Home Health Care News: What life and career experiences do you most draw from, in your role today?

Kris Novak: Professionally, my experience with Amedisys ultimately led to my role with Braff. There, I oversaw the M&A, integration, and start-up teams during a period of significant activity and successful closings. I have assessed hundreds, if not thousands, of home health, hospice, home care and other related opportunities. I’ve also participated in discussions with the C-suite and board of directors regarding valuation, risk and strategy, which allowed me to see the fundamental reasons why deals were approved or not approved.

Personally, witnessing the exceptional care provided in patients’ homes, including for my own family members, has enabled me to recognize the deeply personal and mission-driven nature of this work for so many caregivers. It’s work I could never do myself, and it’s truly an honor to help our clients find a buyer that aligns with their objectives.

How does a home-based care organization determine the right time to sell?

To maximize value, there are always a few key factors to consider. The current growth stage of the business, the level of sustainability of that growth, and the current market environment are all critical considerations. Every deal has unique factors that could impact timing or desire to sell, which can vary drastically depending on the ownership type.

For a founder-owned for-profit or private equity-backed organization, owners generally want to sell when the business is entering a strong but mature growth phase. If a home health provider is growing same-store volumes at, say, 20% or more, buyers typically won’t give full credit for continuing that high pace of growth. In other words, buyers often view extremely high growth rates as unsustainable and will usually undervalue the business in such scenarios.

Conversely, a company growing below market rates or even declining typically doesn’t maximize value because buyers see it as a distressed situation. They may burden the company with additional costs to stabilize the growth profile or pay a lower multiple to account for the risk of reigniting growth. It’s about finding that mature growth phase and timing the market as best as possible, unless other unique factors come into consideration for the individual or the organization.

How should owners prepare their organization and leadership team for a sale?

It’s imperative to consider an exit strategy early, and the leadership team is critical to the stability of the business during and after the sale. As far as leadership is concerned, bench depth always reduces risk for a buyer and can also excite buyers about future expansion opportunities.

If buyers perceive a business as highly dependent on the owner, it elevates their risk assessment and can ultimately reduce value. Whether their perception is fair or unfair. There are certainly cases where an owner’s objective is to stay on and roll meaningful equity while continuing to lead and grow the business. Regardless of the individual owner’s objective, it’s important to identify and develop key leaders prior to a sales process. It’s the right thing to do for any business, at any time.

More stability and talent reduce risk if someone leaves or an owner decides to step back and focus on strategic initiatives or other growth opportunities. As with anything performance-related, it is not uncommon for deal-savvy organizations to offer some form of incentive, whether that be equity or a change-of-control bonus, to align their leadership teams with the exit strategy. This incentivizes them to build value and ultimately complete a successful transaction through transition.

What are the key components of value in a home-based care transaction?

There are multiple components of value, depending on the objectives of each client. Cash at closing is always the headline, and it is important to everyone selling their company. After that, however, we work to understand each client’s objectives and align the best buyer to meet those goals.

For example, one owner may want to take a majority of their risk off the table while retaining a minority interest or a leadership position — another owner may want to exit completely. Private equity might be the right buyer for organizations with scale, infrastructure and talent, to provide flexibility and achieve the owner’s objectives. The right partner can also be an asset going forward, offering access to capital markets or advising in areas such as IT, recruiting, or quality assurance to capture growth or implement necessary investments. In this scenario, the owner continues to benefit economically on the next transaction because they’ve retained a minority interest.

We have also seen increased deal volume on the not-for-profit side. These organizations often have similar objectives regarding employees, quality of care and access to care. They may also want to ensure buyers are committed to serving the less fortunate or continuing to operate or fund ancillary service lines such as Meals on Wheels, mother-baby programs, or school nursing programs. We recognize the unique needs in scenarios where a not-for-profit is divesting operations to protect the longevity of access to care while the purchase price funds expansion of fiduciary duties and mission within their community.

How does Braff support its clients in positioning their organizations to create that value?

We work with our clients to showcase their organizations. At the Braff Group, we take pride in our specialized approach. We are not generalists across all health care service segments. I spend 100% of my time focusing on home care, drawing on my experience in this area. Our other managing directors concentrate on their areas of expertise, such as behavioral health, staffing, and Home Medical Equipment. This specialization is the main reason I joined Braff — it allows me to focus solely on home care.

I’ve built my career and network around home care for the last 15 years. I understand the importance of the services the industry provides to our aging population. We have a deep appreciation for home care delivery, operational processes, regulations, reimbursement, and the evolving buyer universe. Leveraging this experience, we work with many clients for 6 to 12 months before going to market. Preparation is key. It drives the highest level of ROI for owners, and we are committed to achieving the best possible outcome for them.

In our preparation, we analyze financials, key performance metrics, growth initiatives, as well as clinical outcomes and compliance. Each of these factors can drive a higher multiple in the market. A typical exercise involves recasting financials to account for one-time or preparatory expenses. For example, if an owner has $50,000 in one-time expenses, that can significantly impact value on an 8x multiple, potentially worth $400,000. Our holistic approach is proven to achieve premium value for our clients, and we take pride in delivering those outcomes.

Why should owners and operators monitor M&A trends, even if they’re not focused on selling today?

