case management systems
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
Selecting and Implementinga Case Management System
Adam Fenstermaker
extendedReach
Agenda + Full Disclosure
• How Good Systems are like Old Washing Machines
• “The One Trick Pony” vs. “The Hammer”
• extendedReach
• Panel discussion
Social Work
• Caseworkers operate fairly independently
• Contract-based / rules
• Funding organizations with possibly multiple agencies
• Remote / On the Road
• Detailed – lots of information!
“The Information Pyramid”
Amount of Information Required
Caseworkers
Supervisors
Funding
Leadership
Support the bottom of the pyramid to succeed
The Computerization of Social Work
• These factors make the industry prime candidate for technology
• Specifically Internet/ web-based
• Value in connections – both within and outside of your agencies
Drivers to Technology
• Improved efficiency
• Competitive advantage
• Contract compliance
• Balanced Scorecard/measuring – internal measures
• Reduced cost of technology
• Better tools = better casework
• Access to information as needed
• Focus on casework not on paperwork
• Don’t let kids fall through the cracks
Most Importantly
The Transition
• Eventually all social work activity and reports for all programs will be documented in a computer system
• How will your agency transition into this period?
• Early vs. Late Adopter?
Where are You Now?
• “Real Old School”
• “Just Old School”
• “New School”
Look At
• How your workers record information
• Where the information is kept
• How the information is distributed
Real “Old School”
• Handwritten case notes
• Activity logs handwritten on form or kept in Excel
• Reports typed into Microsoft Word and kept on network drive
• Centralized spreadsheet or Access database
“Old School”
• Some limited use of forms/MS-Word/e-mail
• Mostly centralized data entry into a central database or billing system by support staff (admin, finance)
• Management reports distributed by e-mail / paper
“New School”
• Direct access to system by caseworkers
• Real-time data
• Built-in document management
• Dashboards
• Easy-to-use for everyone
• Web-based
The Good News
• These “New School” systems are affordable
• They are how things will be done
• They provide quick ROI
• Internet growth of late 90’s
• Compared to gold rush
• Now in a period of innovation
Impact of the Internet
• More like early days utility industry (Jeff Bezos – Amazon.com)
• Didn’t run out of gold
• Utility industry – killer app was “light bulb”
• For Internet, it was email and dot-com web apps
The “Killer App”
• 1890’s – Electric fan
• 1905 – First vacuum – 92 pounds
• 1908 – Washing machine
After the Light Bulb
• About this evolution point with Internet
• Applications on the Internet are like Electric Appliances of Early 1900’s – but will keep getting better
• “Computerization” and “Internet” will be synonymous
Where We Are Now
Purchased vs. Hosted (Software as a Service)
YesYesYesYes
-YesYes
YesYes
Purchased
----
Yes--
--
Hosted
Annual Application Maintenance
Upgrade / Maintenance ComputersSalary Technical Support PersonnelServer Hardware and SoftwareDatabase Backup/Restore ServiceMonthly Application Subscription
Application License
Annual Database MaintenanceDatabase Server License
Ability for Applications to Interact
“HomeMatch” demo
“One Trick Pony” vs. “The Hammer”
• The story of the one trick pony
• Specialized vs. Generalized
• Don’t expect one piece of software to do everything
Advantages of Specialized Software
• Reduced implementation time
• Reduced cost
• Increased functionality
• In Internet-based environment – can’t be a master of everything
• Over time specialized software will interact with other specialized software
Flexibility
• When implement software – have a choice –change the process to meet the software or change software to meet process.
• Focus on 3 touch points
• Agencies that are most effective are flexible in the process and have the ability to do either
Things to consider
• Support for your workflow
• Security
• Integration with your financial system
• Make sure you aren’t implementing an “Old school” centralized data entry system.
Specialized Software - Demo
Dashboard Reporting
Example of specialized software
The extendedReach Story
• 1999 - Developed first foster care system for Bethany Christian Services.
• Most systems were financial/operations based
• 2001 - Developed Early Impact System for Bethany – caseworker focused
• The stack of paper
• 2003 –extendedReach – Early Impact System
• 2005 –extendedReach – Foster Care System
Where we are now
• 12 organizations (11 in Michigan; including DHS)
• 26 locations across 6 states
• 660 users
• 12 different programs
• Continue to expand
Some of Our Customers
Child and Family Services of Northwestern Michigan
Lessons Learned
• “Sunlight is the Best Disinfectant”
• “Better Together than Apart” – even though everything isn’t always fair
• Focus on the caseworker
Takeaways
• Affordable solutions are here today – and will continue to improve and expand
• Don’t accept solutions that don’t meet your specific needs quickly and easily
• Opportunities ahead to improve quality of care and efficiency
• Don’t accept “Old School” solutions
Other Resources
• “Implementing a Client Management System” by Eric Musum
Questions and Answers
Followed by Panel Discussion