Simple DME ordering tech can prevent waste, burnout in nursing homes
As we near the end of year two of the COVID-19 pandemic, a shrinking population of caregivers in nursing homes and long-term care facilities combined with residents’ evolving healthcare needs underscores the importance of helping caregivers make the most of their time and labor. Parachute Health offers easy technology solutions for DME and supplies ordering that eliminate slow, boring administrative tasks and provide crystal-clear order tracking and visibility. Our supportive ordering tech stops the cycle of losing time to endless paperwork, reducing demands on caregivers so they can get back to what they do best: helping the people in their care.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit every healthcare sector hard, but while many have rebounded, a recent joint report from the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living shows nursing homes and long-term care facilities are still dealing with lasting caregiver attrition and shortages. With 221,000 caregivers lost since the start of the pandemic and as many as one in four nursing homes facing uncertain chances of survival, this group is among the worst impacted of all healthcare provider types.
There are many contributing factors: chronic Medicaid underfunding and a longstanding nursing shortage have meant competition for qualified caregivers. The pandemic also hit nursing homes hard and early, with many workers and residents becoming ill, and a spate of resignations and retirements to follow. Finally, older adults and others in care facilities are often both higher risk for COVID complications and at higher risk of catching COVID in the first place, meaning many residents' needs became more complex after surviving an infection.
We’re acutely aware of the enormous stressors nursing homes and long-term care facilities are facing, and the specialized technology we’ve spent years refining makes us uniquely positioned to help.
Let’s be clear: Parachute Health isn’t on the front lines in the fight against COVID. We’re not doctors or clinicians, and we know that technology can’t heal the tragic loss of life and sweeping aftereffects for those providing front-line care or the individuals they serve. But we’re acutely aware of the enormous stressors nursing homes and long-term care facilities are facing, and the specialized technology we’ve spent years refining makes us uniquely positioned to help.
Faxing remains a common method of ordering DME and supplies, but the truth is it’s a terrible tool for the task. Why? Faxed orders are frequently stalled or cancelled because of missing documentation or incorrect form completion, which translates to hours waiting on hold and repeatedly faxing updated documentation to suppliers to resolve. Inability to save prior work for reorders means that even orders for patients with established needs require the same level of effort. Finally, even when paperwork is filled out perfectly and with complete information, delays driven by unreliable and dated office equipment can retrigger the same infuriating paperwork all over again, with no real certainty that the order will ultimately be filled.
At the same time, it’s understandable that caregivers in settings where resources are stretched to the breaking point would be wary of replacing familiar methods with new technology, as many have been burned in the past by complicated user workflows and incomplete digital solutions from businesses that only do a fraction of what they claimed to at signup.
With all of the chaos and pain points and the high rate of need among residents, it’s not hard to see that time lost to DME and supplies ordering can be a major stressor in this time of unprecedented staffing and workload challenges for nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
Parachute Health’s simple, human-friendly ordering platform is easy to learn, slashes time spent completing orders, and offers a full range of tracking and communication options, all in one place behind a HIPAA-secure login. And when exhaustion reigns and every minute matters, saving hours a week on paperwork can be truly life-changing for both caregivers and the people they take care of.
Caregivers: Try delightfully simple DME ordering today!