Simply put — value. It may sound a bit self-serving, but we genuinely mean it. Owners and Investors should use us as a thought partner. If Buyers are looking for specific trends in a business — such as infrastructure, growth dynamics, outcomes, compliance and metrics — doesn’t that reflect what a strong and healthy organization should look like? Even if an owner or board is not considering a sale, they likely want their business to operate at the highest level. This translates to performance, which should, in turn, translate to cash flow. You can then take that cash flow and reinvest it in your staff, IT, other acquisitions, or startups. We’re also happy to discuss how to best allocate those resources.

Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, the next 12 months will be defined by…”

… a high level of investor interest — both strategic and private equity.

We will see an increasing volume of announced transactions with the potential for a robust M&A market in 2025 once we see an interest rate cut, the Home Health final rule, and the presidential election results.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The Braff Group is a mergers and acquisitions advisory firm specializing exclusively in health care services including behavioral health, home health, home care and hospice, health care staffing services, home medical equipment, pharmacy services and ancillary health care services. To learn more, visit https://thebraffgroup.com/market-sectors/home-health-hospice/.

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact sales@agingmedia.com.

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Home Health Care News: What is your background, and how did it lead you to Trella Health?

Kathy Ford: I’ve spent my entire career of more than 30 years in health care. During this time, I’ve built and grown solutions and companies, always with a strong desire to make a real difference in this space. My experience spans across the continuum — I started in acute care, moved through post-acute, and delivered numerous solutions in ambulatory settings. In fact, I’ve delivered over 100 clinically impactful solutions in 52 countries so far, many of which are still saving lives and remain in clinical use today. I’m very proud of that achievement.

For me, health care is deeply personal. Trella found me, but I was especially drawn to them because I have a very ill family member, for whom I am a caregiver, legal guardian and medical authority. I’ve witnessed her navigating various post-acute facilities, home care, and readmissions. I’ve seen the gaps in care processes and the inefficiencies have been eye-opening.

Additionally, I believe post-acute care is the “sleeping giant” of the continuum, ripe for innovation to drive efficiencies and make a significant impact, particularly given our aging population and the rise of certain diseases, like cancer.

Talk about some of the key challenges facing post-acute care providers today.

Not dissimilar to other parts of the continuum, staffing remains a significant challenge, both in terms of having the right staff with the right skill set and addressing burnout. Technology can help alleviate issues by automating certain tasks, prioritizing based on rules, and meaningful insights to deliver optimal patient care.

As we move towards a fully value-based care setting by 2030, many stressors are emerging for our customers in this space, with care coordination central to these challenges. Agencies and facilities strive to deliver the best care possible, but inefficiencies, staffing shortages and other challenges often make this difficult. From my personal experience, I’ve seen how coordination issues can have a downstream, exponential effect on patient outcomes.

What emerging technologies do you believe will have the most significant growth impact on post-acute care in the near future?

I’m going to start with interoperability. It’s not groundbreaking, but it is essential and urgently needed. We have to democratize data in post-acute care. Healthcare vendors are further along with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT’s (ONC) CURES Act in ambulatory and acute care; post-acute care still needs this advancement. Data should be more freely and easily available to solutions and users, and it should not be a competitive advantage for any vendor from my viewpoint. Being smarter, faster and more comprehensive should be a priority for everyone in this space, regardless of their role. From Trella’s perspective, this is fundamental.

There’s also an urgent need for intelligent care transition tools. We need to eliminate low-value steps such as faxing, calling, and retyping, and focus on creating efficient documentation that keeps the right people informed — armed with the ability to make swift, data-driven decisions.

The future requires advanced technology powered by data that surfaces information to the appropriate users at the point of care. We should not expect clinicians, administrators, and field staff to navigate through multiple systems to find documentation and updates. We need to be proactive in addressing these challenges.

How will Trella Health adapt its vision and solutions to help providers navigate these technology trends over the next few years?

We are continuing to invest in workflow automation solutions and leveraging the most current technologies to achieve that. As a data company, our job is to surface the most meaningful insights at the point of need — the right information, the right way, to the right person. At Trella, we reinvest our revenue right back into the company. We view ourselves as relatively new in this space, committed to making a difference and leading the way.

We have ambitious plans involving data science, AI, machine learning and natural language processing. While these terms are frequently discussed, what sets Trella apart is our commitment to using these technologies safely, securely, and with transparency and trust.

How does Trella Health incorporate customer feedback into its product development processes, and what does that look like for the end user?

We have a multi-pronged approach.

At the forefront are our customer advisory boards, which we meet with regularly to ensure we understand their biggest pain points, market headwinds and challenges — then we feed that information back to our teams. As a product leader, conducting interviews is a daily task, and with over 750 customers, we have many voices to hear, all of which are extremely important.

We also integrate Net Promoter Score (NPS) within our solutions and actively seek feedback from users in a controlled manner to avoid burdening them. It is critical that every Trella team member understands a day in the life of our clients and partners.

What initial steps can providers take to embrace a data-driven approach and stay competitive in today’s environment? Can you share any success stories?

Staying ahead of market data and leveraging the Trella platform to access everything — from field performance and referral patterns to quality measures — is where we see our customers most successful. Our customers use this data to make decisions about M&A and to identify potential leakage or gaps.

