How VNS Health Achieved 95%
Caregiver Engagement with Rewards
Executive Summary
Caribou implemented a variety of features to help VNS Health achieve its goals, understanding that operationalizing rewards and engagement programs requires a thoughtful approach that blends the power of automation with expert guidance. Metrics have surpassed expectations thanks to the combined power of Caribou and HHAeXchange.
There were two key challenges VNS wanted solve:
1. JW Mobile app adoption and Electronic Visit
Verification (EVV) rate
2. Staff referrals volume and caregiver retention
Caribou’s integration with HHAeXchange made implementing and managing the program simple, seamless, and entirely automated.
96
%
250
+
22% increase in mobile app adoption helped get EVV rates up to 96% within the first 5 months
250 new hires were made via referral in year 1, thanks to 200+ applicants coming in per month via referral channels
Caregivers feedback has been positive, and employees showed how much they love working for VNS on personal social media accounts
Context
VNS Health is one of the largest not-for-profit home and community-based health care organizations in the United States. For over 130 years, VNS Health has been supporting communities across New York by providing care that helps patients, plan members, and private pay clients live, age, and heal where they feel most comfortable. With a deep well of
experience and industry knowledge, VNS Health knew that their next frontier of growth needed to be focused on revolutionizing the caregiver experience. Led by Senior Vice President of Personal Care, Jim Rolla, the not-for-profit had to make a modest but meaningful investment in programs that, too often, drop down the list of priorities.
“Caribou has been a total game-changer for us at VNS Health Personal Care. We’ve seen an immediate impact on performance. The product was stress-free to implement, and the team is fantastic to work with. Caribou really understands the home care industry, it’s clear in every conversation, and it shows in how the product was built."
Jim Rolla
SVP, PERSONAL CARE
The Problem
At the crux of their overarching workforce challenges, two problems needed to be addressed: 1) mobile app adoption, which is closely tied to the critical need for Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) and 2) employee referrals and retention.
Mobile App Adoption & EVV
VNS Health has undergone a massive transformation from using pen-and-paper scheduling systems to now requiring caregivers to verify each visit with a patient in order to follow government compliance rules. To get there, behavioral changes are required: VNS Health needed to find a way to change the habits and routines of a distributed workforce.
Staff Referrals & Retention
VNS Health was experiencing the consequences of the personnel shortage affecting many aspects of healthcare. Their objective was two- fold: engage and retain exceptional home health aide (HHA) workforce through rewards that make the HHAs feel seen and valued; and incentivize these team members to become word- of-mouth recruiters.
The Solution
With Caribou, VNS was able to get the perfect balance of human support and tech, enabling them to move the needle on what mattered to their business quickly and easily: not only could we help build out effective communications to promote their rewards and recognition program, but employee engagement soared too. Crucially, thanks to Caribou’s implementation with HHAeXchange, we were able to access employee data in real-time, providing a fully automated and personalized experience.
Referral Program
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Launched a program that put money in the pockets of caregivers at every step of the referral process, from sharing a job to getting hired.
Recognition Program
Empowered managers to give bonuses for milestones like attendance, birthdays, work anniversaries, and just to say thanks.
Custom Branded Experience
Built brand affinity by creating VNS Rewards using VNS colors, fonts and style for the program, ensuring a seamless experience.
Weekly Caribou Coaching
Proactively recommended ways to optimize VNS Rewards with weekly advising sessions guided by Caribou’s team of experts.
Results
Within the first five months, VNS was able to move the needle on the metrics that mattered to them.
250+
NEW HIRES
250+ New Hires via Referral
Per month, the agency generates 200+ applicants via referral channels on the Caribou Rewards App. This has resulted in 250+ new hires from Caribou in the last year
EVV Rates Climbed to 96%
Thanks to a 22% increase in mobile app adoption, VNS Health was able to get Electronic Visit Verification clock in & clock out rates up to 96%.
96%
MANUAL VERIFICATION
CARIBOU EVV
Team Satisfaction Skyrocketed #ILoveMyJob
VNS Health HHAs participate in monthly support calls with their managers to share what’s on their mind, and many provided direct feedback about how much they love the rewards program, which 96% of HHAs participate in now. HHAs have even gone to social media on their own accord to share how much they appreciate being rewarded, boosting employee and brand ambassadorship
Next Frontiers
As a core customer of Caribou and HHAeXchange, the VNS Health team is always top-of-mind when testing and experimenting with new features in Caribou. Their focus for this year is doubling down on the successful rewards program, and introducing new reasons to celebrate their team and engage with the app, like “Caregiver of the Month.” Expansions to RNs and practitioners are a top priority, as well as ensuring that caregiver supervisors are getting recognized for their great work, too
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