When it comes to your long-term care (LTC) home, choosing the right technology is an important decision. Making the correct choice can enhance your business's success and expansion, while making the wrong one can result in squandering time, energy, and financial resources. So how can you be sure you are making the right choice? We’ve put together 6 key questions to ask when assessing a potential solution.
What’s the main challenge you’re trying to fix?
When choosing a tool or software for your LTC home, ask yourself what the main problem you’re trying to fix actually is. If you’re clear about the issue you’re trying to solve, you can narrow down your list of possible solutions as you dig deeper into features and benefits.
Some of the most common challenges LTC managers face are a lack of time for paperwork and other admin tasks, and not enough staff to fill shifts. Many LTC managers also don’t have a central place to keep track of temporary and permanent team members, which can make auditing hard.
Can you use it without being a tech expert?
It’s really important to make sure the tool or software you choose is easy for both LTC managers and staff to use. If you want people to embrace your new technology, it must be intuitive and easy to navigate.
With that in mind, ask your tech provider these questions:
- How long will it take my team to learn to use the software?
- Do you provide training?
- What happens if I get stuck and need support?
- Will I have an account manager I can contact if I need help during the transition period?
- Do your existing customers find your software easy to use?
Here at Florence, we provide all our clients with account setup help and onboarding training. You’ll get a dedicated account manager, who can help you if you can’t fill your last-minute shifts, or if you need refresher training at any point.
Because of what we offer, 96% of our clients find Florence super-easy to use. We know that it takes more than a demo video to get comfortable with a new system, and we’re on your side.
Will this software save you time or money?
Great technology should do at least one of these two things:
- Save you money
- Save you time
When looking for new tech, try to choose a tool or software that does both of these things at once.
Florence helps LTC home managers save time and money by letting them send vacant shifts to permanent staff members first. Then, you can utilize Florence’s pool of 3,000+ fully vetted healthcare professionals to fill any remaining shifts.
That means you don’t need to call around until you find someone to fill shifts – and no more waiting on hold with your expensive staffing agency, hoping for the best. Instead, you can post shifts in as little as 20 seconds.
Will you get help with onboarding?
Most healthcare tech companies have onboarding periods where they help you get set up and show you how to use platform features.
Before signing on the dotted line, find out what this process looks like:
- Is it comprehensive enough?
- Are they flexible enough to meet your training needs?
- Are they willing to pop into your care home and show you in-person?
- Are there any follow-up guides or tutorial videos you can use for reference?
At Florence, we give all clients an account manager so that they have peace of mind. Someone will always be at hand to help you fill shifts, because we understand that adopting new software can be daunting.
Does the company continuously improve its product?
Good healthcare tech companies stay ahead of the curve and catch issues before their clients encounter them.
Ask each company for their product development roadmap (the things they plan to do to make their software better in the future), and find out if they’ve taken customer feedback into account when planning upgrades.
It’s really useful to know about upcoming features if you plan to change or grow your business. If the company you choose to work with is continuously improves its product, it will grow along with you.
How reliable is the technology?
Finally, does the technology you’re looking at have a proven track record in the industry?
Who else is using the company you’re considering? Do any big-name clients or large healthcare groups use their product? Does the company have case studies to demonstrate how they’ve helped a customer (like you) solve a problem?
Don’t just take a healthcare tech company’s word for it: look at reviews from other care homes on their website and on sites like Trustpilot to see if client experiences live up to the hype.
About Florence
Florence is the technology that powers your long-term care organization. We help you stay fully staffed year-round by helping you fill shifts with people you trust, so your patients can always receive the care and dignity they deserve.
With Florence you can cut your agency spending by 30%, on average, easily fill open shifts with your own staff, and tap into our network of fully vetted nurses and PSWs when needed.
It’s the hassle-free way to fill shifts at your long-term care home — without the admin and hidden fees you experience with traditional agencies. You are always in control of rates.
If there are Florence staff you love, invite them back to maintain continuity of care. You can even hire Florence staff full-time if there’s a fit, without traditional buyout fees. What traditional agency would let you do that?
If you’re interested in learning more about Florence and how we can help you fill shifts with nurses and PSWs, book a no-obligation demo with one of our friendly team members today.