Care coordination and continuity with Sales productivity tools or CRM is a great example of how our customers use this tool to stay connected with patients throughout their care journey and be valuable to their referral partners. Trella is a leader in the industry, with major clients like LHC, which has implemented our CRM across their entire field organization. One of LHC’s top requests, which was also a highly-voted concept in our idea center, was scheduling enhancements. As a result of using our CRM, LHC saw a 42% reduction in turnaround time and referral response rate.

Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, 2024 will be defined by…”

… increased M&A.

I think we’re beginning to see post-acute care find its way into value-based care in a more mainstream way. Currently, post-acute is only lightly involved. While some ACOs include post-acute care, in 2024 we’re seeing a growing focus on understanding quality measures, negotiating contracts, and forming the right networks based on the care each provider delivers.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Trella Health empowers post-acute care organizations with integrated market intelligence and CRM tools needed to make informed decisions and drive growth. Discover how our platform helps you pinpoint high-value referral sources, expand strategically in your market, and maximize ROI.  Ready to see the Trella Health advantage? Request a demo today: https://www.trellahealth.com/demo.

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact sales@agingmedia.com.

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For this episode of Disrupt, we caught up with Evan Ostrovsky, the CEO of Special Touch Home Care. During the conversation, Ostrovsky talks about how he plans to take his agency from Point A to Point B in the near-term future.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

– What’s next for CDPAP intermediaries in New York

– The opportunities and challenges of operating a home care agency in New York

– Keys to contemporary home care growth

– And more!

Subscribe to Disrupt to be notified when new episodes are released. Listen today!

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Nick Knowlton, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at ResMed, an industry leader in interoperability with an award-winning EHR, spoke with Home Health Care News about the key areas where EHRs are driving care connectivity in home-based care today. This article explores the impact of EHRs on care connectivity, including the key advancements technology providers are making, and the steps home-based care teams can take to leverage them.

EHRs as a Catalyst for Enhanced Care Connectivity

In the current home-based care environment, key trends include the following, according to Knowlton:

• The adoption of value-based care

• Staff shortages

• A growing need for interoperability

• The rise of consumerism in health care at large

EHRs have proven instrumental in helping providers adapt to these trends, offering tools and features that enhance care coordination and patient management. Modern EHR systems are no longer just digital repositories of patient data; they are sophisticated platforms that facilitate real-time communication, data sharing and decision-making. Recent advances in EHR platforms are a testament to their ability to further support connected care.

4 Key EHR Advancements Supporting Connected Care

1. Interoperability and Data Integration: One of the most notable advancements in EHR technology is enhanced interoperability. Today’s EHR systems harness robust integration capabilities that enable seamless data exchange across various care settings. This integration ensures that home-based care providers can effortlessly access and share essential patient information with other care teams, promoting continuity of care and minimizing the risk of errors.
2. Real-Time Data Access: Real-time access to patient data puts critical information at care teams’ fingertips, driving swift, informed decision-making in every setting. In home-based care, where timely interventions can make a significant difference, advancements in data accessibility allow providers to monitor patient progress, track changes in health status, and adjust care plans promptly in one unified platform.
3. Enhanced Communication Tools: EHRs now include advanced communication tools that bolster collaboration among care teams. With features like secure messaging, video consultations and task management tools, providers can coordinate care more effectively, even when they’re not physically present with the patient.
4. Predictive Analytics and Decision Support: Advanced EHR systems use predictive analytics to forecast potential health risks and outcomes. By analyzing both historical data and current trends, EHRs today are more effectively enabling providers to anticipate issues and take proactive measures. This capability is particularly valuable in home-based care, where managing complex needs and making data-driven decisions is not a luxury, but an absolute necessity.

Adapting to the Evolving Connected Care Landscape

On the provider side, leveraging these advancements in EHR technology will empower home-based care teams to stay competitive and push the envelope of care quality. Advanced features like robust interoperability, real-time data access, and integrated communication tools, among others, empower providers to streamline operations and enhance patient outcomes, despite limited resources and a shifting industry landscape.

“Everybody is expecting more from their home health and hospice care delivery partners to ensure that patients are well cared for, that people understand the journey they’re on—whatever that journey may be—and that caregivers are provided with the right technology tools to do their jobs effectively while also having enough time to enjoy their personal lives,” says Knowlton.

By embracing these innovations, home-based care providers can better manage the complexities of patient care, make informed decisions swiftly, and foster improved collaboration and satisfaction among care teams, ultimately leading to more effective and responsive care, and better financial outcomes in an increasingly dynamic industry.

