Sunshine Retirement Living Relies on PointClickCare’s Optimization Services to Maximize Their EHR for Senior Care

Implementing a new platform can be a bit of a roller coaster. From the initial anticipation to the adrenaline rush, there’s a full spectrum of emotions while riding the twists, turns, and loops that accompany any adoption journey.

The potential for improvement is exciting but can also be daunting when so much is at stake. At Sunshine Retirement Living, the well-being of the seniors in our care was on the line.

Preparing for the first big drop

Sunshine Retirement Living manages 35+ senior retirement communities across 18 US states. We have developed the right combination of comfort, care, safety, and quality to deliver an unparalleled community feeling in each property we manage.

As director of health services, I oversee all our assisted living and memory care communities with an eye toward compliance and litigation risk management. My team assists with residents’ daily activities while providing support and care that meets their unique needs. These tasks typically include meal preparation, facilitating programming, and assisting with everyday tasks, all of which enable us to meet our residents where they are.

We want our community members to remain independent for as long as possible. As they continue to age, our support expands to include things like managing medication and prescriptions, ensuring they’re following the doctor’s orders, and enhancing assistance so they can live as freely as possible.

This all requires a careful approach to compliance, and we can’t afford inconsistencies or inefficiencies. We took a leap and adopted a solution that promised to make us more efficient.

A transition threw us for a loop

In 2022, Sunshine Retirement Living was migrating from a legacy platform (Eldermark) to a more modernized EHR in PointClickCare for senior living. I came in halfway through the migration, and there were still plenty of opportunities to ensure our PointClickCare instance met our current—and future—needs.

Take compliance, for example. We had plenty of policies and procedures, but still, progress notes sometimes slipped through the cracks and we didn't always have complete context regarding assessments, incident reporting, and documentation. We also relied on outdated manual processes, which left staff members inundated with various time-consuming tasks.

To get the most out of our new EHR for senior living platform, we turned to PointClickCare Optimization Services. And just like that, our ride started to pick up speed.

Optimization put us on track to meet 90% of our clinical benchmarks

Working with the PointClickCare Optimization Services team has completely transformed our ability to streamline tasks. Now, we can automate compliance checks, boost clinical performance, and keep our team on the same page.

We’re light years away from where we were when I first came to Sunshine Retirement. The benefits have been remarkable:

• Automating and scheduling our monthly progress notes improves compliance and documentation accuracy. With increased automation, we can view resident status in real time, monitor their progress, and identify how/when to offer more assistance.
• Less time spent on manual documentation eliminates the need for constant managerial oversight. This improvement allows us to shift some of the compliance and reporting burden from nursing directors to our floor staff.
• Customized assessment forms and care plans enable us to act on more detailed information. By gathering more relevant data, we can better meet the needs of each resident without overburdening staff with time-consuming or manual processes.
• Streamlined processes make daily workflows easier for staff. Tasks like fall assessments and incident reports are more streamlined, and it’s easier for staff to track activities and actions. Our compliance procedures are much more user-friendly and take less effort to complete. In addition, staff members can see their schedules up to a week in advance, ensuring we have the right level of coverage and everyone is well prepared.

Sunshine Retirement has implemented these changes across many of our communities, and as a result, we’re meeting more than 90% of our core metrics. The feedback has been incredible, and we plan to continue onboarding and expanding our PointClickCare footprint throughout our communities.

Riding side by side with experts

I initially leveraged the PointClickCare optimization program to learn specific tips that would ease the transition from our legacy platform. I learned twice as much as I expected, which has enabled us to achieve more than I could’ve imagined.

The PointClickCare team has always been available to chat whenever I have a question or need guidance—especially our implementation consultant. Our meetings were always productive. They prepared mini “homework assignments” to boost my accountability, and we developed action plans for subsequent meetings.

Our consultant stepped in when necessary, such as when they suggested optimizing settings for greater efficiency. More often, though, they helped me talk through my problems rather than just telling me how to fix them. I’m increasingly able to troubleshoot on my own, and I feel much more confident in my ability to make changes that will further benefit our staff and residents.

A positive journey to enhance resident well-being

The project turned out to be a great ride. Relying on PointClickCare Optimization Services enabled us to flip the narrative and significantly improve our core metrics.

Investing in the optimization program is a great idea for any community that needs additional support. It offers tremendous value you can’t get anywhere else, and the changes we've made help us make our residents feel more comfortable and at home each and every day.