5 Signs You Need AI-Powered Technology to Support Your I/DD Services

Today’s I/DD providers are facing a confluence of challenges, including the ever-widening gap between their paper-based and digital systems, significant staffing challenges, and high rates of provider burnout — all within a landscape of intense financial pressures.

In fact, a 2025 study from ANCOR found that a staggering 88% of surveyed agencies experienced moderate or severe staffing shortages in the past year. Meanwhile, 52% were considering making cuts to their programs if staff retention didn’t improve.

For I/DD facilities, this landscape means that operational efficiency and staff retention are essential to providing effective I/DD care. Top electronic health records (EHRs) designed specifically for I/DD service providers can help establish this much-needed foundation for care.

Software designed to support care for clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities automates manual processes and introduces new efficiencies, taking significant administrative burden off staff and providers.

Enhancing I/DD Services With the Right Technology

Unsure if it’s time for your organization to upgrade to an I/DD EHR with integrated artificial intelligence (AI) solutions? Consider the following five indicators.

1. It’s difficult to collaborate with others about care.

Care and support for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities is complex and often requires providers to collaborate with other community resources, such as primary care physicians, mental health counselors, and occupational therapists. Everyone across the care continuum needs shared access to real-time information to collaborate effectively.

Accessing the same view of client records saves time and prevents staff from needing to track down information across multiple sources, locations, or departments. Meanwhile, mobile I/DD services records access allows staff to share records and easily provide services while in the field.

An EHR designed for the I/DD healthcare space offers a holistic view of care plans and interoperability between different providers and functions. With an EHR, for example, a residential service can effectively communicate and collaborate with a day program lead, who can then share updates with a client’s caregiver — all from one central and secure location. This interoperability means that each provider and function’s system integrates seamlessly with the next to ensure no information gets lost throughout the care journey.

Moreover, EHRs with AI-powered, evidence-based practice workflows sharpen providers’ clinical decision-making. These AI solutions offer interactive checklists, real-time support, and task management features that help everyone within the care continuum understand the best practices for their role in each workflow.

Top I/DD software can also capture data on health-related social needs (HRSN), which enables care teams to understand and align on the social factors that might influence a client’s care. This data bolsters whole-person care and facilitates smooth processes, such as coordinating care plans, tracking client needs, and connecting clients to other resources.

2. Providers are spending too much time trying to access information.

An EHR automates and streamlines workflows to support best-practice service delivery. I/DD service providers can use their EHR to track appointments, prevent missed visits, and monitor prescription refills to ensure clients continue to receive the care and support they require.

With the right software, teams and agencies can save time by improving data capture and simplifying record management processes. Robust EHRs also boost I/DD health care-related service delivery by auto-filling fields and streamlining processes. This allows providers to invest their time offering client care and support rather than completing tedious administrative tasks via manual processes. EHRs, then, offer better data storage systems and save providers considerable time they’d otherwise spend trying to find the correct information they need.

A comprehensive review of studies on the impact of EHRs on patient care, for example, found that “EHRs enable real-time monitoring of patient data, allowing for early detection of potential health issues and timely interventions.” Having immediate access to information on clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities reduces both the administrative burden and stress often placed on providers.

3. Confidence in clinical and billing documentation accuracy is low.

As the AAPC notes, I/DD agencies are responsible for juggling multiple billing codes — each relating to a client’s particular needs — as well as another set of testing and assessment codes. Selecting the right billing codes for I/DD health care clients is even more complex, as these individuals often require multiple different types of care and support across multiple providers in a network. In too many cases, clinical and billing documentation isn’t accurate, which can delay care and create risk for clients and the agencies that serve them.

Efficient I/DD software prompts users to complete documentation and automatically backs up invoices for services, which protects the organization from future clawbacks. In addition, accurate, easy-to-access documentation promotes timely billing and helps ensure claims are correct the first time they’re sent in for payment.

The right EHR can also prompt staff to respond to audit requests with minimal burden and track quality measures against payer rules — a task that’s increasingly essential as payment becomes more value-based. An EHR that integrates state-of-the-art AI functions is vital for fulfilling documentation requirements, measuring outcomes, and modeling risk. For agencies with staff with limited English proficiency, for example, an EHR with embedded translation functionality helps ensure everyone can engage with billing documentation effectively and submit accurate billing information to avoid any costly or time-consuming errors.

4. Miscommunication and a lack of accountability are impeding care delivery.

Within a given I/DD health care continuum, effective workflows, consistent policies, and strong communication can improve the quality of care delivery — and the right software can support those essential elements.

I/DD software supports better communication and collaboration by providing role-based workflows, automated task triggering, and easy-to-follow to-do lists. As staff complete tasks within the EHR platform, the system immediately generates the next task and routes it to the appropriate staff member, allowing your I/DD services team to build service plans and verify task completion with ease. If a staff member misses their task deadline or forgets to record the completion, the system will automatically notify their supervisor to ensure the task is finalized.

Top EHRs can guide and track the flow of care and provide a single source of truth for past communications and services provided over time — even those delivered across different service providers. This level of efficient communication and accountability ensures continuity of care, effective care management, and staff performance monitoring.

5. Keeping I/DD health care data secure is a challenge.

A 2024 Core Solutions survey of 115 behavioral health organizations revealed that data security and privacy was the third-highest priority that providers needed their EHR system to address. And for good reason: In 2024, more than 184 million client records were breached within the health care system, affecting 53% of the total U.S. population.

The right I/DD software solutions provide highly secure interfaces, communication tools, and data-sharing protocols that enhance data security and protections. With security checkpoints at each development stage, facilities can rest assured that their platform and added capabilities align with data privacy regulations and best practices. Top I/DD EHRs also offer integrated compliance features and trackers to better ensure facilities meet ever-changing regulatory deadlines and stay on top of individual tasks.

Terence Blackwell Jr. is an I/DD Senior Advisor at Core Solutions.