360 Human Services is an applied behavioral analysis clinic serving the behavioral health service desert in San Bernardino, California. Access to support centers for individuals with autism spectrum disorder and related intellectual and developmental disorders is very limited.
PROBLEM
The clinic offers day care, day care, and applied behavioral analysis services. The organization serves adults with autism spectrum disorders and related intellectual and developmental disorders to achieve goals related to prior employment, job readiness, independent living, and community participation. copper.
Behavioral health service deserts can occur in rural or urban areas, where resources are scarce for individuals with mental and behavioral health needs, and 360 active in both environments.
To access such services, individuals must travel far from their homes, sometimes without sufficient public transportation, to access these services. A study from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services found that 75% of rural counties nationwide do not have a provider of mental or behavioral health services, including essential services for people with autism. .
Behavioral healthcare deserts face staffing and retention issues, which are unfortunately quite common across the healthcare industry. Staffing challenges have spillover effects and can ultimately affect the quality of care an individual with autism spectrum disorder or intellectual and developmental disorders receives.
PROPOSE
Health IT provider CentralReach has been recommended to assist with invoicing, scheduling, payroll, data collection, human resource related tasks, etc.
CEO Harry Jackson said: “When we first learned about the supplier, our team was immediately impressed. “Typically, minor therapy providers are using different platforms to manage multiple tasks and workflows. Some are even now using spreadsheets and pen and paper to track procedures. publicize things like billing or customer app behavior analysis.
He added: “CentralReach is positioned by us as an all-in-one practice and clinical management solution designed to address the specific challenges of initiating and practicing analytic therapy. small app.”
MEET CHALLENGES ONLY
Every day, 360 Human Services administrative staff, registered behavior technicians, and board-certified behavior analysts use CR Essentials for invoicing, scheduling, payroll, collection. data, track employee and team management credentials, encrypt documents, and track carers for individuals with autism spectrum disorders and intellectual and developmental disorders.
“Employee retention and turnover are our biggest challenges,” explains Jackson. “The role of technology, specifically as an all-in-one tool, is integral to increasing efficiency and sustainability in applied behavioral analysis therapy clinics and enabling technicians to act vi and board-certified behavior analysts have more time to provide direct care.
He added: “By using such technology, registered behavior technicians and board-certified behavior analysts can offload administrative duties, allowing therapists spend more time working with their clients.”
The 360’s three locations operate in rural and urban areas with behavioral health services, making scheduling a constant stressor. In rural Apple Valley, California, community members are spread across town, making getting to the health center a challenge.
The same goes for more urban centers: poverty and crime can prevent customers and employees from safely and comfortably reaching health centers. Cancellations, late arrivals and rescheduling are reality at 360.
“CR Essentials’ calendar manages restrictions, waiting lists, and eligibility,” Jackson notes. “It helps us reduce the bottlenecks that are reducing employee productivity. Additionally, our team has found the data we can collect with this tool is a must to drive it forward. drive customer success.
He continued: “The software easily integrates with the learning tree and the goals set for our clients, so at the start of each session, expectations and progress are clearly set. for our therapists”.
In addition to the provider practice management software, 360 is using the availability of CentralReach, a remote support software that helps therapists meet client goals related to getting to work first. , work-ready, independent living and community involvement.
“The software is human-centered, personalized software that makes it easy for our employees to use,” says Jackson. “The software simplifies task analysis and provides remote assistance with step-by-step digital prompts and reminders to help individuals master tasks related to work and daily life.
“With the app available, our therapists have access to a client’s instructions on their phones and tablets to use anytime, anywhere in the community with their clients. However, the app also has the ability to work offline, which is essential in areas with unreliable Wi-Fi,” he continued. “That has helped us expand staff capacity and minimize the need for limited in-person support.”
RESULT
Using this software, 360 Human Services achieved a number of measurable results that demonstrate the tool’s effectiveness in the organization. Jackson explains: Two key success metrics include increasing customer progress and improving employee efficiency:
- Increase customer progress With a comprehensive set of data collection and analysis tools, employees were able to more effectively track and evaluate customer progress. This has allowed staff to tailor individual treatment and intervention plans to each client, leading to significant improvements in their skill acquisition and behavioral outcomes. Real-time data visualization also allows employees to quickly identify and resolve any roadblocks to progress, ensuring that customers continue to make steady progress toward their goals. .
- Improve employee efficiency The broadcast schedule digital platform has provided employees with easy access to a vast library of evidence-based resources, including video modeling and interactive lessons, that help improve quality and service consistency. The platform’s easy-to-use interface has streamlined communication and collaboration among team members, reducing time spent on administrative tasks and allowing staff to focus more on customer support direct. This has contributed to increased employee job satisfaction and better overall results for customers.
“By achieving these successes, we’ve been able to optimize our service delivery, which ultimately leads to higher quality of care for our clients and a more cohesive, efficient team.” he said.
TIPS FOR OTHER PEOPLE
Jackson advises, “When considering assistive technology, a good place to start is to analyze your organization’s workflow and determine which tasks take your clinician the longest to complete. wall”.
“Identifying bottlenecks in workflows can be time-consuming, especially when time becomes scarce in a busy applied behavioral therapy clinic environment, but understanding Knowing where this bottleneck is happening is imperative and requires organizations to take the time to see where their team needs more support.”
He added: “Understanding the technology landscape and conversing with other applied behavior analysis therapists and small therapy practice owners can help the team understand issues more effectively and help them to cope.” get effective solutions to the problems that the clinic is facing.
“Moreover, you want your technology to work for you, not the other way around,” he commented. “For employees, implementing new technology can sometimes be met with resistance, as it feels like one more thing has been added to their to-do list.
He concludes: “Finding a vendor that facilitates ongoing points of contact with your employees, even after implementation, has helped our team continue to grow with the technology they are using. use”. “There are other tools on the market that all aim to do similar things, but what sets the vendor apart is the design and human-centered approach that amplifies the human touch in health care.”
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Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS Media.
