Choosing a Home Care Software: 12 Must-Ask Questions
Caoimhe Walsh
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We’ve drawn on our experience of home care software production to share the big questions you should be asking. From key features to user-friendliness, scalability, and customer support, this is what you should consider when choosing a home care software.
1. Is it purpose-built for home care agencies?
ShiftCare is designed with home care agencies in mind. You can upload care plans, build custom nursing notes templates, monitor patient progress, assign multiple patients to each caregiver, and more. And, of course, it’s fully HIPAA-compliant.
2. Does it come with an onboarding package for a quick and easy setup?
Getting started with ShiftCare is a quick and hassle-free process. You can create your home care agency account and start creating client schedules in 10 minutes with our easy self-onboarding process.
Our tutorials will walk you through the process — but if you reach a snag, don’t worry. We’ve also got a live support chat and dedicated account managers to help you out.
3. Will your caregivers find the home care software easy to use?
Your team can use the ShiftCare caregiver app to set their availability, check their schedule, view client documentation, and add care notes. It comes with an intuitive interface and user-friendly features, such as voice-to-text and documentation templates.
4. Can you create draft and published schedules?
Use ShiftCare’s Publish Shifts feature to prepare your schedules ahead of time. You can view your draft shifts on the schedule and tweak them as much as you like.
When you’re happy with them, publish them individually or in bulk and they’ll be shared with caregivers via the mobile app.
5. Can caregivers bid on shifts?
ShiftCare’s job board helps your home care agency fill empty shifts while giving your care team greater control over their schedules. Decide whether you want to advertise shifts to your entire team or an approved shortlist of caregivers.
Your staff can then log in to the mobile app to bid on them. You can also choose whether you want to manually approve bids for greater control over your schedule or automate approval on a first-come, first-served basis.
6. Does the home care software have the compliance features you need?
We understand the importance of compliance for home care agencies. That’s why ShiftCare’s care management software has stringent privacy controls.
In addition to being HIPAA-compliant, it comes with digital client signatures to confirm service delivery, location-verified time-tracking, documentation expiry alerts, and more. The password-protected caregiver app will also help keep your clients’ data safe and secure.
7. Will it auto-generate invoices?
ShiftCare’s home care software will auto-generate your invoices. Using your timesheets, mileage, and expenses records, it can create individual and bulk invoice files. You’ll save hours of time, and you won’t have to worry about rejected invoices caused by human error.
8. Can it help you manage client documentation?
Documentation is key to client case management. With ShiftCare’s document management features, you can upload and review care plans, create care notes and incident record templates, and track progress toward client goals. Set up automated document expiry notifications so you can be confident that all your client records are up to date.
9. Will it integrate with your existing software solutions?
You don’t want to have to change your accounting software just because you’ve signed up for new home care software — and with ShiftCare, you won’t have it. It integrates seamlessly with major accounting and payroll software so you can continue using your existing systems.
10. Does the home care software have a portal for clients’ families?
ShiftCare Connect makes it easy for approved family members and friends to stay up to date with your clients’ care. They can see service schedules, get updates, view bills, and even ask for more services or request specific caregivers. It’s designed to give clients and their loved ones greater autonomy.
11. Will the software grow with you as your home care agency grows?
As your home care agency grows, so will your software needs. That's why ShiftCare offers flexible subscriptions. There’s no minimum contract length, and it’s easy to upgrade plans and add users when you need to. Whether you're just starting out or you’re managing a rapidly growing number of clients, we’ve got a package that will support you.
12. Can you get live customer support?
ShiftCare has a live customer support chat available seven days a week, all year round. Plus, premium users can count on a dedicated account manager. Our customer support has a 94% client satisfaction rating, so you can trust that you’ll always get the help you need.
Choose Home Care Software that Ticks All the Boxes
ShiftCare’s home care software is the #1 choice of thousands of home care businesses. Not only do we offer an extensive range of scheduling, invoicing, time-tracking, patient case management, and business management tools, but our clients report that we save them hours of time every month.
Discover how our software solutions can help your agency thrive. Try ShiftCare for free.