by Audrey Kinsella Ida and Peg had never met face to face but had become pen pals ten years ago. Now, at 92, Ida wished she could meet her long-distance friend before it was too late. But Ida has always lived in Quincy, Massachusetts and Peg, though also Massachusetts-born, had long ago retired to Queen […]
WASHINGTON, DC — December 23, 2014 — The MedPAC Commission released a Report to Congress assessing the impact of Medicare’s home health care payment rebasing on beneficiary access and quality. In response, VNAA President and CEO Tracey Moorhead issued the following statement: “VNAA questions MedPAC’s conclusion that reducing the base payment rate for home […]
by Russel S. Krengel, product manager – Home Health, Kinnser Software In the next five years, 20 percent of Americans will be eligible for Medicare services, and many of them will employ home health services funded by Medicare. Already an $82 billion market, it is evident that the home care industry is set for […]
Vendor Watch: Playmaker CRM Introduces New VP of Client Success; and HEALTHCAREfirst Announces Recipients of Fourth Annual Compassionfirst Award 1. Playmaker CRM Introduces New VP of Client Success FRANKLIN, Tenn. Dec. 16, 2014 – PlayMaker CRM, the nation’s leading cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) software for the post-acute care industry, announced Tuesday the addition of […]
by Laura Mitchell We have a huge frequent flyer problem in America. No- not a problem – a crisis. And I don’t mean the frequent flyers who get to skip ahead in lines and get free drinks, I mean the frequent flyers that cycle through our hospital emergency rooms, the discharged patients who get readmitted […]
by Jim Triandiflu To many healthcare leaders, the recent boom in home healthcare is no surprise. Entities such as the Institutes of Medicine (IOM), the National Research Council and the Joint Commission cite benefits of home care such as improved clinical outcomes, cost effectiveness and reduced hospital readmissions. Cost analyses show just how […]
We do not often hear about a home care agency or hospice staying with the same software vendor for 15 years, especially when that vendor goes through a major C-suite shakeup of its own. When it happens, we want to know what that vendor is doing right. So we recently spoke with Michael Link, a Computer Systems Analyst for Hospice and Community Care. The Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based non-profit has been using version after version of software from Suncoast Solutions since the year 2000.
by Audrey Kinsella The annual Partners Health Care symposium, “Connected Health in Practice: Engaging Patients and Providers Outside of Traditional Care Settings,” provided examples of cutting edge healthcare innovations to keep patients connected and engaged. Wearable devices that track daily activity, such as FitBit, however, were pushed to the back burner in favor […]
Care transition management is a healthcare field that has gone from obscure concept to coveted credential in less than a decade. Google returns over 2 million hits (in 0.34 seconds) to “care transition certification.” The Case Management Society of America now offers a Transitions of Care Sub-Specialty certification. Dr. Eric Coleman, an early leader in […]
Suncoast Solutions to offer hospice benchmarking Suncoast Solutions, of Clearwater, Florida, announced that users of its Solutions hospice management system are now able to participate in CHOICE (Coalition of Hospices Organized to Investigate Comparative Effectiveness), a quality benchmarking network that enables them to compare key metrics and quality data with other hospices across the nation. […]
