Whether your organization is a nonprofit dealing with child welfare or your heading a governmental department for social services, you’re probably used to seeing your caseworkers drowning in paperwork and putting in extra hours to stay on top of everything.

COVID-19 has affected the world and its societies at unprecedented levels. Ever since the first few cases were reported in the US, things have been spiraling out of the control for both governments and healthcare authorities alike.

A lot of families have lost their loved ones while others are dealing with the long-term side effects of the virus. It’s not as easy for them to adapt to the new normal that others are embracing.

If you work for a government or nonprofit social services organization, you’re probably well aware of one of the most common woes of social workers, i.e., the caseload.

It’s no secret that there is a serious shortage of social workers in the country, and there are way too many cases per worker. This is essentially why case management is taken as a serious concern across social services organizations. Since the 1990s, case management software has been widely available and highly recommended to help manage the large, overwhelming work loads in the social services field.  

But if you’re not quite about them yet, this should help.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented catastrophe, the likes of which the modern world had never seen before. It affected billions around the planet and no country escaped unscathed, including the U.S.

The pandemic has had a huge impact on the country’s socio-economic conditions. The healthcare system is exhausted, people have lost jobs and loved ones and in general, the percentage of the vulnerable and dependent population has risen significantly. 

This means human services organization are working harder than ever and they need all the help they can get.  This is where human services software can provide that much needed extra hand. 

This infographic simply details how you can use Case Management Software to help your agency optimize their case load.  We understand that your agency's success is tied to your ability to integrate best practices in everyday caseworker activities.  Casework isn't simple, but it can be easier, more efficient, therefore increasing your team’s productivity. This allows them to spend more time on what really matters, the client’s that they serve!

Only because it is GVT’s business to provide technology services to the world of social services have we hesitated in the past to promote the central role that technology plays in the delivery of services to the vulnerable populations social workers serve. It has always felt a little too self-serving.

However, in the past fifteen years, technology has evolved from being one of the tools social workers use to what can only be described as the “heart of the matter”.

A surgeon and his scalpel are more than a doctor holding an instrument. They are a functional unit that can only perform their work in unison.

Sometimes, all an organization needs is a little organization!  This was the case for Michigan’s Departments of Community Health, DHS, and Education. In 1994, these organizations came together to form the Systems Reform Task Force with a primary goal to, “achieve better results for multigenerational families who receive services across multiple human service and educational systems.” The task force recognized the need for improved technology to simplify administrative processes, improved communication across systems, and reduced barriers to services for families. Specifically, children under DHS supervision frequently needed services across multiple systems. 

One way for a software solution to help you be HIPAA compliant is to offer you HIPAA encryption as part of the package. But is that something you need to be HIPAA compliant? Technically, no, it’s not mandatory.

The rules state you should use encryption if it would be needed to safeguard electronic Protected Health Information (PHI). But, they do say if you don’t use encryption, you need to have an alternative to encryption that will safeguard as well as encrypting would. Or you need to have documentation with justifiable cause, as to why have taken a different tact with regard to safeguarding PHI.

Nobody understands your stress and how to deal with it better than those in the trenches with you. In previous blogs we have shared ideas on both physical and mental ways to create some level of case manager stress relief. But for today’s post, we talked to case managers and mental health professionals who deal with the stress of the job every day and asked them to share the best ways they find stress relief.

You have good caseworkers who are committed to their clients. They work long hours and go above and beyond to make sure everyone is getting the help they need. Yet, it’s still too easy for someone to slip through the cracks if you’re using an antiquated or old school record system. Or if the caseworker is overwhelmed with too much to do and too little time to do it. Using the right case management software can alleviate some of these issues and help make sure nobody falls through the cracks.