From Apprehension to Adoption: How Park Lane Terrace Modernized Family Communication with Engage⁺

Introduction

Park Lane Terrace (owned by Omni Quality Living)is a 132-bed long-term care home in Paris, Ontario, operating as part of the Omni Quality Living portfolio. Like many LTC homes in Ontario, the home managed family communication almost entirely by phone. Clinical leadership, including Director of Clinical Services Jessica Marcotte and Assistant Director of Clinical Services Amber Potter are deeply committed to keeping families informed, but the volume and complexity of that communication were unsustainable.

When Engage⁺ was first proposed, their honest reaction was apprehension. Jessica describes her initial feeling in one word: "Terrified."

What happened after implementation tells a different story.

The Challenge

A Phone-Dependent System Under Pressure

Before Engage⁺  virtually all family communication at Park Lane Terrace happened by phone. Families called for general updates, to ask about a fall, to clarify a medication change, or to follow up on an earlier concern. The nursing leadership team estimates that these calls, answered, returned, and documented, consumed approximately 15 to 20 percent of their working day. On difficult days, a single family could occupy the better part of a shift.

Personal Support Workers were not equipped to field clinical questions; all calls required routing to nursing leadership or charge nurses, concentrating the burden where bandwidth was already limited.

Consent: Repetitive, Difficult to Track

Obtaining consent was among the most time-consuming tasks the team managed. Park Lane Terrace collects an average of 6 consents per resident per year, covering annual care plan renewals, code status, and three separate vaccine campaigns (influenza, RSV, and COVID-19), plus additional consents for specialized services.

Before Engage⁺ , every consent required a phone call. Calls averaged 3 to 5 minutes to complete when everything went smoothly, but families often had additional questions, and a 3-minute call regularly became a 20-minute conversation. When families couldn't be reached before a vaccination clinic, the window could close entirely, requiring staff to return to public health and reschedule.

Most consents were verbal. Documentation was inconsistent. There was no reliable audit trail.

Scheduling Care Conferences by Post

Invitations to care conferences were sent by mail, requiring families to respond by phone. Staff spent significant time in the days leading up to conferences confirming attendance, updating addresses, and following up with families who hadn't responded. There was no mechanism to prompt families to review the care plan or prepare questions in advance, and no way to capture that information before walking into the conference room.

The Fear of Transparency

When Engage⁺  was introduced, the clinical team's concerns were real and grounded. Long-term care is subject to significant regulatory scrutiny. Giving families real-time access to progress notes, care plans, vitals, and active diagnoses felt like exposure.

"We felt a little vulnerable," Jessica recalls. "Knowing how the Ministry of Health works, would the information be misinterpreted? Where would it go?"

These concerns are common. They reflect the experience of most Ontario LTC homes when first considering transparent digital communication. At Park Lane Terrace, they didn't last long.

The Implementation

Park Lane Terrace partnered with Evoke Health to implement Engage⁺ , a family and resident communication portal that integrates directly with their existing PointClickCare EHR. The platform gives authorized family members real-time access to health records, progress notes, vitals, care plans, medications, and immunization history. It also supports mass notifications, digital consent management, care conference scheduling, secure messaging, and two-way file sharing.

Because Engage⁺  draws directly from PointClickCare, there were no parallel documentation processes to maintain. Families were automatically onboarded from existing contact records, and staff accessed the platform using their existing PCC credentials.

The team changed its admission workflow to introduce the portal during the family meeting, so every new resident and their family learned about it from day one. Amber and Kate became the platform champions, navigating features, identifying new use cases, and training the broader leadership team as adoption grew.

The Solution

Addressing Early Concerns

The first weeks after launch surfaced expected challenges. Families, now able to read structured progress notes and care plans, encountered medical shorthand and clinical terminology that required explanation. A dietitian referral summary that listed multiple nutritional considerations confused several families who believed a feeding tube was being planned.

