Solving the Puzzle of Efficient Care Staff Management

Introduction to Care Staff Management Challenges:

Care staff management is like a jigsaw puzzle, simple and straightforward as long as you follow a process and have all the correct pieces. However, without following key processes or having the right pieces, you will struggle to solve the puzzle.

One of the most pressing issues facing care providers is attracting and retaining highly qualified staff and this can be caused by a number of different factors such as excessive administrative overhead, long working hours, and oftentimes difficult working conditions.

A 2024 Skills for Care report has found that approximately 350,000 social care workers left the care industry in 2024, with nearly one-third of workers averaging only 4.9 years in the industry. Additionally, nearly half (44.6%) of those who left the industry were under 25 years old.

It is crucial for providers to reduce this rate of turnover as the number of individuals requiring care continues to increase year-on-year, and as a result, there needs to be a sufficient workforce of carers to meet this increased demand. Providers also need to find ways to attract and retain young carers who can build their careers within the industry.

Care staff management software can help to address some of these issues by providing the staff with the tools they need to streamline the provision of person-centred care and reduce the administrative burden they face on a day-to-day basis, freeing them up to do what they do best: provide excellent care!

Additionally, care staff management software empowers staff to collaborate more effectively when planning and delivering care, reducing the likelihood of misunderstandings occurring when care is being delivered by multiple providers.

When care providers collaborate effectively, they increase the continuity of care provision, reducing potential gaps in care delivery and ultimately improving outcomes for both their staff and service users.

Role of Technology in Streamlining Care Scheduling:

By implementing care staff management software, schedulers are given the tools they need to streamline operations and manage staff more effectively.

Tag scheduling, in particular, has had a transformative effect on how schedulers balance service users’ complex care requirements with the different skill sets within their team.

So, what exactly is tag scheduling?

Tag scheduling assigns a percentage match between carers and service users, empowering schedulers to match service users with the most suitable carers, significantly enhancing the standard of care delivered.

Drag-and-drop wallchart functionality has also revolutionised the way providers manage their staff, with wallcharts providing a full overview of each carer’s schedule, allowing coordinators to make real-time changes with any changes being instantly communicated to the affected carer.

When combined, providers can easily identify gaps in care delivery and identify any trends that are occurring in service delivery, ultimately enhancing the quality of care delivery and transforming service users’ care outcomes.

Care staff scheduling software also comes with a centralised repository of highly configurable document templates such as care plans, bi-weekly overnight calls, and ward call lists, eliminating the significant time investment required to create each document manually on a person-by-person basis.

“We really like that the system provides a comprehensive view of both carers and clients. With the system’s capability for immediate updates and managerial oversight, operations have become more efficient and accurate. This transition has minimised delays and enhanced the overall quality of care delivered to clients.” – David Wallace, Director of Strategy and Operations, Hibernia Homecare.

Compliance with Care Regulations:

Ensuring care delivery remains fully compliant promotes trust and safety within the organisation between carers and their service users and guarantees that a high standard of ethical behaviour and safeguarding is maintained by care staff.

This is where care staff management software comes in!

These digital systems ensure that only authorised individuals have access to specific data points, ensuring that clients’ privacy is respected and maintained at all times.

The data contained in digital staff management software is backed up in large data centres, ensuring that data is safe and secure 24/7 and can be accessed whenever and wherever required.

Modern care staff management software will also have strict data-handling processes in place and should be  ISO 27001 certified, meaning that all data is handled in a safe and ethical manner that is compliant with national regulations (e.g., GDPR regulations in the EU

Additionally, the reporting functionality of staff management software records any action completed through the system, including a time, date and author stamp.

This enables admin staff to easily report on all aspects of care delivery when required for inspection purposes.

By utilising digital care staff scheduling software to remain fully compliant, providers significantly reduce their administrative overhead and free up care staff to do what they do best: provide excellent care!

