The benefits of going paperless at the Arbory Residential Home

Going paperless, Arbory Residential Home, operated by family-run providers Coate Water Care, is located in the heart of the Hampshire countryside and is home to 60 full-time residents. Arbory offers quality residential care, day care and respite care, including 24-hour care for people living with dementia.  

The Arbory Residential Home in Andover has hugely benefited from going paperless with Person Centred Software's digital care planning system. Since moving from paper-based processes, Arbory has saved time on documentation, improved efficiency and spent more time with its residents.  

Tony Hanchant, a senior support worker at Arbory, discusses moving from paper-based processes to a paperless digital care planning system.  

The Arbory Residential Home has been using Person Centred Software's Digital Care System since 2014. Before implementing the Digital Care System, everything was paper-based, which was time-consuming and inefficient. Arbory wanted to improve workflow, efficiency and the quality of care for those we support.  

We chose Person Centred Software because they had over 20 years of experience developing technology for the care sector, all the staff were friendly and very helpful, and the Digital Care System's features and the icon-driven interface looked fantastic! 

The Arbory care team were very impressed when we introduced the Digital Care System; implementation was quick and easy, and there was no need for extensive training. After a few months of using the digital care planning system, we began to realise what a huge impact using the system had across daily operations and the care provided. 

I love the icon-driven interface, as staff can evidence care quickly and efficiently. Rather than writing care notes on paper at the end of each shift, staff can record care on a handheld device in real time. Furthermore, the personalised icons pre-populate care notes, allowing the care team to add more detail if needed. The care notes automatically update a number of other features in real-time, such as charts, care plans, reports, and much more. We wouldn’t function as a home without it! 

Staff have experienced numerous organisational benefits from using the Digital Care System. Care interactions can now be observed and monitored to maintain the highest level of care, and it's allowed our team to spend more time caring for residents. In addition, the system gives us instant access to residents' information and preferences, enabling us to provide responsive and person-centred care. The Digital Care System is also designed with the Care Quality Commission's standards in mind. 

Janet Campbell, the deputy manager at Arbory, says:  

"The Digital Care System complies with the key lines of enquiry (KLOE), and all the information we evidence is instantly available when we need to present it to CQC. As a result of the system, our work is less stressful, and we spend less time on administration. From a manager's perspective, it's excellent because it gives me a complete overview of what's happening across the home, even if I'm not around. I highly recommend it to other care providers.’’