It will hardly have escaped your notice that the care sector is changing and evolving at a rapid rate. This brings with it a raft of challenges and opportunities. Key areas around technology, an aging population, increases in expectations from residents and their families and more are having a large impact on the sector as a whole, as well as individual care homes.
Savvy care home managers are looking more and more at how to prepare now to keep up with these changes and stay ahead of the game. In other words, how to futureproof their business and protect their care home. Here are five key areas to research, consider, invest in and embrace to help your care home thrive into the future.
Technology and care planning software
As more care homes are turning away from paper-based records in favour of digital care planning software like Care Vision, the advantages are becoming increasingly clear. Vital information can be gathered, updated and stored securely, shared instantly to authorised personnel and made available 24/7 wherever there is internet connectivity.
The digital process has cut out hours of laborious paperwork and removed such issues as illegible handwriting, physical storage limitations and the risk of losing important paper files during hospital admissions, for example. This type of technological innovation will help staff stay ahead of admin, use their time efficiently and know where and how to access the information they need to do their jobs.
Workforce empowerment and support
A business is only as good as the people who work for it, so taking steps now to retain good, effective and loyal staff will pay dividends in the future. This not only cuts down on hiring and recruitment costs, it builds up a vital bank of knowledge and experience among your staff that cannot be replicated in any other way. Ideas for retaining good staff can range from offering attractive pay packages and incentives to supporting their training and development with courses, opportunities to learn on the job and pathways to promotion.
Of course, technology play s its part here too., Staff who are not bogged down with manual admin tasks or sub-standard working processes will feel happier and more fulfilled in their roles. They can spend more time doing what most, if not all of them actually signed up to do – that is, care for and spend time with the residents they look after.
Accessibility and smart design
Continuing on from the technology point above, care planning software such as Care Vision can also provide a wealth of helpful tools to assist with safety, emergency response and accessibility support for residents and staff. Some examples include fall detection tools, remote monitoring, nurse call functions and joined-up medical and personal recordkeeping.
Ensuring your care home has the latest in this type of software can help futureproof it in terms of residents’ safety and wellbeing, communications between residents, staff and external medical professionals and accurate, real-time data updates. Being able to offer digital solutions to common issues will help attract residents and families keen to benefit from the latest tools and digital functionality to enhance lifestyle and ensure safety.
Property maintenance and investment in assets
Sitting alongside technology and operational system, in terms of futureproofing priorities, are the physical ‘bricks and mortar’ of your care home. Looking after your buildings, grounds and physical assets is another vital part of protecting your business for the future. You cannot run a care home in deteriorating buildings that are not safe or comfortable enough to actually house your residents, nor give your staff a safe place to work.
As well as investing in repairs and upgrades where necessary, factor in seasonal maintenance jobs around the buildings, gardens and grounds. Replace aging machinery, such as lawn mowers and jet washers to ensure your maintenance staff can have the best possible tools to do a good job. Keeping the site looking tidy and well-maintained gives everyone a boost, as well as shows pride in your business and confidence in its long-term success.
Sustainability and environmental working
Finally, climate changes, sustainable working and responsible use of finite and renewable resources are all big news right now. As much as possible, plan ways to reduce your reliance on fossil fuels and single-use plastics. Think about how digital software could take the place of manual records, visitor signing in books, patient medication logs etc in order to cut down on the need for paper records and large storage areas.
Other areas to look into around futureproofing your sustainable efforts might include solar panels on the roof, heat pumps and other ways to generate green energy. Composting in the garden, growing more vegetables and herbs and shopping locally can also help cut down carbon emissions brought about by food miles and heavy transport costs.