Managing Home Visiting Programs Can Be Overwhelming: The Right Software Can Eliminate That Stress.

Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) is a program with proven positive outcomes for children and families. Home visiting has been shown to increase optimal child development and health, parental confidence, and school readiness, while decreasing child abuse and neglect, maternal depression, low weight births and other childhood health conditions ¹. But to demonstrate these outcomes and inform decision making on all levels, home visiting data needs to be easily collected and properly utilized.

In support of adopting a comprehensive exchange of data as recommended by the Health Resource and Service Administration (HRSA), Advanced Metrics partnered with a state Department of Health to implement custom Home Visiting software. This software ensures the collection of home visiting data according to the home visitor workflow, tracks referrals and immunizations, has data validation, and increases fidelity to home visiting models.

Since its implementation in the fall of 2018, this home visiting software has:

• Been easily accessed and utilized by more than 200 home visitors, supervisors, and administrators.
• Collected home visiting data for over 7,000 families.
• Been used to track over 1,100 home visits per month.
• Allowed for continuous and seamless home visit tracking during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This software, now known as QUALO Home Visiting, can be implemented to support any evidence-based model of home visiting across the country.

QUALO Home Visiting: Software features that empower home visitors

Home visitors need software that empowers them to implement their home visiting model with fidelity, allows for easy collection of data, and streamlines workflow. QUALO Home Visiting from Advanced Metrics does all of this and much more.

Fidelity of Implementation:

Supporting new mothers, infants and children through home visiting is an integral core component of a statewide MIECHV Program. Ensuring that all parties work together and execute the plan with fidelity is critical. QUALO Home Visiting software helps ensure this happens through standardized data gathering and reporting to ensure that every home visitor captures the same information.

Ease of Data Collection:

QUALO Home Visiting supports the collection of data according to home visitor workflow, tracks referrals and immunizations, and has data validation. It’s a modern, secure cloud-based software system that standardizes data collection and makes it easier for home visitors to use and for managers to track.

Improved Workflow:

Home visitors have days full of scheduling challenge, so they need software that eases these burdens, not adds to them. QUALO Home Visiting Software has a calendar feature that helps organize busy days and a workflow system that allows home visitors to seamlessly navigate through their day.

QUALO Home Visiting Implementation: Getting expert help

Training and technical assistance grounded in implementation science is critical when implementing software. Research shows that such training is most effective when delivered in multiple stages. This includes initial learning sessions followed by observation and feedback by experts, with subsequent ongoing in-service trainings and coaching once the program is fully implemented ².

The Advanced Metrics team follows principles and practices found in implementation science literature to ensure successful software deployment. The goal is for users to understand how to use it, want to use it, and use it every day. The Advanced Metrics team uses a six-stage process to implement software:

Implementation Process: Six Critical Phases

QUALO Home Visiting- The Right Software, Implemented Well

When compared to HRSA reporting of previous years, 62% of respondents found that reporting was “easier” or “a lot easier” as a result of using the Advanced Metrics’ home visiting software. Over 80% of respondents found the software “helpful” or “very helpful” during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Assessments show that home visitors enjoy using Advanced Metrics’ software. That’s because the software is implemented through a clear, systematic process and users receive the support they need in monthly work sessions.

How can QUALO Home Visiting work for you?

As technology evolves, it’s important to make sure organizations implement the right software with the right company to maximize impact on the community. Cost, training, ease of use, and support are all important factors when researching management software. Contact the team at Advanced Metrics to see how QUALO Home Visiting can benefit your team and your community!

Advanced Metrics is a Certified B-Corporation dedicated to improving lives by uniting community-based services with science-informed approaches. If you are interested in becoming part of the Advanced Metrics team, you can check out our current open positions on the Careers page. 

Sources:

1. (MIECHV, 2019)
2. (The Pew Charitable Trust, 2016).