There are few things an organization can do that have greater long-term impacts than choosing the right home care software partner.
Technology impacts every facet of a homecare organization, from operations, like billing and payroll, to clinical care, like documentation and compliance. Employees are equally affected with ease of use and task time savings. But most importantly, your clients receive quality care and overall satisfaction.
In this two-part blog series, we explore the process of selecting a care-at-home software partner. Although the path to finding a new software partner can seem long, we will break the journey up into manageable steps.
Step Two: Selecting a Technology Partner
Selecting the right software is only part of the equation. The industry and technology are constantly changing, so aligning your organization with the best technology partner is vital for long-term success.
Here are areas to consider when selecting the right partner:
- Necessary Functionality – Some of the concepts from step one are important here. Using the information you gathered in the evaluation phase, ensure your partner has a majority of the core components identified by your focus groups.
- Document each functionality offered by the vendors to review and compare at the end of the process. Include feedback from your office staff who perform these actions daily to ensure it meets their needs.
- Common Goals – It is difficult to partner with a business that does not share your same values, ideals and goals.
- Understand what your technology partner values and confirm that they understand the long-term goals of your organization, as well as the goals your organization has set for a software.
- Industry Leader – Having a partner who is at the forefront of the care-at-home industry is a huge benefit to your organization. Is your technology partner active in industry groups, associations’ advocacy efforts and causes? Does the industry look to them to provide knowledge, education and resources?
- Doing this research on potential partners ultimately helps your organization throughout the partnership. When a technology partner is a leader in the industry, this ensures consistent compliance with regulatory changes and improves care through best practices.
- Partner-Focused – Partnership is a two-way street. Make sure your partner is committed to supporting your organization’s success by having a defined process to help remedy any issues as they occur.
- Inquire on their communication style and level of involvement after software implementation. Select a vendor that best matches your preferred involvement level.
Gathering thorough information on potential vendors can take time but will serve your home care organization well in the long run.
We began this series by examining the first step to selecting a new home care software, which involves an internal review and setting specific goals. Once potential home care software options are identified, it’s essential to weigh the benefits of each technology partner to accurately determine the best match.
Axxess Home Care is a cloud-based home care software that is designed by home care professionals, keeping the regulatory and organizational best practices for excellent client care the top priority. With a resource center available for industry updates and software help, and a user community for home care professionals to interact, Axxess keeps organizations compliant and connected.