4 Steps Providers Can Take to Leverage EHR Advancements

1. Communicate with the EHR Vendor: Providers need an EHR system that is aligned with their goal of connected care. This partnership starts with an ongoing dialogue with the EHR vendor about their vision for this technology, planned updates and integrations, as well as the most recent advancements — and how care teams can get the most out of them. Opening a line of communication centered on how these tools can support seamless care coordination is a critical starting point.
2. Train and Support Staff: Ongoing staff training and support is essential to realize the platform’s full potential. Providers must equip their care teams with all of the necessary skills and certifications to optimize EHR usage and maximize the benefits of connected care. Whether through internal training resources, or in partnership with the vendor, staff training and support should be a focal point in technology discussions within provider organizations today.
3. Embrace Data-Driven Decision-Making: Predictive analytics, machine learning and other decision-support tools within today’s EHRs empower caregivers to do more with less, regardless of the setting. Teams that embrace data-driven decision-making will be able to take a more proactive approach to connected care, anticipating potential adverse health events and preventing them in the first place.
4. Foster Collaboration and Communication: Modern EHRs facilitate improved teamwork and collaboration among care teams through advanced communication tools within the platform itself. Effective communication is the framework of effective care coordination, especially in an environment where caregivers, specialists, and patients are often in different locations. It ensures that all stakeholders are aligned and working towards the same goal with no lapse in treatment or lack of clarity around next steps.

Provider-Vendor Partnerships for Connected Care

As the transformation of home-based care is increasingly driven by advancements in EHRs, providers and vendors must make a combined effort to achieve greater care connectivity and meet the evolving needs of patients and staff. EHRs are not just keeping pace with change — they are at the forefront, offering critical tools for improved communication, data integration and patient management — all in one place.

For home-based care providers, staying ahead of these technological advancements and effectively utilizing EHR systems is key to delivering high-quality, coordinated care while also positioning themselves competitively in a rapidly evolving industry.

This article is sponsored by MatrixCare, an industry leader in interoperability with an award-winning EHR built to support the entire patient journey through efficient transitions of care, connectivity to health systems, and long-term referral partnerships. To learn more about interoperability done right, visit https://www.matrixcare.com/home-health-software/.

The post Achieving Connected Care in 2024 appeared first on Home Health Care News.

Recent developments in EHR technology represent a monumental shift in the efficiency of care delivery and communication for all stakeholders, empowering providers to meet the unique needs of every individual regardless of care setting. In turn, providers need to establish an ongoing dialogue with their partners about what these advancements mean for their patients and teams today, and in the years ahead.

As providers explore new technology solutions and examine their current partnerships through a future-focused lens, it is critical to consider 3 key ways in which EHRs will shape the future of home-based care — the 3Cs of EHRs.

• Care transitions
• Collaboration
• Clinical outcomes
  

Nick Knowlton, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at ResMed, an industry leader in interoperability with award-winning EHRs, and Angela Richards, Director of Project Management at Andwell Health Partners, the largest, independent, non-profit home and community-based health care and care management organization in Maine, share their outlook on the key areas where EHRs will have the greatest impact on home-based care as the technology and industry evolve together.

Care Transitions

The home-based care industry has already witnessed the ability of EHRs to significantly transform how care transitions are managed across settings, and this trend will continue to rise as the technology continues to improve and providers realize the potential with what is already possible. Providers are wise to talk with their technology partners about the steps they’re currently taking to streamline and enhance the continuity of care as patients move between hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, home health and hospice.

By integrating comprehensive patient data in real-time, EHRs empower providers to coordinate transitions more effectively, anticipate patient needs proactively, and minimize the risks associated with handoffs. And while it’s easy to lose focus with countless new features and buzzwords, providers need to understand not only where the technology is going, but how it will benefit them today.

“Things that could enhance the clinical experience may not have reached the forefront yet,” says Richards. “Sometimes I feel there’s a focus on the latest trends in EHRs when we simply want straightforward tools to adjust schedules, identify scheduling, and meet minimal regulatory requirements for billing easily.”

Additionally, improved interoperability among EHR platforms ensures a seamless information exchange between providers, reducing redundant tests, medication errors and treatment delays.

This evolution in EHR technology will continue to enhance patient safety and care quality across the continuum while fostering better collaboration among multidisciplinary care teams simultaneously.

“Recently, we’ve been focused on launching care transition interoperability tools, including within our own platforms,” says Knowlton. “This improves our platforms by providing better tools to transition patients more effectively into home health or hospice environments.”

Key Considerations for Care Transitions
● Level of interoperability
● Integration of patient data in real-time
● Risk mitigation

Collaboration

The complex patient journey in home-based care makes collaboration not just a priority, but an absolute necessity. However, the challenge of sharing information seamlessly among caregivers, physicians, and specialists increases tenfold when they are all in different locations.

EHRs can bridge the gap, and their ability to foster collaboration should be a differentiator in partner-provider discussions about this technology.

Enhanced connectivity is a focal point of EHR development as it relates to collaboration, with the ultimate goal of undisrupted, real-time communication capabilities that empower teams to coordinate care more effectively and make timely, well-informed decisions.

“We’re seeing more home health and hospice providers use their EHR to collaborate directly with other care delivery partners who treat the same patient to ensure ongoing, patient-centric care,” Knowlton says. “It’s crucial that these services are included as part of the ongoing patient journey, and not just at the time of the referral.”

Further, putting centralized patient data and treatment plans at caregivers’ fingertips will streamline workflows, alleviate administrative burdens and elevate the overall quality of care provided in home settings. Coupled with increased interoperability, this technology has the potential to support holistic care approaches by integrating data from diverse sources like home health agencies, physicians, pharmacies, and medical equipment providers.

As EHR technology advances, it will play a monumental role in promoting collaboration, improving communication, and ultimately, enhancing health outcomes in home-based care environments.

