Enhancing Care Through Digital Client Engagement Tools

The Importance of Person-Centric Care

Person-centric care is one of the most important components of care provision and is a regulatory requirement across the UK and Ireland.

So, what is Person-centred care?

Person-centred care is an approach to care provision that ensures the care recipient is placed at the centre of their care where possible, giving them a choice in what care and support they require and how it is subsequently delivered.

This means that care providers consider their service users’ values, social connections, and lifestyles as it enables them to tailor care provision to their individual needs.

This approach also strives to empower service users through education, ensuring they are equipped with the knowledge and resources they need to make informed decisions in relation to their care.

When care is tailored to the individual service user’s needs, they are more likely to engage with their care in a more meaningful way, enhancing their outcomes.

There are a number of ways in which person-centred care can be implemented in the care planning and delivery processes such as utilising tag scheduling, incorporating digital diary responses into future care plans, and collaborating with the service user and other key stakeholders when updating care plans.

Additionally, by implementing digital client engagement tools, providers can bridge the gap between themselves and their service users, making it easier for key stakeholders to collaborate more effectively.

As the world is becoming more digitised, successfully implementing person-centred care is now easier than ever before!

Overview of Digital Engagement Tools:

Here are some of the ways we have heard our customers utilising our digital client engagement tools to transform the day-to-day lives of care staff and their service users:

• Push and email notifications allow providers to alert key stakeholders of changes to care provision, ensuring that the right people are notified at the right time.
• Digital feedback surveys are conducted periodically and the information collected is utilised to inform the creation of future care plans.
• Digital diary functionality allows service users to reflect on the care they have received, providing care staff with an additional stream of data which can be used to monitor service users’ progress.
• Instant communication tools empower providers and their service users to regularly communicate, reinforcing a sense of trust between key stakeholders.
• Modern social care management platforms come with a family portal which enables service users’ families to engage with their care whilst providing full transparency into the care being delivered.
• Wearable smart technology (e.g, smart watches) monitors and tracks service users’ key health metrics which can be shared directly with care providers, allowing for more accurate health trend predictions.

Benefits of Digital Engagement for Client Care:

High levels of digital engagement have a significant impact on all aspects of client care from the initial planning to the execution of a care plan.

Increased levels of communication between care providers and their service users encourage the service user to reach out directly, eliminating potential wait times and increasing confidence and trust.

Additionally, increased levels of communication between health and care providers increase the continuity of care when an individual is moving between providers, reducing the gaps in care provision.

When clients engage in their care more frequently and through different channels, they provide additional information to care providers which can be used to influence the development of future care plans and enable them to make more data-driven decisions, ultimately improving the standard of care delivery.

When service users experience high levels of engagement, they feel empowered to become more involved in their care.

The centralised data-sharing capabilities of modern digital client engagement tools allow service users to gain a better understanding of their health conditions and the different options available to them.

When they feel knowledgeable and engaged, service users are more likely to be active participants in their care, leading them to improved outcomes and increased levels of satisfaction.

“We’re able to update OneTouch immediately with any changes to a person’s health or care. No paperwork, just instant notifications. If there’s important information that carers need to pass on to paramedics, they’re able to quickly identify a range of factors.” – Carly Trevett, Registered Manager, Agincare.

Challenges and Solutions for Implementing Digital Engagement Tools:

When implementing digital client engagement tools, providers may face a number of barriers to adoption ranging from data security and privacy concerns to technological illiteracy and infrastructure costs.

Some of the most common barriers to adoption we hear from our users include (but are not limited to):

• Staff have different levels of digital literacy, and as such some users may struggle to utilise the tool to its full potential with some simply opting not to use the tool.
• Not all staff have access to a device that is capable of running certain digital client engagement tools, usually due to individuals having an older device or the tool not being supported by the device’s operating system.
• Implementing a tool can bring rise to major data privacy concerns, from who has access to the data to how the data is utilised.
• Staff may be reluctant to change from the processes that have been previously used and are comfortable with.
• Configuring, implementing, and maintaining the infrastructure for digital client engagement tools can be quite costly, oftentimes requiring a substantial financial investment.
• Some tools require significant development work to be successfully configured to integrate with different social care management platforms.

While providers may face challenges when trying to implement digital client engagement tools, there are a number of ways in which they can address and overcome these challenges, ultimately increasing both staff and service users’ confidence in the tools.

Here are some of the most effective ways we have heard users address these barriers to adoption and successfully implement a range of digital client engagement tools:

• Providing staff with comprehensive training and support during the implementation process and ongoing support once the tool has been successfully implemented.
• Choosing a tool that can be run on most modern mobile devices and operating systems.
• Supplying staff with work mobile devices which can run the digital engagement tool.
• Following strict data processing guidelines, such as GDPR, to ensure that data is handled in a safe and ethical manner for all stakeholders.
• Engaging and involving key stakeholders early into the research and selection process allows providers to address any challenges as they appear.
• Circulating a comprehensive implementation plan to staff with clearly defined expectations, outcomes, and benefits of each step.
• Conduct thorough research and evaluation before deciding on what digital engagement tools will be implemented.

Future Trends in Client Engagement Tools:

As digital client engagement tools and social care management platforms continue to evolve and improve, there will be an increase in the availability and reliance on wearable health technologies as they can provide care staff with additional health information which can be used to further personalise client care plans.

Additionally, as wearable technology continues to be refined and improved, providers will be able to monitor and track key health metrics around the clock, allowing them to proactively identify trends and potential health incidents that could occur.

The rise in AI has given care providers a range of additional tools to help them when it comes to planning and delivering care. AI-powered functionality such as AI-run-route optimisation and AI care note summaries are already proving to be extremely useful to care providers.

However, as AI continues to evolve there is ample opportunity for future developments to improve care planning, automate communications, and predict trends to name just a few.

GP Connect functionality has already had an impact on the social care industry in the UK by enabling authorised health and social care providers to seamlessly access and share service users’ information between different health and social care systems, ultimately increasing the standard and continuity of care delivery.

Impact of Digital Engagement on Social Care Professionals:

Digital engagement tools empower staff to access client information whenever and wherever they need it, ultimately eliminating the time investment required to communicate with other providers to obtain information.

Additionally, by having access to complete and timely service user data, providers are able to make more data-driven decisions, improving the standard of care delivered and transforming service user outcomes.

Digital client engagement tools also play a significant role in improving and maintaining the relationship between key stakeholders as these tools empower providers to instantly communicate with clients and their families allowing them to communicate any changes to care delivery with ease.

By implementing engagement tools, providers can streamline processes and as a result, can spend more time doing what they do best – providing excellent care!