Changes to the aged care industry in Australia are coming

As Australia’s population ages, there are many questions being asked about how we will provide for our ageing citizens and, as such, the complexities and challenges faced by the aged care sector continue to grow. In attempts to manage funding for the ageing population, government regulations are undergoing frequent review and ready access to reliable data is becoming increasingly important for businesses operating in this space. So what does this all mean for your aged care businesses today, and moving forward?

The future will be reliant upon comprehensive data collection

A common concern we’ve been seeing across the industry is the chase and scramble to locate and then collate data to meet the range of operational and reporting needs. Metrics are essential for a range of purposes: the daily running of your business, for sound performance, for growth and, of course, for compliance with departmental regulations.

Often though, the required data is not centrally integrated and when you’re faced with new issues and demands you’re either probably doing more manual extracts and Excel modelling or requesting urgent changes to existing reporting and getting the IT to build more reports for you. But, there is an alternative.

Imagine you had a centralised platform that simultaneously allows you to gain access to the information needed to be able to run and grow your business while also being able to demonstrate compliance with departmental regulations. Such a platform already exists and is successfully being used in a number of businesses within the aged care sector.

aged-care-financial-dashboard

The demand for succinct aged care data can only increase

In order to make clear and informed business decisions while adjusting to ever-changing challenges in order to maintain compliance, you’ll need to have easy and timely access to consistent, secure and reliable data. This is what we provide a solution to, and for us, it’s all about automation and visibility when showing organisations the value of these resources and how they can bring immediate and compounding benefits.

There are many factors contributing to the changing landscape of the aged care sector – from the Royal Commission findings and subsequent requirements right through to the significant impact of Covid-19. There’s a lot of information to take in, legislation to follow and numerous different priorities for you to manage. With so many issues to contend with, it can be difficult to know where to start.

When dealing with a number of moving parts, having segregated management systems certainly adds a level of complexity and difficulty. You’ve got a system for clinical activity, a different system for rostering, another for payroll, for care funding, for residential accommodation, for finance, for asset management, and project and capital works, et cetera. And it’s most likely none, or at best only a few, of them play nicely with each other.

In some cases, the systems you are using may even be Excel based. So their visibility and being able to easily organise and collate them in times of decision making is quite difficult.

In order to create a sustainable system, an initially firm foundation is required. Starting small and then building for the future just makes sense. And that requires having a solid understanding of why automation is worth investing in, which is not just for responding to Royal Commissions but for creating lasting sustainability that supports growth and profits.

The EAC of automation

Secondly, communication is also key to executing the strategic decisions that have been made and getting them supported and rolled out throughout the organisation. And then there’s a maintenance component surrounding any decision which requires follow-up communication once any strategy or action has been determined.

Eliminate

Eliminating waste and confusion by automating data and making it accessible. There's no more unnecessary use of time and resources when any data that's required is at the fingertips of anyone who needs access to it.

Align

Aligned data makes for easier and clearly informed decision making. Aligning your budget, your targets, your operational and safety systems, with care hours and resident interactions et cetera makes for best practice.

Communicate

Finally, being able to communicate information in a manner that everybody can gain access to and that is transparent and intuitive across the organisation sets the foundation for a high-quality service.

Once your data is current, visible, aligned and clear you’ll be amazed at the insight you get into your business’ performance and opportunities. At the end of the day, providing more data to the department isn’t the ultimate goal and what’s really important is taking the opportunity to implement strategies and systems to lay an effective foundation for continuous improvement.

Like to discuss options for your business?

The LightArc team can help you identify and implement the ideal automation technology to help you manage and plan with confidence.

To discuss your requirements, start a conversation with us today

 

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