Managing Client's Lifecycle

Managing Client's Lifecycle

Intake

There are two steps to recording a client's intake:
  1. Create a Contact record for the client
  2. Fill out the Intake tab in the client's contact record

Create a Contact record 

In Sumac, the Contact record is where you begin. The Contact record allows you to record all the biographical information about the clients. For more information on creating a Contact record,  click here.


Basic tab

Start by recording the client name, address, date of birth, gender, marital status, and what type of contact they are (i.e. client. Other Contact Types might include funder, sponsor, Board Member, etc.). Contact type is an important field in Sumac. For more information on Contact Types,  use this link.



Residential Address/Business Address

Record the client/patient address information on the appropriate tab.

Fill out the Intake tab

The Intake tab records information about background information, referral information, emergency contact information and more. 



General Information

The Intake tab records clients' Ethnicity, Employment Status and Family Size. Note Education completed and Family Income, if appropriate. 

How were they referred to my organization?

This section allows you to record the incoming referrals to your organization. Specify Referral Source, Reason for Referral and Referral date.

Emergency Contact Information  

This section allows you to record the contact information of the client who will be the first point of contact in the case of an emergency. 

Health Background

This section allows you to record the medical history of the client/patient which includes but is not limited to their allergies and family doctor. 


Assessment of Needs & Risks and Service Plan & Delivery

Once the intake and assessment of the new client is completed, you can complete their Case plan in the 'History" tab. Click "Add to Contact" and then select "Case Plan" from the available options.


In the Case Plan record, be sure to record in the client's initial assessment: 
  1. Their Intake Date
  2. Their Program Name
  3. Their Presenting Issues and any other information relevant to their intake.


Once the assessment is completed, you can record their Plan.


Also, be sure to record the Case Notes in the designated area. To do so, go to the  'History" tab, click "Add to Contact" and then select "Case Notes" from the available options. 



In the general tab, you can assign a Case Manager and keep track of any progress the client has made.



Discharge, Re-entry & Aftercare

Once the services are completed, you can record the exit information in the case plan section. The Note/Comments field allows you to record any additional information such as aftercare plans. Once you input all the relevant information, select "OK" to record it. 


Notes
Additional Notes and Recommendations
  1. You can easily customize Sumac to meet the needs of your organization. All drop-down lists and check-box options can be edited by your administrator.
  2. When you are working on a Contact's History tab, tracking referrals and Intake and Discharge, the list of Record Types can be long and unwieldy. You can quickly personalize the list of Record Types so that only those you work with regularly are available to you.
Idea
To learn how to report on these statistics, refer to this article.