Key Considerations for Collaboration
● Real-time communication
● Enhanced connectivity and workflow
● Diversification of data sources

“From the outset, during our orientation, we focused on understanding what constitutes best practice. MatrixCare’s implementers emphasized optimal ways to utilize the system, so we embraced these methods right away,” Richards says. “MatrixCare has evolved significantly since 2018, and they’re exceptional at providing a roadmap of what’s to come, engaging us in the process. We share this roadmap with our team, discussing upcoming features like OASIS-E, PDGM, and the introduction of voice-to-text and other tools.”

Clinical Outcomes

Standardizing real-time access to comprehensive patient data, including medical histories, treatment plans, and ongoing monitoring metrics, will enable more accurate diagnoses, personalized treatment approaches, and timely interventions tailored to each patient’s unique needs. Providers should address these goals with their EHR vendor to determine what success looks like for their organization, and how they can measure it over time.

Additionally, as predictive analytics and decision support tools are refined and more seamlessly integrated into EHR platforms, providers will be able to bolster support for proactive health management and preventive care strategies. “Bringing patient data in and understanding each individual’s care needs early in the process allows home health and hospice providers to better coordinate with other care teams, such as physician practices, physical therapy, home infusion, home medical equipment, and wound care,” says Knowlton. As the technology itself improves, so will providers’ ability to execute their care strategies.

Key Considerations for Clinical Outcomes
● Communication among multi-disciplinary care teams
● Enhanced and streamlined care coordination
● Measurable KPIs

As EHR technologies continue to advance, their role in delivering actionable insights and facilitating evidence-informed care will contribute to improved care transitions, stronger collaboration, better clinical outcomes, and ultimately, higher patient satisfaction in home-based care. But there needs to be an open dialogue between providers and their technology partners to best prepare for what’s to come. The 3 Cs of EHRs are a roadmap for this conversation as the industry works together to achieve higher levels of care in the home.

This article is sponsored by MatrixCare, an industry leader in interoperability with an award-winning EHR built to support the entire patient journey through efficient transitions of care, connectivity to health systems, and long-term referral partnerships. To learn more about interoperability done right, visit https://www.matrixcare.com/home-health-software/

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Home Health Care News: What life and career experiences do you most draw from in your role today?

Navin Gupta: My journey to Viventium, the leading human capital management solution built for the health services industry, is a blend of life and career experiences threaded by the theme of connection through technology.

Although health care has long been a part of my DNA—my family in India runs a pharmaceutical distribution business that is more than half a century old—my professional career began at Siemens. While not a health care company, those early years in technology and being part of the evolution in telecommunication showed me personally the power of technology to do good at scale. It sparked this curiosity to drive efficiency, innovation, and productivity in the various domains I got to participate in.

The next chapter of my career began when I was asked to join Philips Healthcare, and I was so excited to bring my expertise to this field. My team and I advanced the applications of alarm monitoring and event management within critical care settings, showcasing how technology can meaningfully remove noise from systems, help prioritize care, and ultimately drive significant improvement in caregiver quality of lives and patient outcomes.

In my current role at Viventium, I leverage over two decades of experience in scaling and nurturing SaaS platforms along with my enduring focus on technological connectivity to support our mission in improving the lives of one million caregivers through better payroll and HR solutions.

What attracted you to Viventium? What can the industry expect from Viventium over the next few years?

Viventium’s presence in the health services world expands more and more each year as agencies, facilities, and communities adopt our HR software built carefully and specifically for them. Viventium provides post-acute care organizations with a payroll and HR software suite that guides administrators through the entire employee lifecycle. As of 2024, Viventium touches half a million lives within the segments we participate. I saw Viventium’s trajectory and jumped at the opportunity to join due to the clearly defined goals, ideology, and culture. You can expect to continue seeing our logo all over the country as we release even more proprietary products and expand upon our existing offerings to ease the administrative burdens of owners and human resources administrators in the health services industry.

In addition to our products, we support the industry through our expertise and guidance of industry compliance, as well as innovative research findings. Our 2024 Caregiver Onboarding Experience Report was just our most recent entry in a history of thought leadership, and we plan to continue pushing the envelope on innovation for agencies, facilities, and communities across the country.

As you mentioned, Viventium recently released a new research study, the 2024 Caregiver Onboarding Experience Report. This report is making a splash in the home care and post-acute world. Can you provide a bit of background on it? Why conduct that research?

It’s very exciting to see our Caregiver Onboarding Experience Report circulating throughout the industry. We have been receiving endorsements from many industry leaders such as William A. Dombi, Esq., President and CEO of NAHC, Chris Fisher, Director of Quality and Clinical Affairs at PHCA, and, of course, many home care agencies, nursing facilities, and senior living communities. The research was conducted via a survey of 175 administrators and 220 caregivers working in the health services industry across the United States to dive deeper into the well-known retention issue that plagues our industry. Our report provides a unique look into how caregivers and administrators feel about various topics pertaining to onboarding, training, payroll, and more. We found that retention can be massively impacted by the onboarding process, and we give readers simple blueprints to implement strategies that can make an immediate difference on their organization’s retention rate.

What are the key findings from the 2024 Caregiver Onboarding Experience Report?

