At Person Centred Software Australia, we’re pleased to share the details of our partnership with Southern Cross Care, a not-for-profit organisation specialising in retirement living and aged care services.
Providing a range of care and support services, from retirement living to home care, health and wellness, respite and residential care, Southern Cross Care is committed to promoting healthy ageing and quality of life for older Australians – regardless of the level of care they require.
Southern Cross Care's Journey to real-time care monitoring
Prior to implementing Person Centred Software's Clinical Care System, Southern Cross Care delivered and monitored care and service delivery in its residential care homes using a combination of paper-based methods and a clinical software that required staff to return to a desktop computer to enter information. Southern Cross Care knew they would achieve better outcomes for their residents with a more streamlined solution that promotes partnership in care planning and allows real-time recording of care delivery.
Wayne Stoddard, Executive Residential Care of Southern Cross Care, told us:
“We began using Person Centred Software's Clinical Care System (mCare) in September 2018. Trialling it first at a brand new aged care home, we rolled it out across all of our 17 residential care homes in SA and the NT over a two-year period. Part of our overall strategy was to move into a tech-driven future for the benefit of our residents and staff. After trialling other software and systems, we found that Person Centred Software was the best practice and evidence-based system on the market. It offered our carers a handheld device so they could input data in real-time whilst being with the residents.”
From saving on reporting time to working with real-time data, our clinical care system has helped to streamline a number of internal processes within Southern Cross Care’s residential homes: “We’ve seen a number of changes and improvements since implementing mCare – from both a reporting and care standpoint,” said Wayne.
The benefits of real-time reporting
In a care setting, real-time data ensures that all members of staff remain updated with residents’ changing needs and requirements. Wayne continued: “Having real-time data has provided incredible benefits for our care planning, monitoring and reporting. Reporting as we go means we’re not waiting for registered nurses to enter data into the system at the end of their shift.
“With the app, all staff can monitor care and update throughout the day. Using Person Centred Software's Clinical Care System (mCare) has saved us about 30 minutes of reporting time per day, per employee – meaning we can spend more time with residents, whilst implementing and monitoring care.
“Additionally, a resident care plan (which typically took about 28 days to complete, using our old system) can now be finalised in one day, as it streamlines the paperwork process.”
Improving Care Home Management and internal organisation
Since implementing mCare, Southern Cross Care has also observed improvements in the management and organisation of its residential homes: “We’ve also seen changes in the number and severity of incidents, such as falls. This is partly because carers are now at residents’ bedsides, rather than at the nursing station trying to process their notes,” Wayne continued.
“In regards to management, data from our different sites is collated under one dashboard, so we’re able to tell how we’re performing across different residences.
“The software provides visual cues (such as overdue/important actions) to carers to assist in decision-making about which resident to attend to first. We can monitor care and implement changes more rapidly to ensure care is tailored to the resident and their ever-changing needs.”
At Person Centred Software, we’d like to thank Wayne, and everyone at Southern Cross Care, for telling us about their experience with our clinical care system.
To find out more about Southern Cross Care, do take a look at the website.
Alternatively, if you’d like to find out more about how our clinical care system could help streamline your processes, book a demo today!
