The challenges facing UK care and nursing homes

It is estimated that the number of people aged over 85 will double to reach 2.6m by 2045. This demographic trend will lead to an increasing requirement for residential and nursing care home beds. Unsurprisingly, this increase in demand is attracting investors to take an interest in the care home sector.

At the same time, however, the care home sector post-COVID is facing a number of serious challenges, challenges which saw a loss of 1,033 care beds over the twelve months ending December 2022. It is estimated that the shortfall in care bed places will continue to rise, reaching 64,000 by the end of 2024.

The challenges in the care home sector include a complex (and, possibly, unsustainable) funding model; regulatory compliance; maintaining a clean and safe care environment; and, meeting the diverse needs and preferences of patients.

However, the single biggest constraint on care homes in 2024 is staffing shortages, particularly of skilled and experienced personnel. There are an estimated 150,000 vacancies in adult social care, representing a vacancy rate of around 9.9%. With one in ten positions unfilled, it is unsurprising that care homes are increasingly turning to agency staff to fill the gap. This is, however, an expensive solution in a sector where profitability is already under serious pressure as occupancy rates struggle to recover from a low point of 79% in 2021.

Whilst funding, finance and social care are strategic issues which need to be addressed at the heart of government, Paperclip can help relieve some of the day-to-day operational pressures faced by nursing and residential care home operators.

Optimal use of qualified and experienced personnel

In many cases, calls received by care homes are answered on an ad-hoc basis by incredibly busy staff members whose priorities, quite rightly, focus on the care of their residents. What comes first, answering an incoming call or dealing with a resident who has fallen?

Paperclip provides call answering and reception desk services for care homes across the UK. When a care home uses Paperclip to answer calls, it is automatically engaging a trained, 20-strong reception team. Using Paperclip ensures the care home’s trained and experienced personnel are able to deploy their skills in patient care, rather than worrying about a ringing phone. It is also worth pointing out that a ringing phone is a point of stress for residents and carers alike.

The importance of phone calls in a care home setting

Whilst staff shortages make it difficult for in-house carers to answer the phone, this should not detract from the critical importance of phone calls in a care home setting; both from a quality of care/customer service perspective and also from a sales enquiry point of view.

·???????? Quality of care

The following is a testimonial from one of Paperclip’s care home clients:

In the case of the client referenced in the testimonial, Paperclip handles all in-coming calls. In conversation with the client, different actions have been defined for each category of caller. For example, calls from regulators, healthcare professionals, emergencies and anyone physically onsite are transferred. Unsolicited sales calls are declined (all of the care home’s key supplies are on long-term contracts). For certain categories of calls messages are taken and forwarded to call-specific mailboxes. As the Paperclip care home client states: ‘…my leadership team are(sic) able to get on with important work looking after our residents knowing calls are being handled professionally.’

·???????? Prospective resident enquiry

A supplier active in the care home sector estimates that 52% of all telephone enquiries into care homes go unanswered. Whilst this figure is, sadly, better than for certain other sectors in which Paperclip operates it should not detract from the fact that an unanswered enquiry provides a sales opportunity for a competitor. With occupancy rates such a huge factor in the viability of the care home economic model, ensuring every sales enquiry is answered should be a priority.

When answering calls from prospective new residents and their relatives, the Paperclip team captures key information as instructed by the care home. Some care homes, for example, wish to capture care details and the personal preferences of a potential resident. Questions may include clarification relating to mobility issues, medication management, and dietary requirements. The Paperclip team can enter this data directly into the care home client’s management system and, if there is a diary feature, arrange an appointment for the prospective resident and their carers to visit.

There is no doubt that handling enquiries in a caring and professional manner can have a significant impact on which care home is chosen. This is particularly true when a prospective resident may be suffering from dementia, have received a cancer diagnosis, or require end-of-life care.

·???????? The human dimension

Care homes are not immune from the onward march of technology. However, there are few settings in which the need ‘to be heard’ is more acute. The emotional content of a call is something which can only be handled through human interaction rather than, for example, through an AI-powered chatbot regardless of how clever the technology may be.

Paperclip team members receive dementia-awareness training which helps them deal with what can often be distressing calls from residents struggling with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease who dial down to reception. Simply by quickly answering these calls, setting the resident’s mind at rest, and advising that a carer will be with them soon to help is a massive help for the care home in question.

Admin support

In addition to its core call answering and reception desk services, Paperclip also supports care home clients by providing admin support. The support provided varies from client to client but can include contact database maintenance, invoicing, mail fulfilment, email inbox management, social media monitoring and more besides.

Summary

Whether we like to admit it or not, many of us will be engaging with care homes in the future either as primary carers or as residents in our own right. In both scenarios, we want the focus to be on ‘care’, to know that our loved ones are in good hands.

By removing the disruption of call answering and the time burden of administration, Paperclip helps focus specialist care resources on the needs of the residents. Furthermore, by ensuring all resident enquiries are captured, Paperclip also contributes to the financial health of the care home.

For an open discussion of your care home’s specific requirements and challenges, please call the Paperclip team on 01246 418 181. When we answer your calls, we are truly an integral member of your team.

Author

Louise Bellwood is a Director at Paperclip, a provider of call answering, reception desk and admin support services to the care and nursing home community.

Louise can be contacted at 01246 418 181 or [email protected] .