Early Days, Real Results: Royal College of Surgeons Ireland Embraces Advocate
For the welfare team at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland, supporting students means navigating a wide range of complex, sensitive issues — the kind of work that demands both care and clarity. When Grainne Corcoran, Senior Social Worker at RCSI, reflects on what Advocate has meant for the team, the word she keeps coming back to is simple: easier.
RCSI is only a few months into their Advocate implementation, but the impact has already been tangible. Where the team previously lacked a reliable way to track what was coming into the service and what students actually needed, they now have a system that surfaces that information clearly — and quickly.
"The impact at three months in is that we're already getting really valuable data from the information we've collected on cases," Grainne said. "It's also been really beneficial for all of us to look at the processes we're working with."
Increased collaboration, painless onboarding
That process reflection has been as valuable as the data itself. Bringing the whole team onto a new, shared system prompted a useful look at how they work collectively — and Advocate has supported a more collaborative approach from the start.
The onboarding experience has also set a positive tone. The Symplicity team has been accessible and responsive, helping RCSI make tweaks and adjustments in real time as the team has found its feet with the system.
"Even in the first few months of implementation, we've had different tweaks we wanted to make, and they've been very understanding and helpful in just getting us to the point we want to get to," Grainne noted.
Don't hesitate to go with Advocate
Her advice to anyone considering the move is straightforward: don't hesitate. "It's simple to use, very user friendly, and it's something that has actually made our lives a lot easier rather than more challenging."
For a welfare team whose work is already demanding, that kind of frictionless support infrastructure is exactly what it should be.
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