How Home Healthcare Providers Find Success with App Modernization

Having requests come to the entire team instead of just one person results in a more timely response for the employee and builds HR staff knowledge because they’re handling all types of calls, says Michelle Antonucci, director of HR shared services operations at VNS Health.

“Our team answers questions about benefits, payroll, training, PTO and other areas,” she says. “It helps them learn more and advance in their own careers.”

The platform also makes it easy for employees to submit documents to HR, view their case histories to review responses to past questions or even reopen a case if they still have queries. “The system itself is very intuitive,” Antonucci adds.

As a director, Antonucci says she benefits from having greater visibility into the case management queue. With green, yellow and red color coding, she can instantly see if calls are lingering and act accordingly. “I can have eyes on it without spending all day following up with the team,” she says.

Modernizing the workflow also allows for more data that Antonucci can use to manage her team and enhance HR services. For example, noting that 18 percent of case management queries were coming from new employees, she identified areas of VNS Health’s onboarding materials that could be improved to ensure employees have all the information they need. If numerous calls come in about a specific policy, she can work with her HR colleagues to modify the policy to make it clearer.

“It’s a great way to identify trends,” Antonucci says.

DISCOVER: The ultimate roadmap to modernizing legacy applications in healthcare is here.

Application Modernization Optimizes Healthcare IT

For many providers, modernizing back-office technology ultimately leads to a better patient experience: Simple, efficient workflows enable clinicians to focus on care. But application upgrades also create a better experience for IT teams, which can help providers retain valued employees.

By reducing technical debt and increasing opportunities for automation, application modernization enables IT departments to be more efficient and effective.

At Amedisys, for example, remote management via Intel vPro® eliminated much of the logistical coordination that had to happen before IT support teams could even start to troubleshoot user devices. Now, IT staffers can repurpose some of that time for strategic priorities that help the business, such as putting systems in place to ensure that new employees have all the necessary applications and access they need to be productive from day one.

For Lewis, that continuous drive to be better is integral to Amedisys’s approach.

“I want to make sure we’re above the industry standard. We’re always improving our fighting position,” he says.

UP NEXT: What health systems need to consider about at-home acute care security.