Background
Threshold Clubhouse is an accredited Clubhouse located in North East Central Durham in the historic Wellons Village area. Their mission is simple: to help adults in Durham, NC with severe mental illness stay out of the hospital, succeed at work, advance their education, and reach their goals. As part of Threshold’s psychosocial rehabilitation program, their members participate in one or more work units. All unit work is designed to develop pre-vocational and independent living skills for their members.
Threshold is licensed through the state to bill through Medicaid. Approximately 90-95% of their members qualify for Medicaid, which means they are working with individuals who are at or below the poverty level.
In addition to meeting North Carolina’s requirement that all organizations providing Psychosocial Rehabilitation Programs use an electronic health record (EHR) system, Threshold’s Executive Director, Elizabeth Barber and Associate Director, Ali Swiller also knew EHR software would help them track records more effectively than their current paper method. Historically, they had difficulty finding an EHR that was both affordable and could meet their Clubhouse’s unique business practices.
“When we learned about Patagonia Health, we realized that it seemed to offer a system of electronic records management that was both relevant for what we were doing and would meet all of our needs, so we were really excited.”
— Elizabeth Barber, Threshold
Solution
During their search for a Behavioral Health EHR, Threshold reviewed multiple systems, but struggled to find one that was within their budget and could meet their documentation and reporting requirements. Threshold’s executive team spoke with other Clubhouses to inquire about their systems and even had the opportunity to review some of the EHR solutions being used. However, Threshold’s leadership did not feel those systems would be effective for them or their needs.
Threshold is a non-clinical program. They do not have nurses or doctors. Instead, their staff maintains demographic information and creates weekly notes for all members. Moving from a paper system to Patagonia Health’s Behavioral Health EHR allowed Threshold to consolidate all of their records. Additionally, the software created internal accountability because the notes are time-stamped.
Process
Threshold was able to transition to Patagonia Health at their own pace. The implementation process followed a schedule that was most effective for the abilities of their staff and the timeline they needed to meet.
Threshold’s leadership team implemented a “train the trainer” model, which involved training the agency’s senior staff members. Members of the staff who were less computer savvy were able to receive individualized training from the senior staff members. This allowed Threshold’s staff to effectively learn the system.
“Not only were we trained effectively, but Patagonia Health’s team had great follow through after the training. They answered all of our questions, offered suggestions and helped us make adjustments to make the system work more effectively for our agency.”
— Elizabeth Barber, Threshold
“All-in-all it was a quick learn for everybody. It did not take long for everybody to feel comfortable using the system, and we were able to implement everything in the timeline we had hoped for,” says Executive Director, Elizabeth Barker.
Benefits
Since moving to Patagonia Health, Threshold has realized numerous benefits, including:
- Improved note quality
- Increased accountability
- Enhanced process for weekly notes
- Increased efficiency
“We have been thrilled to use Patagonia Health. The system has been a great step forward for Threshold. We have been very happy with the success of using their Behavioral Health EHR, and we look forward to continuing to partner with Patagonia Health in the future.”
— Elizabeth Barber, Threshold
Download the full PDF here: Improving Documentation at Threshold Clubhouse
