Online presence extends reach for aged care provider

Residential and home care provider SummitCare has launched a more user-friendly website in an effort to better communicate their core values and services to the public.

The new website is optimised for smartphones and tablets as well as desktop computers.

SummitCare CEO Cynthia Payne said this functionality was a high priority when consulting with external agency Digital Garden over the web design.

“We have clients, their family and friends who increasingly access the internet on mobile devices and we want to ensure they can find our information wherever they are,” Ms Payne said.

Digital Garden managing director Abby Breakwell said the website was perfectly tuned to the changing attitudes of older generations towards technology.

“It’s a myth that the elderly don’t use the Internet,” she said.

“They are using a variety of devices to connect with their friends and families through online channels.”

The most recent Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data, taken from 2012 to 2013, shows that 46% of older persons, classified as 65 or older, are in fact Internet users.

Digital Garden client services director Arun Mistry said this percentage of the older population have recognised the convenience of the Internet, and further appreciate its increasing accessibility with the advent of mobile devices.

The ABS data showed that older persons go online mostly to pay their bills and to access government services, like aged care.

“You wouldn’t necessarily call them Internet savvy but they are certainly comfortable with the way the Internet is moving for the purposes that they have with it,” Mr Mistry said.

He said the move towards a ‘responsive design’ for the new SummitCare website was based on the reality that someone could be in hospital with a loved one and told that person had to be transferred from their ward into aged care. The carer must then find a suitable facility straight away.

"Finding the right information online about aged care services is crucial for carers in looking after their loved ones,” Mr Mistry said.

“In what is now described as a 'one screen' world, aged care providers need to ensure that their websites enable their potential clients to find them on whatever device they have to hand. In many cases this is their smartphone or tablet.

“In the case of SummitCare, the website delivers information optimally on mobile devices and allows the user to make a call to SummitCare directly from their smartphone," he said.

Launched this week, the SummitCare website features easy navigation, lots of captivating images and quick links to both the provider’s residential care options and its home services alternatives.

With its Wellbeing Hub, the website showcases SummitCare’s increasing focus on its values of warmth, worth and wellbeing.

The SummitChat tab offers a portal of useful information about SummitCare day to day life, where staff post stories, news and blogs to keep visitors in touch.

Prospective aged care professionals will also find the website a valuable resource, with a regularly updated careers section advertising the latest job opportunities.

Ms Payne said it was important for SummitCare to retain a strong online presence into the future.

“The website is a vital part of our communication strategy, and it will grow with us as we grow.”