Background

The RFC Dependency System (in spreadsheet form) has been used successfully since 2000 to assist care home operators and managers to calculate staffing levels.  As the underlying algorithms are improved in line with current dependencies it has been difficult to maintain the upgrade path for the spreadsheet-based clients.

Enter DepenSys

DepenSys is the replacement for the RFC Dependency Spreadsheet.  It has been designed from the outset to perform the same core tasks as the spreadsheet, but providing more accuracy and greater detail for users.  With its migration to a web-based application, all clients can now benefit from regular updates and improvements without the need for data migration from one spreadsheet to another.  Furthermore, the application allows for multiple users to access the data simultaneously which means management can have clear oversight of home performance.

Key Features

  • Based on more than 30 years of research and development.

  • Provides a quick and easy way of summarising each resident’s needs, with a clear breakdown of the hours and skill mix required.

  • Enables dependency and staffing comparisons between homes for multi-home groups, and between units within homes.

  • Constantly evolving and updated to reflect the increasing needs of residents and the expectations of care homes.

  • System evolution based on peer review and sector feedback.

  • Enables demonstration of how the home is staffed in compliance with CQC and other regulatory body requirements, and with consumer legislation following the CMA (Competition & Markets Authority) report on care home fees.

  • Enables setting of fee levels based on individual resident needs and bandings.

  • Cost-effective – introductory pricing starts at £19.99 per month for a 30-bed home.

  • 14-day free no-obligation trial.

Satisfying CQC Requirements

The CQC are aware of the RFC system in many areas, and their reports confirm the system meets their requirements.

DepenSys assists the demonstration that the home is able to meet the needs of its residents, and to satisfy the requirements of the CQC as set out in the latest KLOE (Key Lines of Enquiry) published in November 2017:

 ‘How does the service make sure that there are sufficient numbers of suitable staff to support people to stay safe and meet their needs?’

The CQC expects homes to operate a system to determine staffing requirements, and DepenSys satisfies this expectation.

Replacing the RFC Dependency System

The CQC are aware of the RFC system – and now DepenSys – in many areas, and their reports confirm the system meets their requirements.  Unfortunately, there are many more users who have received a copy of the system without the author’s knowledge.  Excel spreadsheets are easy to crack, and the system has been passed around with many having received the system innocently believing it to be a free tool.

This is fraught with problems.  The RFC system was regularly updated to take into account developments in the way dependency is defined, and without receiving payment for its use, there is less funding for R&D available than there should be.  Whilst Rob Fawcett’s name appears to have been (mostly) still associated with the tool, many of the copies out there will be out of date and underestimating the dependency levels and therefore the staffing needed.  If we don’t know someone is using it, there is no way of keeping the system updated.

Action was needed to protect the reputation of the dependency system and ensure that systems in use can be kept up-to-date.  Byjama Limited, web application developers, converted the system into a solution which has taken the dependency system to the next level.  As well as being more accurate in many ways including individual resident times, comparisons are now possible across groups of homes and updates can be instantly applied.  Please note that the algorithms have been modified from the spreadsheet version.

DepenSys has now fully replaced the RFC spreadsheet version; the spreadsheet version should no longer be used.  If you know someone who is using the spreadsheet version, please direct them towards this web site!  This has become more urgent as we learned in September 2019 that the CQC inspected a home using a 2017 version of the RFC System and are citing the home is in breach of regulations for using an outdated tool!

We are confident that DepenSys will meet care home operators and managers’ needs into the future.  We look forward to hearing from you, and to your feedback.