The team's response was measured and practical. Amber developed an acronym reference guide to be shared through the portal. The team also began planning family education sessions on care plan outcome scores. Where structured notes generated consistent confusion, the team worked with Evoke Health to adjust what was shared and how it appeared.

The apprehension that existed before launch dissipated within approximately one month. The anticipated wave of alarmed calls did not arrive. What came instead was a shift in how families engaged.

The Result

Fewer Calls. Better Conversations.

Families who once called to ask "How is mom doing?" now call with specific, clinically grounded questions: "Has her temperature come down?" “What does this care plan change mean for her?” Calls are shorter. Conversations are more productive. And when staff call families with updates, many already know.

Approximately 10 percent of families, typically younger, more tech-comfortable contacts, have asked not to be called for non-urgent updates. This shift is a direct reflection of the confidence families have developed through the portal. Because they can see progress notes, care plans, and real-time updates, they have the information they need to feel assured their loved one is being well cared for. That transparency is what gives them the comfort to make that decision. The team documents those preferences in the plan of care and honors them accordingly.

Consent: From Days to Minutes

The transformation in consent management has been one of the most operationally significant outcomes at Park Lane Terrace.

When the team sent its first vaccine consent campaign through Engage⁺,responses came back within 10 minutes; 40 replies were received before the sending process was even complete. Families answered at their own convenience: in the evening, during a break at work, or whenever the notification arrived.

Consents are now signed digitally, with a complete record automatically synced to PointClickCare. There is no ambiguity about whether verbal consent was obtained, no documentation gaps, and no risk of missing a vaccination window due to a family being unreachable.

The team has also extended digital consent beyond standard vaccine campaigns. Jessica and Amber converted their person-centered end-of-life questionnaire into a consent form delivered through the portal. This gave families the time to review sensitive questions about care preferences, spiritual needs, and end-of-life wishes at their own pace, discuss them with other family members, and respond thoughtfully.

The team noted a meaningful increase in families proactively arranging funeral planning after completing the form, a quiet but significant indicator of deeper engagement.

Care Conference Scheduling: From Postage to Confirmation

The Engage⁺  calendar feature eliminated the facility's mail-based scheduling process entirely. Jessica now sends care conference invitations digitally; responses come in before she finishes scheduling the full list. The home no longer pays for postage. Outdated mailing addresses no longer result in invitations being missed.

Families are prompted through the invitation to review the care plan and medications before the conference, something they can now do directly through the portal. They arrive with specific questions rather than general ones, and they can pre-submit priorities so the team can structure the conference accordingly.

The team has also used the calendar for transportation coordination and major home events, finding that automated reminders reduce the phone follow-up required for those communications.

Transparency as a Compliance Asset

In a sector where Ministry of Health inspections are a constant presence, Park Lane Terrace now uses Engage⁺ as documented evidence of systematic family communication. When inspectors ask how the home communicates with families during an outbreak, how medication changes are shared, or how consent is obtained, the team points to the portal.

Staff Recognition That Resonates

Park Lane Terrace uses Engage⁺ to receive family compliments about individual staff members. Amber incorporates this feedback into a digital display that runs on in-home screens near the punch-clock entrance. Staff who might otherwise come and go without stopping have been observed pausing to read it, particularly when they see their own names.

Conclusion

Park Lane Terrace's experience with Engage⁺ demonstrates what becomes possible when transparency is treated as a strength rather than a risk. The initial apprehension the team felt — about families misinterpreting notes, calling more frequently, or creating compliance exposure — gave way within weeks to a clearer picture: informed families are calmer. Calmer families make fewer calls. And the time staff spends on routine communication is directly returned to resident care.

The platform has evolved well beyond what the team first anticipated. From vaccine consent to end-of-life planning to staff recognition, Park Lane Terrace continues to find new ways to put it to work.

Interested in learning how Engage⁺ can transform family communication and reduce staff workload at your facility? Contact us today!