Getting the Most Out of Your Senior Living Software

In our digital world, there is a technological solution to aid with every challenge that comes with operating a senior living community. As we increase our reliance on these tools, our need for software integrations grows. 

In this article, we discuss the importance of using integrated software in your community. We first explain the uses of two common types of senior living software: electronic health record (EHR) systems and resident experience platforms. Then, we discuss the dangers of data silos and how the Welbi platform integrates with your community’s EHR system to solve this problem. You’ll learn how Welbi’s EHR integration creates one source of truth across departments and allows teams to collaborate effectively to improve your resident experience. 

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What is an EHR system?

If you work in long-term care or skilled nursing, you’re probably familiar with electronic health record (EHR) systems. Electronic health records are digital documents that contain patient information. Your community’s EHR system provides access to this data. Some commonly used EHR systems include PointClickCare and MED e-care. 

EHR systems allow patient information to be shared across different healthcare settings. It’s crucial for healthcare staff to have easy access to this data so they can provide residents with high-quality care.

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What is resident experience software?

While EHR systems are used by healthcare staff, resident experience software is used by life enrichment departments. In your community, you may know them as the recreation department or activity department. Regardless of what their name may be, their goal is the same: to engage residents through meaningful programs and activities.

Resident experience software offers a variety of features to support life enrichment teams. These may include digital tools for taking attendance, designing activity calendars, documenting resident information, and analyzing recreation data. Welbi is a resident experience platform that includes all of these features and more. Life enrichment teams use Welbi’s tools and data to plan programs that are tailored to their residents’ needs.

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What are data silos?

Each department in your community likely uses at least one digital tool as part of their jobs. This can result in data silos, which occur when information stored in a system can only be accessed by one department. The same information is inaccessible to the rest of the organization. 

Siloed data causes many problems for an organization. While technology can increase efficiency, data silos slow teams down. Team members lose time trying to track down and access the information they need to do their jobs. They may also be wasting time manually entering the same information in multiple systems. The result is more time spent in an office and less time spent engaging with residents.

Data silos can lead to inconsistencies if the same type of data — such as resident demographic information — is stored in multiple systems. Information may also be missing or out of date. In our experience working with senior living communities, we found that 90% of communities have inaccurate, outdated, and incomplete resident data. This creates a large margin for error that can negatively impact the resident experience.

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What is integrated software?

Integrated software is your solution to data silos. When software is integrated, this means that it is designed to work with the systems you already have in place. It then becomes possible to share information between systems, which breaks down data silos. Welbi’s resident experience platform integrates with your existing EHR system to streamline data across departments. 

Welbi’s integration creates one source of truth across your organization, so team members can be confident that resident records are accurate and up to date. It also makes information about your residents’ needs and preferences easy to access for the entire interdisciplinary team. Integrated software enables different departments to work together to improve the overall resident experience in your senior living community. 

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How does Welbi’s EHR integration work?

The Welbi platform can integrate with both PointClickCare and MED e-care.

When your teams onboard with us, we transfer resident demographic data from your EHR system to Welbi. Resident demographic data automatically updates in Welbi to ensure data consistency across platforms. This data includes the resident’s:

• First Name

• Last Name

• Room Number

• Profile Photo

• Date of Birth

• Gender

• Status

• Move-in Date

• Move-out Date

• Language

• Religion
  

• Citizenship

• Occupation

• Ethnicity
  

Welbi’s two-way sync with PointClickCare allows information to be shared between the platforms. Welbi assessments can be transferred to PointClickCare, and progress notes can be shared between Welbi and PointClickCare. This allows nursing staff and life enrichment staff to be on the same page when it comes to a resident’s health and wellness for an improved resident experience. If you want to learn more about Welbi’s EHR integration, book a demo to see first-hand how the platform can streamline your teams’ workflow.