AWARDS

"Changed My Life"

Vorteile: I could go on and on about the benefits of Foothold's Awards program. It is very easy to use. Change is hard for everyone and my staff was nervous about it but all migrations (for many program) couldn't have been easier. Of great importance to me was the tech support. I never have to wait to address a question or to get clarification.
The software has actually made the management of my agencies, much easier. I have explored areas of productivity that I never thought was possible. Everything we need to provide services is easily in one place. We have successfully used Awards in various applications and it has been successful with each.

Nachteile: At this point we have no issues with this software.
I only wish I had more time to explore some of the features I have not yet used (and I use many of them already).

"Product Review - Foothold AWARDS"

Kommentare: Our overall experience with AWARDS has been positive. Our implementation specialist was wonderful, as was our temporary support person who assisted us with reviewing survey results with management. Our current support person is difficult to reach and does not reply to questions/concerns in a timely manner. We also find the HelpDesk people to be very accommodating when they can, and the new HelpDesk feature (using email) has been great so far!

Vorteile: This product is very easy to use for all staff; including Direct Support Professionals, Managers, Executive Leadership, and Fiscal staff. The integration with existing business processes was a relatively smooth process. Our implementation specialist was wonderful in working with us to develop forms and adjust processes to work within AWARDS. The BillingBuilder took quite some time to set up and test because it was very different from what we had currently used, but we had sufficient support. One feature that has made a positive impact is the Reporting capabilities. Anyone, from Managers checking/signing progress notes, to Executive Leadership searching for trends, finds the ReportBuilders easy to use. Pulling data from the system has become an integral part in our efforts to improve process to increase efficiency, and satisfaction of stakeholders.

Nachteile: There are a few identified areas of AWARDS that we'd like to see improved upon.
One, is that we'd like a way to "turn off" the internal notification tied to the new E-Signatures Configuration for Progress Notes. Our process requires staff to sign their progress notes after review; once staff click "Save Note," the system automatically sends the notification that they have a note to review, but, they've already signed the note.
Another area that has room for improvement, is when the need arises to create a new form that is different from the current version. Many of us need to have access in several ReportBuilders to the older form, but AWARDS does not suggest "moving forms." If the form is removed from it's current holding spot (i.e. Services or Charting Timetable) and moved to a "blank" holding area, the form can be accessed via client history. We need to have older forms remain available to all licensing and regulatory agencies in our ReportBuilders.

"A successful transition from paper charts to electronic health records"

Kommentare: Our agency provides a variety of Residential Treatment and Community Services throughout multiple counties within the state. Understanding that our services are vast, there was hesitation to think that we would find a system that would meet all of our regulatory and oversight needs. It is fair to state that AWARDS meets these needs and expectations. The system is customizable in many ways. The Foothold/AWARDS staff are responsive and great to work with. Overall ease of use is great.

Vorteile: AWARDS permits programs and services to be developed and configured independently or globally.
The formbuilder feature permits our agency to develop forms in the format we like, which certainly eased the implementation period. Reportbuilder provides opportunity for reports to be built specific to the user, program or agency based off of (pretty much) any field that is entered in to the system. This has allowed our agency to streamline data collection, identify more indicators to measure success and be able to access outcomes in real time. Our implementation consultants were highly supportive throughout the agency's transition from paper charts to electronic records. Following our implementation phase, we were assigned a senior consultant whom we quickly discovered is equally responsive and helpful.
As the implementation researcher, lead and system administrator, I have worked with several Foothold/AWARDS team members. All of whom have demonstrated professionalism, appropriate problem solving skills and willingness to help whenever asked. Due to the success we experienced throughout the first three years with AWARDS, we chose to increase the use of the system by implementing the billing builder feature. We plan to begin this new phase of implementation soon.

Nachteile: AWARDS does not have a mobile app for phones. Although the site is accessible from a mobile device, it is difficult to navigate the site on a small mobile devices while in the field. Employees report it would be much easier to have clients/families sign documents if there was a phone app or better flow of signatures. In addition, we have encountered a few issues surrounding e-signatures and alerts when a form is ready to be signed. We report these concerns to the helpdesk and they are always attentive; however, it is in this 'con' area because it has been an issue that we have encountered on more than 3 occasions. The help desk always resolves the problem, until it comes up again.

"Very User Friendly "

Kommentare: Overall I have enjoyed my experience with Awards in the last 5 and a half years. I have a great senior project manager who can always answer my questions and help me with anything. The upgrades to the software have been ongoing over a long period of time but have been for the positive. I would recommend Awards to any social service agency that wants to build a relationship with their EHR vendor and work closely with them over the years.

Vorteile: Awards is easy to use for our front line staff. Training is quick and simple to get them started. The software is very user friendly in a point and click capacity for staff. As an administrator I like the ability to customize my reports and build forms that I need for my programs.

Nachteile: Some of the areas of the software are very old and clunky. They need to be updated and the response to where the company is on updating them isn't great. The administrator functionality could be better, it would be great to have access to a dashboard to see how my database is doing and if there is anything that needs attention.

"Customization, Collaboration, and Overall Utilization"

Kommentare: Being one of the co-chairs of a committee of community providers who utilize the AWARDS program in NJ, having the same Senior Project Manager, [SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN]
, is helpful in streamlining the overall process for all users. We share ideas, forms, best practices, and sometimes resources. We have partnered with [SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN] to meet on a regular basis to discuss and/or review topics such as AWARDS updates that affect the IDD population, Medicaid updates, regulatory compliance, enhancements, etc. Since [SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN] works with all of us, there is ease in that no one provider agency has to explain the "Why" or "What type of data or work do you do" type questions. We can get into the meat of an issue which helps move to a resolution faster. This partnership and experience enhances the overall experience in that there is strength in numbers and having the leverage to make changes in not only the AWARDS program, but also in overall advocacy. To the actual AWARDS program, the overall experience has been positive. The "home" page is user friendly and intuitive. The new format in the Service Module with Plans and Review has made the overall process of Outcome/Strategy development less stressful and reduced the steps in modification and discontinuing plans.

Vorteile: The AWARDS program affords us opportunities to build forms to capture critical data and then run reports on that data for meaningful use when communication with doctors, nurses, dieticians, and medical or behavioral specialists. This in addition to having the ability to set up rules and parameters around progress note data entry, e-signing, and billing configurations.

Nachteile: The inability to have interoperability with the NJ Depart of Human Services Department of Developmental Disabilities, and more specifically with the iRecord system. If there were interoperability between these two programs running utilization reports would capture the data in which is impossible today. One example: The ISP (Individual Service Plan) and SDR (Service Detail Report) in iRecord show the billable units per calendar year (or set period of time). Having that data at our fingertips across programs and individuals in the AWARDS program would help run a report on the number of units available and the number of units utilized; resulting in a report on lost potential revenue. Currently there is a lot of data manipulation to capture the same information. This would also assist with the ease of transferring the data from the ISP/SDR into the AWARDS program rather than manual input.