Our research illuminates a crucial pathway towards addressing the persistent challenge of staffing shortages and low retention rates in post-acute care. We truly believe the solution begins with onboarding, and when onboarding is done right, everybody wins.

The main findings from our report are that:

1) Better onboarding of caregivers drives greater job satisfaction, improved performance, and a more positive perception of the employee experience. Caregivers at agencies and facilities with a good onboarding reputation (leaders) are more likely to feel they have opportunities to advance in their careers compared to organizations who do not have great onboarding (laggards). Additionally, caregivers at leader organizations report a more positive feeling of work-life balance by nearly 3 times of laggards.

2) Caregivers and administrators differ widely on their views of the quality of onboarding standards within the industry today. 68% of administrators said their onboarding was “industry-leading” or “ahead” of the competition, while 21% of caregivers described their onboarding experiences as “excellent.”

3) By rethinking the ins and outs of onboarding and automating much of the process, administrators can focus on a more personal and personable approach which leads to reduced turnover for organizations. Employees are 3.4 times more likely to strongly agree their onboarding experience was exceptional when managers take an active role in onboarding.

What is something that surprised you in your research findings?

Only 41% of caregivers said they received a warm welcome during onboarding. While at first this may sound like a small detail, I would argue otherwise. In fact, this is one of the actionable insights agencies and facilities should pay close attention to. The goal is to provide a comfortable and pleasant work environment, which will result in reduced turnover.

You just hosted a webinar with an impressive panel to discuss the research findings and other aspects of onboarding and retention. What was the main highlight of the event?

It was an amazing panel! I encourage all readers to visit our website and view the recorded webinar. It was a pleasure having such an impressive group of post-acute care leadership, including William A. Dombi Esq., President and CEO of NAHC, Chris Fisher, Director of Quality and Clinical Affairs at PHCA, Amy Guberman, Director of Education at NAHC, Todd Austin, President and COO of Home Care Pulse, Hindy Spiegel, CFO of Medical Facilities of America, and our very own Terra Vicario, CMO and expert of our research findings.

The highlight was the overall blend of expertise and insights from our panelists who brought their own unique industry experiences. We had leadership in industry associations, facilities, education, and research all weighing in on the data points of our study, providing advice and discussing other solutions to the industry retention problem. Attendees walked away with an understanding of the data, as well as insights on improving onboarding to reduce retention and smoothen operations from a range of unique viewpoints.

Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, 2024 will be defined by…”

…uniting to find solutions for administrators to improve efficiency of operations, thereby delivering a more pleasant work environment for caregivers and enabling them to provide the best care to our most vulnerable.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Payroll compliance is a team effort — as is understanding how to benefit from the new legislation in the evolving home-based care space. To learn more about how Viventium can help, visit Viventium.com.

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact sales@agingmedia.com.

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Home Health Care News: What inspired you to start POM Safe, and how does your personal story shape the company’s mission and goals?

AJ Leahy: Unfortunately, POM Safe started because of a tragic incident. One my best friends was killed after a random act of violence, and the circumstances surrounding the incident shed light on major gaps in the 911 systems we all rely on. My friend was walking home late one night in Philadelphia when he was jumped by a group of guys and knocked unconscious. One of the friends he was with called 911 but had to run to the nearest cross street to explain her location as 911 didn’t get her GPS and she wasn’t able to communicate where to send help. The first responders were delayed arriving on scene and he passed away. We were appalled to learn after the fact that 63% of cell phone calls to 911 do not share the caller’s location and, even when they do, it’s usually a cell tower location with a large enough radius that it’s of little help to locate someone. Our mission is to put peace of mind in everyone’s hands, and this is what we dedicate ourselves to achieving every day we show up to work.

How do POM Safe devices help solve the specific safety problems health care workers face in post-acute care settings?

Not many people realize this, but Healthcare workers are 5x more likely to experience workplace violence. It happens more often than against police officers and prison guards. In particular, home health workers are often by themselves, providing care in someone else’s home. Whether it’s aggressive patients, family members, neighbors, dangerous pets, substance abuse, or issues in the surrounding neighborhood, home health care workers are underequipped with safety tools to protect themselves in those unknown environments. The POM Safe devices help to proactively prevent incidents as well as get help in active situations where escalation is necessary.

The Check On Me feature allows caregivers to check-in and out of appointments by simply tapping the button on the device, and automatically escalates to a supervisor or our dispatchers if they don’t check out. This provides peace of mind by ensuring someone is always looking out for them, and the response from nurses has been tremendously positive. If a situation does escalate, you can tap the POM device 3 times to initiate an emergency alert that sends your exact GPS location, profile information and a two-way voice call through our device to a dispatcher who will coordinate the appropriate response. Nurses wear the device on their ID badges or keychains, so you can discreetly active it without having to fumble for a phone in a bag or pocket. It has its own LTE and GPS onboard the device so even if your phone dies or is left in the car, it still works.

What are some of the best success stories and feedback you’ve heard from organizations that have implemented POM Safe devices?

