How Emerging Technology Modernizes Effective Interactions Between Officers and Clients
Communication between corrections officers and their clients is largely manual, oftentimes with minimal or no record of interactions. With current, unintegrated processes, officers generally spend 60% of their time on administrative tasks and only 40% on client engagement, creating unbalanced responsibilities and workflow inefficiency.
But when SCRAM TouchPoint® is integrated with SCRAM Nexus®, officers can communicate and engage with their clients like never before. The TouchPoint Client Engagement Mobile app streamlines the most common interactions between officers and clients while increasing program and officer productivity.
Modernizing Client Communication
Because clients spend most of their time in the community encountering daily stressors, triggers for crime, substance use, peers involved in delinquent behavior, and more, delivering treatment and interventions solely during office appointments is often ineffective.
But with TouchPoint’s secure, text-like messaging, probation and parole officers can take advantage of modern technology and easily deliver encouraging messages, warnings, and performance feedback in real-time. This type of immediate communication also helps save time by enabling officers to apply swift, positive reinforcement such as a congratulatory message after a client attends a counseling session or submits a negative drug test. Being continually connected to clients’ daily lives can help reinforce program messages and ultimately improve client outcomes.
Encouraging Client Compliance
Studies have shown that texting appointment or other reminders significantly increases client attendance at their corrections programs, court hearings, counseling sessions, and other social services. When integrated with Nexus, TouchPoint helps keep clients accountable by sending confirmations when appointments are scheduled and automated reminders for any upcoming court, treatment, office, or other appointments. TouchPoint also integrates seamlessly with SCRAM electronic monitoring devices and sends common equipment reminders to clients to ensure they are staying on top of their monitoring.
Additionally, officers can save even more time with mobile client check-ins. TouchPoint allows clients to complete scheduled or on-demand check-ins right from their smartphone, answering configurable questions so officers can verify key client information quickly and efficiently. And, clients can stay on track with their supervision plan with TouchPoint’s document management feature, allowing them to securely upload and manage important documents—such as a driver’s license, paystubs, treatment attendance slips, and more— for officers to view virtually.
The more time officers can spend engaging and communicating with their clients, the better their outcomes. TouchPoint not only modernizes client communication but saves officers time for the most important tasks: working with their clients to help them succeed.