“OneTouch has given us the tools we need to effectively manage our care delivery more effectively. I’d absolutely recommend it to others in the industry – it has saved us time, improved compliance, and made it easier to provide high-quality care. The benefits are clear and I’m confident it can help other providers in the same way.” – Leyla Hyda, Head of Innovation and Well-Being, Verve Homecare.

Integrating Client Needs with Staff Skills:

Care staff scheduling software has empowered coordinators to easily create hyper-personalised care packages for their service users without requiring a significant administrative overhead.

When service users’ information is initially entered into the system, here are some of the key attributes that are recorded:

• Any allergies (e.g., Penicillin)
• Specific care requirements (e.g., PEG fed)
• Dietary preferences (e.g., Vegetarian)
• Care preferences (e.g., requiring certain levels of support for tasks whilst maintaining a certain standard of independence)
• Health preferences (e.g., DNR in place)
• Behavioural attributes (e.g., Confused)
• Frequency of check-ups required (e.g., every other day)
• Their location (e.g., South London)

This information is categorised into “tags”, which are then displayed on a service user’s care record.

Moreover, when entering a new staff member’s details into the system, their qualifications, location, experience, and any specialised training they have completed will also be turned into tags, which are then displayed on the staff member’s profile.

The tags are then used to create hyper-personalised care packages, with the most suitable staff being assigned to provide care based on the unique requirements and preferences of the service user.

By utilising tags in scheduling efforts, coordinators can streamline the creation of optimal schedules for their staff, significantly reducing the time investment required to manually create personalised schedules.

Service users are more likely to engage in their care when it is personalised based on their requirements and preferences and, as a result, are more likely to have high levels of satisfaction with their care.

When service users are satisfied and engaged with their care, they can transform their care outcomes, resulting in higher levels of job satisfaction amongst staff.

Staff that are happy and satisfied in their roles are more likely to remain with the same care organisation, increasing staff retention levels and ultimately reducing recruitment costs.

Future Trends in Care Staff Management:

The developments and progress brought about by the introduction of digital care staff management software has been nothing short of extraordinary, however, the scope for future use cases is endless thanks to the rise of AI and machine learning.

AI care record summaries are one such development which has had a transformative impact on care staff management as it streamlines assigning staff coverage by enabling carers to see a full overview of service users’ care plans.

By providing staff with an overview of service users’ records, the number of staff available to provide coverage greatly increases as each staff member has access to the relevant data, whenever and wherever required.

Whilst still in its initial stages, the room for potential developments to further improve and streamline the care planning and delivery processes is endless!

Additionally, the rise in wearable health technology, such as smartwatches, has enabled care staff to record and monitor key service user metrics remotely.

As this technology continues to evolve, the volume of data being recorded will also increase.

This data can be fed directly into the AI within care staff management software, enabling providers to easily identify trends in their initial stages and allowing coordinators to easily assign resources as required, ultimately increasing the standard and continuity of care being delivered.

Towards a More Efficient Care Industry:

When trying to solve the puzzle that is efficient staff management, it is crucial that coordinators consider the strengths of each individual carer in the business and also the requirements and preferences of service users.

Efficient staff management has been proven to have a transformative effect on both staff and their service users.

Staff receiving schedules that are tailored to their strengths will have a higher level of satisfaction in their role and are more likely to remain in the company, which reduces recruitment costs.

Additionally, when staff stay in their roles for longer periods of time, the standard of care delivery and the continuity of care substantially increase as carers will have a greater rapport built up with their service users.

When service users have good rapport and trust their care team, they are more likely to engage with their care in a more meaningful way, transforming their care outcomes and increasing their levels of satisfaction with their care.

Providers looking to solve the puzzle of efficient staff management should consider implementing a comprehensive care staff management software to streamline admin-heavy tasks such as creating individual personalised schedules for staff and distributing schedules to individual carers.

Providers should also work with their staff to understand the individual functionality of care staff management software to ensure they are utilising it in a way that streamlines tasks and frees them up to do what they do best: provide excellent care!

Ready to transform your care staff management? Book a demo with OneTouch Health to see how digital care management systems streamline scheduling, boost staff retention and improve outcomes.