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Catholic Charities of Fairfield County: Streamlining Congregate and Food Bank Meals
Catholic Charities of Fairfield County is one of the largest social services agencies in Fairfield County, Connecticut, providing many family and individual services across the spectrum of social determinants of health (SDoH). A faith-based organization, CCFC “provides supportive services that enable families to rise up out of poverty, overcome barriers, and achieve self-sufficiency and independence.” We sat down with Miriam Torrealba, an office administrator at CCFC, to learn how the organization has leveraged ServTracker to streamline its congregate meals and Meals on Wheels (MOW) program.
The Challenge
Before adopting ServTracker, Catholic Charities of Fairfield County (CCFC) had what Miriam described as an outdated system that required more time than necessary to run reports. Meal delivery routes were also printed manually, which incurred surprisingly high printing costs and made it impossible to revise a route after it was already printed. Without any kind of mobile app, clients calling for updates on their deliveries would have to wait for the staff member to call the driver directly. Likewise, drivers had to call CCFC’s reception desk to get in touch with clients when they were running late or to communicate updates.
The Solution
Because of CCFC’s association with Meals on Wheels (MOW), they heard about and gradually became interested in ServTracker. CCFC chose ServTracker because they needed an efficient way to facilitate meal deliveries and congregate meals. Miriam mentioned how ServTracker’s mobile app and ability to track delivery statuses in real time has been a huge load off of her, the drivers, and clients. Managing client notes, delivery routes, and reports have also become much quicker and accurate. And, often, just as valuable as receiving new functions is the ability to let go of old processes that slowed her and others down at CCFC, delaying and preventing them from accomplishing other needed tasks.
Key Benefits and Results
Time and Cost Savings
Digitally managing routes for meal deliveries allows CCFC to stop relying on printed route maps, which are hard to revise, triage client phone calls much more quickly, and automate previously manual processes.
Delivery Communication and Route Management
Two-way communication via the mobile app makes it easy for Miriam and other CCFC staff to give and receive real-time updates. When clients call asking for an update on their delivery status, CCFC can give them accurate estimates and updates when they occur. Capturing client signatures and delivery notifications are done through the ServTracker mobile app so they can serve clients better and also record accurate data. Drivers new to the program can also use the mobile app for easy navigation in an intuitive interface.
Coordination and Reporting
CCFC has been able to maintain detailed client notes electronically, and everyone who has access to the web-based portal to assist clients and record changes, without having to have previous knowledge of program and client data that can be updated much more quickly than spreadsheets can.
Conclusion
“Efficiency” can seem vague, but when human service organizations have many programs and limited resources, saving time and money is a huge win. Likewise, client-facing staff members having the ability to see real-time updates on clients allows them to develop trust and resolve client concerns quickly.
