Author: Tom Meyer

Tom Meyer is the Alliance's Membership Coordinator and Webmaster. His email address is tmeyer@thinkhomecare.org.

Presentation: Cost Effective Home Care in Massachusetts

As more health care providers are held collaboratively accountable for patient outcomes and costs, it’s important for other parts of the system to understand the capabilities of home care and how these capabilities intersect with  success in containing health care costs while improving quality.

To tell home care’s  story, a subcommittee the Alliance’s Board of Directors developed a PowerPoint slide show of some home care facts and figures.  This slide show is now available to all to use and adapt as needed (3MB download), and may be previewed below:

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Join Us For NEHCC 2014 At The Boston Park Plaza

The New England Home Care Conference & Trade Show is pleased to officially announce its 2014 venue and dates:

Park Plaza Lobby
Credit: Boston Park Plaza Hotel

May 28 – May 30, 2014
Boston Park Plaza Hotel
50 Park Plaza at Arlington Street
Boston, MA 02116

Considered one of Boston’s finest hotels since it opened its doors in 1927, The Park Plaza features 8 on-site restaurants, a state of the art Fitness Center, Business Center, and full Concierge Service.  It’s located in Boston’s historic Back Bay, just across the Street from the Public Gardens and Common.

To save the date to your calendar, just click here.

Continue reading “Join Us For NEHCC 2014 At The Boston Park Plaza”

2013 Annual Report Available

As the Alliance prepares for its new membership year, we review our recent accomplishments.

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Guest Post: ICD-10 Preparedness – Where Are You in the Process?

Guest Post by: Joan L. Usher, BS, RHIA, COS-C, ACE

Medicare Certified Home Health Agencies need to implement their ICD-10 preparedness plans now.  This is the single largest change the health care system has seen since the inception of Medicare.  Changing to ICD-10 is not a simple coding change: it impacts every department in the organization.  Follow these 5 steps to develop your agency’s ICD-10 preparedness plan.

Organize

Establish a Steering Committee with key players from major departments.  The ease and success of the transition relies heavily on strong leadership support.

Assess

Assess the impact on all departments.  This step is crucial in determining which items need to be completed pre-ICD-10, including testing of claim submissions with ICD-10 codes, redesign of EHR screen, or paper documents to capture documentation needed. Consider vendor and payer readiness.  Determine how to operate dual systems, and for how long.  Assess coder’s knowledge of the current coding model.  Assess whether the coding model will work under the increased specificity of ICD-10. Continue reading “Guest Post: ICD-10 Preparedness – Where Are You in the Process?”

Home Care & Telemedicine

NPR’s Talk of the Nation had a lengthy segment on the growing use of telemedicine, especially in home care.  In addition discussing the benefits to patients with limited mobility or access to specific services they need and Medicare’s current refusal to reimburse for remote doctor consultations, the segment included a letter from the Alliance’s own James Fuccione, starting at 19’09”:

[HOST NEAL] CONAN: Here’s an email question that has some aspects of that that I wanted to ask you about, this from James [Fuccione] in Massachusetts: The Home Care Alliance of Massachusetts is advocating for Mass Health, [the] state Medicaid program, reimbursement of telehealth used by home health agencies.

Many agencies part of our association use telehealth already because it improves their quality and efficiency. They use wireless weight scales, blood oximeter, blood pressure cuffs, et cetera, and depending on their condition. So in other words you can collect data over these same circuits.

[DR. KAREN] EDISON: Right.

CONAN: Do you use that as well?

EDISON: Yes, so we do a lot of telehome care and remote monitoring here in Missouri. One of our large home health agencies in the southwest part of the state is probably the leader in that area. One of the challenges, of course, is the inter-operability of the health information systems. So as health information technology matures, and the companies become more inter-operable, they can talk to each other and transmit information easily.

You know, as that gets – as that whole industry matures, this is going to get easier and easier so that instead of the home health agency monitoring those patients, actually the patients – patient-centered health care home or medical home, their actual health providers would be monitoring those patients on a daily basis.

You may download the entire show by clicking here.

Caregiver Videos: Using Home Care As A Supplement to Family Care

In the eighth video in our series for family caregivers, Lynda Giovanello of Walpole Area VNA discusses how home care can be used to supplement — not replace — care from family members.

To view the full series, visit our YouTube channel.  To access library of hundreds of care giver resources on a variety of subjects, visit www.eldercareskills.org, who produced the videos with us.
Continue reading “Caregiver Videos: Using Home Care As A Supplement to Family Care”

Congratulations to the 2013 Star Award Winners

Each year, the Home Care Alliance of Massachusetts honors the best and brightest in caregiving and home care management. This video of the 2013 winners played at our award ceremony on May 1, 2013.

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Best Around the Home Care Web V

Healing After the Bombings

Victims of the Boston Marathon Bombing have a lengthy road to recovery:

Cost of amputating a leg? At least $20,000. Cost of an artificial leg? More than $50,000 for the most high-tech models. Cost of an amputee’s rehab? Often tens of thousands of dollars more.

These are just a fraction of the medical expenses victims of the Boston Marathon bombing will face.

The mammoth price tag is probably not what patients are focusing on as they begin the long healing process. But friends and strangers are already setting up fundraisers and online crowd-funding sites, and a huge Boston city fund has already collected more than $23 million in individual and corporate donations. — via Winnipeg Free Press

The piece also discusses how a number of state and local charities have created funds to help pay for the hospital bills, prosthetics, and rehabilitation.  Dozens of home care agencies have also donated their services to the victims.

Still Open: 2013 State of the Home Care Industry Study

The National State of the Home Care Industry survey is conducted through 20 minutes phone interviews with senior managers scheduled at times that are convenient for you. It will address current practices and future strategies in the areas of IS/EHR, telehealth, new health care models and operations.

Participating agencies will be among the first to receive in-depth reports plus strategic recommendations from the findings. The results will also include insights into what practices the top agencies, those with the best financial and quality outcomes, are using and planning.

The Study is sponsored by NAHC, CHAP, The Joint Commission, the Forum of State Associations, Delta Health Technologies, HealthWyse and Fazzi Associates. Results are expected to be released in late May or early June of this year. — via HCAF.

The survey is open to all Medicare Certified agencies with revenue >$500,000, and at least two Home Health Compare scores.

Continue reading “Best Around the Home Care Web V”

Caregiver Videos: Introduction to Occupational Therapy

In the seventh video in our series for family caregivers, Geoffrey Abraskin, PT, DPT of Amedisys Home Health & Hospice Care discusses what Occupational Therapy is and how it can be used in a home care setting.

To view the full series, visit our YouTube channel.  To access library of hundreds of care giver resources on a variety of subjects, visit www.eldercareskills.org, who produced the videos with us.
Continue reading “Caregiver Videos: Introduction to Occupational Therapy”

Innovations Showcase & Star Awards Postponed

Given the events in Boston yesterday — and with the streets around the Revere Hotel closed as of this writing — the Alliance is postponing tomorrow’s awards ceremony.  Between the logistical challenges and the somber mood of the whole city, we feel it would be difficult and inappropriate to celebrate.

We are busy rescheduling the event and will notify everyone as soon as we have a new date and a location secured.  Our thoughts and prayers go to the victims and their families.

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