Smartcare is Nominated for Wisconsin Innovation Award for Advances in Caregiver Engagement and Retention
Published on July 9, 2021 by Sharon Morrisette
Smartcare applies innovations developed in Wisconsin to its industry-leading home care EMR platform to provide agencies with solutions for retaining caregivers.
Eau Claire, WI, July 8, 2021 – Smartcare Software, Inc., provider of an industry-leading platform that delivers highly configurable solutions to home care providers worldwide, announced today that it has been nominated for the Wisconsin Innovation Award for its introduction of Machine Learning (ML) and gamification to a home care EMR platform to solve the industry’s acute crisis of staff hiring and retention. Both technologies were created and developed in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Innovation Awards (WIA) highlight and honor the development of groundbreaking and innovative ideas. The mission is to foster and encourage an even greater innovation environment by bringing innovators together from various business sectors (e.g., tech, food, healthcare, agriculture, nonprofits, education, government) and from throughout Wisconsin.
“Smartcare is disrupting the home care market using innovation created and developed in Wisconsin,” said Scott Zielski, CEO of Smartcare Software. “We are the first home care solution developer to introduce Machine Learning (ML) and gamification to a home care EMR platform specifically to solve the industry’s acute crisis of staff hiring and retention.
Using Smartcare’s hiring and retention solutions, home care providers are seeing a 3X improvement in staff retention and a 52% improvement in applicant-to-hire ratios over the industry averages.”
The average home care agency in the US has 50 caregivers, and the caregiver average turnover rate across the US in 2020 was 65.2%, down from a pre-pandemic high of 81%. Last year, the high turnover required the average provider to rehire over 32 caregivers during the year.
The Center for American Progress reported that the cost to a home care provider for rehiring a single caretaker was a minimum of $2,600, equating to an annual cost of over $84,000 last year per provider in the US. Supported by Smartcare’s caregiver retention innovations, home care agencies using the platform retain more caregivers, resulting in an average savings of $68,000 annually per home care provider.
The higher retention levels that Smartcare users see also impact patient care, with a 60% reduction in no-shows and improved patient engagement and outcomes. Projections are showing that when users apply Smartcare’s gamification tools, caregiver no-shows to the home can be reduced by over 85% over time, creating a better patient-care experience.
Smartcare’s innovation is also having a positive impact in Northwestern Wisconsin, where Smartcare has grown its technology workforce by over 186% over the past year, adding new healthcare technology jobs to the Chippewa Valley area.
“We want to thank those who nominated Smartcare for this award,” said Scott Zielski, CEO of Smartcare Software. “Smartcare is proud to call Wisconsin home. We look forward to carrying on the long state tradition of innovating healthcare as we continue to grow a home-care-focused healthcare technology business in Northwestern Wisconsin.”
For more information about Smartcare Software visit: www.smartcaresoftware.com
About Smartcare Software, Inc.
Headquartered in Eau Claire, WI, Smartcare Software is a complete SaaS Electronic Medical Record (EMR) and point-of-care platform developing transformative technologies to support the future of home care in the post-acute and long-term care markets.
Smartcare’s sophisticated connected technologies and advanced proactive analytics produce better patient outcomes, simplify back-office functions, and ultimately drive higher profitability for providers.
By leveraging the latest research in machine learning (ML), gamification, and advanced automation, Smartcare is solving home care’s staffing and retention crisis while providing a superior user and client experience.
Smartcare solutions drive the best practices in care while increasing the engagement of caregivers, patients, and patient family members, leading to improved outcomes and increased satisfaction.