Many case management practices have been developed over the years for the thousands of people working within the non-profit and community service space to provide our loved ones with the best care and resources possible. If you or anyone you know have worked within this space, I’m sure they will tell you all about the joy and fulfillment of helping others in need within our community! However, as you may have experienced or heard about over that daily cup of coffee, there can be many headaches surrounding the administrative tasks necessary to complete the day-to-day and managerial tasks associated with running your organization. Suppose you have encountered issues such as tracking individual progress, programs and facilities or staffing and reporting. In that case, it might be time for your organization to consider adopting case management software!
What Is Case Management?
For any frontline workers, program managers or volunteers who have worked at a community service program or facility, It’s likely they are no strangers to case management. The practice of managing cases for supported individuals dates back hundreds of years, with many applications and standards remaining the same to this day. Tracking case notes, medication, goals and incidents of someone within their care is an excellent example of what a support worker may be tasked with in their day-to-day duties. Managing the different types of programs, housing and people within these programs, as well as the reports to show individual or organizational progress, also fall under case management. So if you can imagine how much work it is to keep up with all the administrative tasks while at the same time attending to the needs of those within your care, case management is a crucial element of running a successful organization.
What Is Case Management Software, And Who Needs It?
As long as there has been paper, people have been taking notes. With a method of tracking information as old as case management, it is no wonder many organizations are still using paper, pens and filing cabinets to manage their programs. With the digital world in full swing, many non-profits have been a few steps behind in migrating to a digital system to track their data. The downside to this is the ability to share crucial data with staff in real-time, make updates to forms and physical documents without pulling out that hefty scanner, and the actual time and resources finding documents that could be better spent caring for those in need.
If you find yourself in any of these situations, your organization is the perfect candidate for an update to utilizing case management software. Here you can run your daily operations from the security and ease of a digital hub that logs, tracks and shares data within your organization for ease of use. No more waiting for scanned documents, re-printing that form because that signature wasn’t entirely clear enough or looking through your email and notebook to find out if you forgot to schedule someone to cover that shift.
Every organization tracks different data, and case management software allows you to structure your organization how you see fit. With case management software like ShareVision, you can customize the entire experience and workflow to create the forms, fields and pages you need that make sense for your organization. There is no right or wrong way, only the way that works for you. Create custom intake forms for different programs, manage wait lists for housing, and share case notes and critical incidents after a shift change, all this possible with just a few clicks, and so much more.
Case management software makes your day-to-day tasks easy to track, update and share. Communication between staff and professionals is instant and efficient, and the organizational reports and goals can be streamlined and held accountable across the entire organization.
How To Choose The Right Case Management Software
Your needs may vary depending on where you provide care and your role. Suppose you work at a twenty-four-hour care facility for community living. In that case, the features you need may differ from an organization that provides short-term or overnight housing for at-risk individuals.
The community living facility may have more staff and less supported individuals but a more extended personal care history. This means tracking individual case notes, progress and relationships, and daily programs and incidents for the individuals housed in those facilities. It may also be that this type of organization is accredited and has to adhere to certain specific reports that would need to be generated to maintain accreditation and funding.
If you work at a shelter, you may be looking for software that can track wait lists, and current occupants for short terms stays. This may include creating specific intake forms, risk assessments, critical incident reports, and daily notifications. They may also need to track how many people how been housed throughout the year, year over year, to show growth or hopefully a decline in the need for shelter.
Both organizations have similar but also very different requirements. When choosing a case management software, selecting one that allows you to customize your care plan is essential. But as we know, organizations grow with the need for support and often develop and adopt different services as the community needs continue to grow. This means choosing software that can grow with you and does not limit you to specific functions.
ShareVision case management software does just that; whether you are a small, locally funded program or a growing multi-program and facility organization or agency, ShareVision gives you the tools and resources to set your organization up for success, no matter where you are in your journey.
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