Open Discussion Forum

  • 1.  ProCare Software

    Posted 09-30-2021 08:01 AM

    We have recently made the decision to switch from SmartCare to ProCare at our center after several recommendations and a very successful demo but have not finalized anything. I know that demos always highlight the positives, but I wanted to see if anyone who uses ProCare have had any issues with the program. How was the migration from one program to another? How is your response time when you have an issue? I really want to make sure that we are making the right decision for the center and families before committing so that we are not in the same situation that we are in now.



    ------------------------------
    Christina McIntosh
    Director
    Discovery Learning Center
    St Petersburg FL
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: ProCare Software

    Posted 10-01-2021 08:34 AM
    Our center uses Procare and has since I came here 11 years ago.  I don't have anything to compare it to since I haven't used another program.  Last year we added the app option.  We love this option as there is contactless check in and out for parents.  Teachers can do their newsletter through the app, send incident reports, daily reports, and this is our primary way of communicating with parents in the messaging part of the app.  It has also made it much easier to send photos and short videos to parents.  There are places for lesson plans as well as assessments.  There is a lot that Procare does that we don't even use, but might in the future.  

    The things I don't like so much are the fact that because we have Procare Cloud and then added the app, they don't sync together easily.  If we add an authorized pick up in Procare cloud on morning about 8:00, it may be middle to late afternoon before it shows up on the app.  There are lots of help articles for understanding the app.  In the beginning they were really good at getting back to me by message, but lately, I've had some trouble.

    If there is something that I need tech support for on Procare Cloud, sometimes I am #52 in the Q.  I have found that if I call really early in the morning, the wait is not so long.  I wish they had more support in that area.

    All in all, we are happy with Procare.  They do have a suggestion board for things that we would like to see different.​

    ------------------------------
    Regina Houser
    Director
    Lakeside Baptist Weekday Ed
    Birmingham AL
    ------------------------------



  • 3.  RE: ProCare Software

    Posted 10-01-2021 11:02 AM

    Hi! 

    We have been using ProCare for about 2 years and we really love it. Response time is really good for support, which is awesome. It was kind of a steep learning curve for me as a director, running everything from my desktop, but if you have used a similar system then it shouldn't be too bad. The data entry can be putzy. We have had a little difficulty with allowing parents to view their tuition statements via the app, but I can easily send account statements instead if needed. Our teachers really like the app for sending info throughout the day! It's a little pricey but it streamlined a lot of stuff for us. 


    ------------------------------
    Lily Crooks
    Teacher/Administrator
    Seward Child Care Center
    Minneapolis MN
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: ProCare Software

    Posted 10-01-2021 12:31 PM
    Presently, I have used ProCare now for five months, and unfortunately for me the old staff have been using procare just to document daily activities. However, my first impression so far is mot quite good when it comes to creating your lesson plans. Its not as good as teaching strategy software. You have to create a lesson plan first, save it where all lessons plans are, then you can search for it to post to lesson plan of the week. Infact, where all the lessons are created and saved is too crowded. Why should I be seeing all lesson plans for the whole school no matter the age or room, or search before getting to my own library of lessons? Further more, with the teaching strategy you can create individual notes of lessons for each child especially with infants or toddlers. With procare you cannot so far as I know. I am still studying it and hopefully with an IT they can find away to restrict lesson plans to each class to create and see. I do wish they have a room for individual planned activity.





  • 5.  RE: ProCare Software

    Posted 10-01-2021 01:07 PM
    Aloha Christina,
    We have been using Procare since March of this year, and I love it.  The parents and teachers love it, too.  There were a few glitches in the beginning regarding the charge for credit and/or debit cards, but the support system was awesome.  I would recommend Procare to any director trying to make life a little bit easier!
    Aloha,
    Cat Awong

    ------------------------------
    Catherine Awong
    Director
    Mililani Presbyterian Preschool
    Mililani, HI, USA
    ------------------------------