There’s been many incidents the POM has been used in, but one that always comes to mind happened with one our clients based in the midwest. A woman was off-duty in her own apartment when an ex-partner broke in and starting assaulting her. She activated her POM device, which was on her work lanyard nearby, and the dispatcher came through the speaker on the device asking if she was alright. The assailant heard the dispatcher and took off running, stopping the assault before it got worse. He was picked up a couple blocks away as the police arrived and he ended up going to jail. She was willing to share with us her experience afterwards, and we were told there was no way she was getting to her phone in that situation, and the POM was her only option. While horrified by the incident itself, we were proud of the role our technology played to help keep her safe and put a dangerous person behind bars.

How do you see technology, specifically POM Safe, evolving in the future to enhance caregiver safety?

Our focus has narrowed very specifically to the home health care space, and right now our emphasis is on enhanced proactive safety measures and integrations to engrain our solution into the daily work lives of healthcare workers more and more. They certainly don’t need any more things to do or worry about, there’s plenty for them to do already. So our focus is on preventing incidents from happening with improved situational awareness, predictive analytics for areas with high crime or sexual predators, and tying into systems they already use. We place an emphasis on being intimate with our customers so much of our product roadmap is co-developed with our client-partners. That’s where the Check On Me feature came from actually, where one of our clients was unable to locate a teammate for hours after they didn’t return home from a shift. We’ve cut that down to minutes and ensured there’s an auto-escalation path that can get help to them if needed, even if they’re unable to activate an emergency call.

What advice do you have for providers approaching new technology adoption in today’s environment?

Find a partner that’s going to support you and understand your specific challenges in your organization and in this market. It might sound obvious, but we’ve seen fly by night companies, we’ve seen companies that throw tech “over the fence” at clients and say good luck and disappear. The best roll outs are ones that are approached as true partnerships and you can rely on their team to show up, listen to you, and adjust if needed to make sure it’s a rousing success for all people involved. You want the best technology of course, especially when it comes to safety, and we have that. But you also want to work with good people, who care about your people as much as you do. There’s a reason why people come to work at POM Safe, and everyone’s had some type of experience that gravitates them to our company and the work we do. When you are rolling out an enterprise solution, especially one that’s net new, not just another EHR platform, you want a team that you know you can count on and who has the experience. You want the playbook to be well-baked and gone through its iterations, so this isn’t another headache for you and your team. If you have an issue or question, you want someone who’s going to respond immediately and resolve it for you.

What are some of the ways POM Safe has incorporated provider feedback into the product?

We are constantly talking with our customers and end users to understand how to improve the solution and drive the highest value possible for them. Features like Check on Me and the Fake Phone Call came directly from users and continue to be our most frequently used features. You can say the same for the crime and sex offender registry data that’s now incorporated into the app and will be released later this month. Our philosophy and our product pipeline is driven by feedback from customers.

Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, 2024 will be defined by…”

… an unwavering commitment to caregiver recruitment and retention, coupled with strategic efforts in caregiver safety.

The focus on caregiver safety directly impacts recruitment and retention. Potential recruits are more likely to join organizations that demonstrate a strong commitment to their well-being, and existing staff are more likely to stay when they feel protected and valued. Penn Medicine at Home’s success with POM Safe, where 82% of staff reported feeling safer and supported the purchase of POM devices, illustrates how safety investments can enhance staff satisfaction and loyalty.

The evolving landscape of home-based care in 2024 will also see tighter collaboration between technology providers and care organizations, ensuring that solutions are tailored to the specific needs of caregivers. This year will be marked by a collective effort to create safer, more supportive working environments, ultimately enhancing the well-being of both caregivers and the patients they serve. By prioritizing safety, we not only protect our caregivers but also build a stronger, more resilient workforce equipped to meet the growing demands of home-based care.

As the industry grapples with increasing incidents of workplace violence, the importance of robust safety measures cannot be overstated. Technologies like POM Safe are at the forefront, providing innovative solutions that ensure caregivers are never alone, even in the most challenging environments.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Packed with customizable safety features and enhanced by the POM 360 Safety Network, the standalone POM Mobile is the leading device in home care. Learn more about how POM can help keep your caregivers safe here. 

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact sales@agingmedia.com.

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Home Health Care News: What life and career experiences do you most draw from, in your role today?

Raul McGee: A few experiences come to mind for me. About a year out of college, I started a position as a Systems Analyst supporting two different Electronic Medical Record Systems for the Homecare, Hospice, and Skilled Nursing Facility units of the healthcare organization I was hired by. The foundational knowledge I gained, not only around healthcare and IT, but also around juggling multiple projects and workstreams, set me up to take on the challenges of my current position. During this time, I also worked as a consultant for MHA which further took me along the path of home health, hospice, and data.

My previous role as a Business Analyst put me in a position between the business and the developers, assisting with the organization and development of a multiyear data migration project. During this time, I was able to get a firm grasp on how a data engineering shop can function effectively and efficiently. What I have learned, and continue to learn, is that listening, especially to those with more experience and knowledge than me, is the one of the most important skills one can develop in their life.

The home health and hospice industry often struggles with fragmented data stored in various systems. How can improved data interoperability empower better analytics and care coordination across settings?

