Guide to Activity Director Software: What it is and How it Can Help Your Community
Resident activities play a crucial role in attracting new clients and ensuring that they thrive in independent and assisting living communities. Fitness classes, gardening, movie nights, and other activities can all encourage older adults to explore new hobbies and develop strong social networks. However, planning activities that engage and satisfy all residents can be challenging.
Luckily, activity director software allows you to quickly coordinate stellar enrichment programs that align with your community’s needs and interests. This technology also makes it easy to measure the impact of your activities on residents, so you can ensure that every program is a success.
What Is Activity Director Software?
Activity director software is an all-in-one solution for senior living activity planning. This technology enables activity professionals to develop meaningful programs that enrich seniors’ mental, physical, and social well-being.
Traditionally, many activity coordinators use a series of spreadsheets or even handwritten notes to plan each program. These events are commonly advertised with a community bulletin board, printed monthly calendars, and emails. However, that type of system is time-consuming and inefficient, especially if you plan dozens of programs a week. Moreover, even the most enthusiastic residents may miss your activities if they forget to check their emails or misplace a flier.
In contrast, a senior living resident engagement platform centralizes and streamlines activity planning tasks. Software like Eldermark’s engage allows you to:
- Collect data about individual residents’ interests and care plans
- Manage every aspect of program planning, from budgeting to scheduling
- Share events on online activity calendars, community boards, and social media pages
- Send residents reminders about upcoming activities
- Track resident attendance, allowing senior living teams to share that attendance data with families, natural supports, or regulatory authorities
This technology also empowers seniors to take control of their daily schedules and engage in meaningful recreation. They can use the engage app to find upcoming events, give feedback about what they like and dislike, and keep family members in the loop.
The Benefits of Using a Senior Living Resident Engagement Platform
Resident engagement software has many advantages for seniors and staff. Here are a few ways that implementing this technology will positively impact your senior living community:
Increase Resident Engagement
The COVID-19 pandemic caused many older adults to feel isolated and lonely. Activity planning software helps reverse this troubling trend by enabling coordinators to develop a robust curriculum of customized programs.
For example, you can use resident engagement software to survey seniors about their favorite hobbies and create relevant activities. Film-loving residents will bond at a classic movie night, while tennis fanatics can discuss their favorite players at their weekly lessons. These activities encourage residents to engage with each other and with staff, transforming any senior housing organization into a vibrant community.
Improve Resident Satisfaction
Keeping residents happy is a top priority for all senior living professionals, but how can resident satisfaction be gauged? With an activity planning solution, you can quickly assess how your clients respond to your enrichment programming and adjust as needed.
Activity participation is one measurement that can provide valuable insights. Eldermark’s engage software monitors attendance and displays this data in customizable dashboards that reveal individual and community-wide trends.
For instance, you might notice that male residents in your long-term care communities only attend half as many programs as female residents. You can potentially increase this population’s engagement and boost their overall satisfaction by adding more activities related to their interests or by evaluating completed resident assessments to ensure your programming meets your community’s assessed needs and preferences.
The engage software also tracks each activity’s performance and identifies programs that residents find less satisfying. Your memory care residents might flock to board game nights while the walking club for adult day care seniors has consistently low enrollment. Based on these findings, you could survey residents to find out why they’re dissatisfied with some activities and make improvements – or simply eliminate a widely disliked activity.
Promote Health and Wellness
Meaningful life enrichment activities play a pivotal role in person-centered care. Senior living professionals can collaborate with healthcare providers and caregivers to create personal activities that fit each resident’s care plan. Water aerobics classes could help an older adult with arthritis stay mobile, while a resident with depression may benefit from regular visits with an adorable therapy dog. Activity planning software allows you to design and keep records of individual interventions.
Generally, seniors with ample opportunities to participate in recreational and social activities have a higher quality of life. Research shows that residents of nursing homes and other senior care settings feel less lonely when they participate in leisure activities, such as gardening. Also, studies have found that physical activities like resistance training programs and walking promote cognitive health in older adults.
Streamline Resident Activities
Organizing a full schedule of resident activities can be difficult, especially if you’re an activity coordinator for multiple buildings or communities. Resident engagement software, though, allows you to scale your programs and provide consistent experiences for all residents.
Eldermark’s engage software, for instance, lets you create templates for specific activities to save time. You can also plan activities at the corporate level and distribute them to select communities, streamlining the planning process.
What To Look for in Activity Director Software
If you're ready to take your activity planning to the next level, look for a resident engagement platform with these essential features:
- Family Portal: Platforms like engageallow family members to feel involved by allowing them to view photos and videos of their loved ones’ activities, and see attendance information.
- Implementation Support: Setting up new software can be time-consuming and stressful. Fortunately, some software vendors, like Eldermark, have an implementation team to help you get your new activity planning program up and running.
- Regulatory Compliance: Ebenezer Senior Living and other industry leaders use the engage platform to ensure their activities comply with state regulations.
Who Will Use Resident Engagement Software at Your Senior Living Community?
Depending on the size of your organization, you may need an activity director and at least one activity assistant to coordinate resident engagement programs. These professionals can use activity planning software to streamline routine tasks and maintain thorough records.
Most professionals in this field have a high school diploma, continuing education credentials, and several years of experience. They’re often certified in life-enriching activity programs by the National Certification Council for Activity Professionals (NCCAP) or the Modular Education Program for Activity Professionals (MEPAP). Many senior living activity directors also belong to the National Association of Activity Professionals (NAAP).
FAQs About Activity Director Software
1. Is activity director software expensive?
Prices vary by vendor, but resident engagement software is generally affordable for senior living communities of all sizes.
2. Does activity director software work with other digital tools?
Eldermark’s engage integrates seamlessly with EHR systems, data analytics tools, and other essential senior living software.
Transform Your Activity Calendar with Engage
Eldermark’s engage is a comprehensive activity planning solution for busy senior living professionals. Contact us today to schedule a demo and learn more about how this software can promote resident enrichment and satisfaction.
