New software is poised to make doctors and long-term care providers – including senior living operators – their Number 1 fans.
By Pam McDonald
Every time I go to my doctor, he sits facing his computer screen and takes sideways glances at me while we talk. He busily records my concerns, questions, and responses, as well as his prescriptions for moving forward. Although I know he’s capturing a comprehensive look at my health status and care, I’d prefer more eye contact.
Turns out he’s not happy with this arrangement either. A June 12th San Francisco Chronicle article claims “doctors hate electronic records”, despite the billions of dollars and two decades of determined effort spent so far to eliminate paper records.
The journal, Medscape, noted last year that 57% of the 15,000+ doctors surveyed find existing electronic record systems reduce the amount of face-to-face time they are able to spend with patients. [You can read the entire article HERE.]
Fortunately, with the rollout of its CareCommunity™ platform this summer and fall, MatrixCare®, a Senior Housing Forum partner, is poised to make doctors and long-term care providers – including senior living operators – their Number 1 fans.
What CareCommunity™ Is
MatrixCare® has 30+ years of experience developing purpose-built software that enables long-term, post-acute care (LTPAC) providers to effectively and efficiently manage resident care and administrative tasks. It is using this expertise to design and perfect CareCommunity™.
The platform is a secure web-based system that coordinates data from personal electronic health records so it can be displayed in what Matrix’s Senior Product Manager Maria Moen calls “a true longitudinal health record”. That is, a comprehensive summary of an individual’s clinical experiences over time.
Unique Innovations Integrated in CareCommunity™
The software integrates a half-dozen or so innovations that make it more complete and much easier for physicians, others on the health care team, as well as individuals and their families to use.
To start, it offers a single access point to health care pros who are likely to participate in an individual’s care, such as physicians, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, home health aides, skilled facility care coordinators, and residential community care directors.
Secondly, it displays care and treatment information regardless of the setting in which it was delivered. As Maria notes, “Healthcare professionals will embrace the opportunity to see their patient health information across care settings, without boundaries that exist now, such as health system or EMR walls.”
They will have, she states, “. . . the ability to manage care coordination with the right data, at the right time, from a single access point”. That means everyone will have real-time access to the most up-to-date information.
Long-Term Care Is Changing
The guiding principal behind CareCommunity™ is that better health-related information facilitates better outcomes. Senior living and other long-term care providers are keenly aware that government agencies and health care payers are spearheading a transition to a fee-for-value payment model. CareCommunity™ is designed to facilitate higher levels of compliance, lower readmission rates, and improved quality scores.
Watch for Part 2 of this series of articles. It will describe the primary innovation that enables CareCommunity™ to vastly improve electronic health record systems. In the meantime, for more information, call (866) 469-3766 or click on the logo below to visit its website.
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MatrixCare® – LTPAC Providers’ Platform of Choice
MatrixCare® currently is the platform of choice for over 12,000 facility-based care settings, offering purpose-built software systems for skilled nursing facilities, senior living providers, life plan communities (CCRCs), and home health agencies.