Through strategic system integration, an organization can utilize objective data to drive decisions from the top down. Patients and employees alike speak through the data representing them across these systems. When these systems are not communicating with each other, great insights can be missed that may otherwise have been captured and allowed for improvements to be made. For example, clinicians who are unhappy in their job may underperform which can lead to patient dissatisfaction. A great way to address this is to use the data at an organization’s disposal across its systems and find out why this clinician is unhappy and address it. The more strategically an organization can allow systems to talk to each other can result in more detailed analysis of all parts of the organization, and ultimately, better care for its patients.

What is the potential of predictive analytics in home-based care, specifically with respect to identifying risk and enabling proactive interventions?

More and more companies are turning toward predictive modeling to get ahead of themselves as an organization and their competition. In this industry, the focus seems to be getting ahead of the patient and making care for them easier and more efficient. By accessing the data stored by the EMRs, analyzing historical trends both at an individual and group level, and building models from them, we can again use objective data to prove or disprove hypotheses for why a specific type of patient may be in decline or may be at higher risk of complications than another.

Enough rigorous testing can open the gate for the prediction of such cases with high certainty. The key is testing and action. If the data begins to tell a story that aligns with the initial hypothesis, we can follow that path and trust in the model that will allow for action to be taken. On the flip side, if the data seems to disprove the hypothesis, we still follow that path to see where it leads and adjust accordingly. By working alongside some of our partners like Medalogix, I have seen how powerful such analytics can be. At MHA, we are beginning to open that door ourselves and see how we can better predict the needs of the patients we and our clients serve.

How can providers leverage data analytics to demonstrate the value of their care and optimize their performance under the new value-based models?

The beauty of data analytics, to me, is that agencies can look under the hood and see at a detailed level what is truly going on within their organization. Through the data that is already being captured, agencies can track outcomes and patient satisfaction enabling them to show quantifiable proof of the quality of care they provide. This can lead to more tailored interventions and streamlined care coordination which, in turn, can demonstrate the improvement of patient outcomes across the organization. Ultimately, the more an agency can utilize their data, the more they will be able to adjust to such reimbursement models.

How can improved data standardization facilitate better benchmarking and performance comparisons between agencies, ultimately improving the quality of care?

Being able to level the playing field and speak the same language is crucial in ensuring that an agency is operating efficiently, offering better continuity of care, enhancing its data analytics, and saving on general costs, to name a few. For an agency’s efficiency, standardization practices off a simplification of the time and effort put into data entry and management. If the employees know there is a standard to follow, or if the systems are set up such that a standard is enforced, there is less strain on those employees who may otherwise need to decipher how certain data fields should be manually entered or mapped.

As for continuity of care, this allows for seamless sharing of information among the caregivers. Again, the removal of ambiguity makes everyone’s lives much easier. This leads to the enhancement of analytics that can be used to drive decisions across the agency and facilitate benchmarking for KPIs that an agency may want to track. If we expect specific data to say the same thing each time, visualizations of that data can be used knowing that, again, there should be very little ambiguity on how to interpret it, and we can trust that our benchmarks are accurate. Lastly, cost savings flow naturally from the rest. Standardization can enable fewer mistakes in data entry and less time (money) spent on tasks.

How can home health and hospice providers ensure responsible data collection, usage and patient privacy protection in the age of big data?

Especially in the realm of health care, it is critical that agencies ensure patient data is being collected and handled with care. Having robust data governance policies that outline the collection, usage, storage, and sharing of data is a great foundation for agencies to have. These policies, of course, need to comply with HIPAA and any local, state, and federal laws surrounding data privacy and security. Keeping analytics in mind, the flow of data will be ever-present at most agencies, so the adoption of solid security measures including encryption of data at rest and in transit, implementing access controls at a role-based level (which EMRs and many visualization tools offer), and the use of multi-factor authentication all are great measures to keep data secure and safe. Regular internal auditing can be a great step toward maintaining compliance and identifying any potential risks and vulnerabilities. Taking this a step further, agencies should have an incident response plan in place for data breaches and establish mitigation strategies for such cases.

Finish this sentence: “In the home-based care industry, 2024 will be defined by…”

…technology integrations and predictive analytics.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Maxwell Healthcare Associates is a team of post-acute industry veterans passionate about helping home health and hospice providers thrive amid healthcare’s disruptive environment. They bridge gaps and advance care by creating solutions focused on people, processes, and technology. To learn more about Maxwell Associates’ home health solutions, visit maxwellhca.com. 

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact sales@agingmedia.com.

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For this episode of Disrupt, we caught up with Joanne Cunningham, the CEO of the Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare, and David Totaro, the chief government affairs officer at Bayada Home Healthcare. During the conversation, Cunningham and Totaro discuss all things related to home health payment.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

– What may come next for home health payment

– How providers and advocates are fighting back against further home health cuts

– The chances of Congressional intervention to stop those cuts

– And more!

Subscribe to Disrupt to be notified when new episodes are released. Listen today!

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For this episode of Disrupt, we caught up with Paymon Farazi, the president of Signify Health. During the conversation, Farazi breaks down Signify Health’s near-term and long-term goals as a value- and home-based care enabler.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

– How at-home care can drive value for retailers like CVS, as well as payers

– How Signify coordinates care for all of its health care partners

– What the future of the company looks like under the CVS umbrella

– And more!

Subscribe to Disrupt to be notified when new episodes are released. Listen today!

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