Advancing Communication for the Homecare Industry
The homecare industry is growing seemingly at the speed of light as we continue to navigate life more closely spent at home. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the homecare industry will grow 34 percent before 2029, creating more than 1.1 million new jobs. As the opportunities for the industry expand, so do the privacy and security obligations and regulations. With that being said, it is important for communication capabilities to advance alongside the industry. Let’s discuss some ways your homecare team can communicate effectively and securely.
Don’t miss the video overview at the end of this blog post!
Connecting Caregivers, Clients with their Managing Homecare agency
Excellent communication is one of the critical elements when working with a client. Communication with the client allows them to stay ahead and be in control when it comes to the care they receive. Routinely check in with clients-those individuals receiving in-home care to build trust and ensure the care received is to their satisfaction. Insist your caregivers use secure online documentation platforms for routine notes and remind them to call their supervisor for anything that may be urgent. Strong communication between caregivers, the agency’s management team, and those receiving care allows for greater outcomes overall.
Connecting Families And Care
Excellent care includes making sure the family members are updated along the way. It is important to be transparent and share important information with family members. Implementing homecare may be something families have never done before so be willing to provide educational resources, and facilitate open communication. This will help families feel secure with their choice and lie trust within your agency.
Connecting Care Teams
Secure channels of communication amongst your care team, including schedulers, case managers, and caregivers, is critical for operating a successful homecare company. Think about how your care team is collecting Protected Health Information (PHI) and make sure you are staying within HIPAA compliance. Ensure your care team uses one central application for communication, allowing for secure and timely updates regarding clients and day-to-day business operations.
Prioritizing Secure Communication
Protecting your client’s health information is just as important as providing care itself. According to the HIPAA Journal, “The Covered Entity has to train all healthcare workers to be HIPAA compliant, monitor their access to Protected Health Information and ensure any devices used in the execution of their duties are also HIPAA-compliant.” Secure communication helps homecare teams stay connected while improving care outcomes and reducing hospital readmissions. Homecare providers need to remain HIPAA compliant to protect client information as it ensures client’s safety is at the forefront. To ensure your homecare agency remains in compliance, use reliable, secure software such as Generations.
Find A Great Software Solution
Since the homecare industry is rapidly growing, technology needs to keep up. Homecare agencies need to provide caregivers with a user-friendly, all-in-one application, like Generations. Generations allows users to communicate in many different ways. The Mobile App offers office staff, caregivers, clients, and family members of care recipients access to Generations, which has built-in HIPAA-Compliant secure communication tools. Here are just a few of the HIPAA-compliant secure communication tools inside of Generations:
- Secure Messaging: Secure Messaging within Generations provides a two-way channel for communicating efficiently and in real-time within your agency. Messages automatically load into the caregiver’s history for easy tracking.
- EVV Messaging: Facilitate communication between your agency and its caregivers. Through the EVV Messaging feature, you establish a custom message to be read by the caregiver when logging in.
- Letter Writer: While secure messaging allows you to converse with caregivers, Letter Writer will enable you to create and save letters for active clients, potential clients, active caregivers, applicants, referral sources, case managers, and physicians. When using Letter Writer, you can create emails and send them out to groups or individuals.
- Document Management: Document Management allows you to securely upload and share important documents with caregivers, care recipients, administrators, or office staff. You can easily designate which files are available to members of the care team.
Are you interested in learning more about how Generations can help your homecare team communicate more effectively and securely, all while remaining HIPAA-compliant? Click the button below to download the overview booklet to learn more.
