home or nursing home, then JMS One can be of huge help.

Increased Productivity and Efficiency

Care home systems and nursing homes have been spending a huge deal of money on their operations. To meet the rising complex needs of elderly care, it is essential to improve the productivity of care home systems. What we need is a new approach with technology at its heart.

Collaboration is a crucial productivity engine, and technology has made it much easier to communicate and collaborate. Solutions that enable teams to discuss, schedule, execute, and monitor work in a single location are extremely useful. The less pressure there is when collaborating, the more teams can concentrate on getting things done. This, in turn, leads to increased productivity.

There is a range of technological tools available that can drive a significant improvement in the efficiency and productivity of a healthcare organisation. For instance, workforce management software solutions like JMS One can prove beneficial in increasing the overall efficiency of a healthcare work environment.

Improved Communication

Whether it is about dealing with the pandemic crisis or other range of challenges, care homes need to maintain an open and clear communication channel. To create a positive work atmosphere and ensure an all-hands on deck approach, every employee should be kept in the regular loop of communication.

It is important to deliver the right message to the right people in real-time. Care homes and nursing homes need a technological solution that sends out alerts and notifications in real-time. Whenever there is a change with the daily schedule or weekly rota, the system should alert all staff members at the earliest. This would help in avoiding last-minute chaos and also ensures in implementing the best possible solution.

JMS One provides home care staff with the tools and functionalities they need to achieve effective communication. Its integrated set of modules allows sending notifications in real-time as schedule changes occur, keeping your team up to date. As a result, communication will be more transparent, and employee trust and engagement will increase. This fosters a group of contented caregivers who are dedicated to providing better treatment.

Better Quality of Patient Care

A patient satisfaction level is characterised as the degree to which consumers are satisfied with their overall experience, and the “patient experience” is now a key metric for healthcare organisations. As patient-centred treatment gains popularity, technology that enhances the patient experience is becoming an integral part of healthcare organisations' strategic plans. And, while patient satisfaction includes a patient's quality of treatment, it also depends on their expectations of service quality.

Organisations that successfully incorporate technology into both their patient experience plan and organisational structure are ideally equipped to succeed in today's healthcare climate. This includes using technology for everything from administrative tasks to staffing decisions and patient care.

What care homes and nursing homes need is a strict transition from the overburdened manual processes into a technological foundation that supports the patients, the caregiver and the management team. Implementing new digital platforms in care home systems not only improves the workflow but also enhances patient satisfaction and experience.

Wrap up

It is time we adjust our systems and makes way for digital technologies to transform the different facets of healthcare.

Our senior citizens, patients and caregivers deserve it.

Let us provide them with the best care.

Now it is time to integrate technology into your workflow for improved efficiency, reduced costs and better patient experience.