Penelope vs. SimplePractice

Even if Penelope by Social Solutions is useful for case noting and any other file management, coordination and reports, it is not user-friendly. It does not let you delete your mistakes easily, it does not let you go back, and all the other issues mentioned, which are minor, added too much for a system that is supposed to support your work. However, some of the characteristics have been chosen by the system administrator and are not Penelope by Social Solutions's fault.

This is the first EHR platform I used. It is very professionally done with an aesthetically pleasing interface and has broad functionality. I would recommend it to a colleague who is a single practitioner with a small solo practice. I would not, however, recommend it to a group practice owner as I have found many alternatives that are just as good for a noticeable pricing difference with SimplePractice’s new fee structure.

Incentivized

• Case management-places to store multiple data points in organized manner[.]
• Scheduling client meetings and the ability to connect to clients through the system
• Great Customer service- implementation team was super helpful in setting up the system and answering our ongoing stream of questions. They are still helpful answering questions 2 years later whenever they come up.

Incentivized

• Easy client interface
• Telehealth

Incentivized

• The feature for the date of birth times out too quickly.
• You can't upload any files that may have a symbol such as a . in their title.
• The learning modules could be more concise making it faster to find the help you need.

Incentivized

• Not being able to add 2 therapists to a client
• Having a steep learning curve to figure out where all the features were located
• Increased pricing with forced features that I did not plan to ever use
• Not having IvyPay as a payment option
• Only having one way calendar sync

Incentivized

Penelope is saving us so much time and providing us with much-needed consistent regular data tracking and documentation. It has been a game-changer for our organization and we should have had it years ago. It has allowed us to have an efficient organized system to use daily in our non-profit agency.

Incentivized

Penelope has a lot of features and options which is one of the reasons why it is so great. With a lot of features also comes a lot of time to learn all of them. For someone who is part of the development and implementation process, it is a lot of learning to fully understand how everything works. This is good to know in advance when choosing a team to develop your database. The great thing about Penelope is that you can customize the features for each level of staff that will be using it so the staff only have access to the parts of Penelope that they need and will be using regularly. This makes the training process for staff a lot easier.

Incentivized

Our support person with Penelope has been a dream to work with since day one. She is accommodating to our ever-changing schedule and has worked around us for training and Zoom meetings. She is always available via e-mail and is quick to respond to our many inquiries throughout the development and implementation process. Our Zoom meetings have been like talking to a long-time staff member. She explains things in a way that everyone can understand and will review with us as needed. She has been innovative in ways that Penelope can work for us and our needs and we have been so pleased with the support we have received.

Incentivized

I have not had to contact support which is nice. If I have a question, I am typically able to find the answer within the help section.

Incentivized

Be sure to have a good team of staff that will be on board with the training and will dedicate time and energy to the process. You want to have people who are motivated and excited about the new program that you are investing in.

Incentivized

Penelope is more controlled, well designed, and easy to use. We like that Penelope has some structure to it while having a decent amount of opportunities to be configurable to our own specific needs. Our staff finds Penelope easy to navigate and enter their data into the system in a reliable and easy way. We valued that at the time of purchase, Penelope was a Canadian company that understood our specific needs as a Canadian nonprofit.

Incentivized

Also Kalix, Practice Better, Practice Q (formerly Intake Q), Healthie, Jane, etc. I'm hoping to switch to Practice Q soon.

Incentivized

• Created the need to hire temps to correct data incorrectly entered based on a poor initial setup.
• Frustrated staff to the point many stopped entering services that were essential for receiving funding.
• Gave me an excellent understanding of what happens when core functions are lacking.

Incentivized

• Not overly expensive to use.
• No drawbacks.

Incentivized