Pure Home Care Services

Home care is less expensive, reduces hospitalizations, and ‘key step in achieving optimal health outcomes for many patients’

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WASHINGTON D.C. –The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) praised a Joint Commission positioning statement released this week, which reinforces that safe, quality, highly skilled and high-tech home care is the preferred choice of many Americans. The report – calling home care a ‘safe environment despite sicker patients’ – outlines the important role home care providers play in managing the transitions of patients out of institutional care settings, all while improving outcomes and harnessing costs.

“The Joint Commission is a recognized leader in establishing safety and quality practices, and we’re pleased they acknowledge the value and contribution of safe and effective home care services for American seniors,” said Val J. Halamandaris, NAHC’s president. “Millions of seniors and disabled persons depend on Medicare-provided home care and an additional 10,000 Americans reach Medicare eligibility age every day. Improving our commitment to high-quality care must remain a top priority. Just like the Joint Commission, our community is dedicated to fostering ongoing improvements in quality and outcomes-based care. I look forward to exploring how our efforts can work in concert.”

The report comes on the heels of President Obama’s recently announced Partnership for Patients initiative which, among other goals, aims to reduce hospital readmissions by 20 percent by managing preventable complications.  Achieving this outcome would mean more than 1.6 million patients would recover from illness without suffering a preventable complication requiring re-hospitalization within 30 days of discharge.   

According to the report, re-admissions of Medicare beneficiaries to the hospital within 30 days of discharge costs the federal government more than $17 billion. These re-admissions, mainly a result of gaps in follow-up, present an opportunity for home health providers who are increasingly managing the transitions of sicker Americans out of acute-care settings and into the home. Appropriately managed transitions can also help patients avoid medication errors and unintentional falls, which cause thousands of deaths and cost approximately $19 billion per year.

“The Joint Commission’s position makes it clear they are invested in advancing their accreditation practices in line with the advancing breadth of home care in the United States,” said Halamandaris. “It’s clear that we share the same commitment to ensuring the availability of safe, quality, outcomes-driven and cost-effective care.”

Source: nahc.org

If you or a loved one would like more information about home care services in Grosse Pointe, MI and surrounding areas, call Pure Home Care Services at (586) 293-2457 today!

WASHINGTON D.C.  – The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) today highlighted the results of recent studies by Genworth Financial and the AARP Research & Strategic Analysis that exemplify the multi-faceted value of home care.

Comparing the change in average costs in various care settings from 2010 to 2011, the Genworth Financial study showed that the cost of in-home care stayed relatively flat compared to as much as a 5.7 percent increase for an institutional care setting.

“As Congress debates the best way to move forward on deficit reduction, home care is the clear solution for reducing costs while preserving high quality health care for seniors and the chronically ill from the comfort of their own homes,” said Val J. Halamandaris, NAHC’s president. “Through sophisticated care and monitoring, caregivers are able to provide safe and cost-effective services by avoiding short and long-term stays in hospitals and nursing care facilities.”

In addition, the AARP Research & Strategic Analysis study showed that new technologies such as electronic devices that turn off appliances and prescription drug management systems are being used by an estimated 48 percent of Americans over the age of 65 in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle at home.

“Through Advances in technology and innovation are extending the ability of seniors to remain at home and still be connected to a health care provider. As a result, home care is making significant progress in managing chronic diseases, reducing re-hospitalizations and improving the quality of life for millions of America’s. If Congress is serious about improving the health of Americans and fixing our nation’s economy, then it is incumbent upon Democrats and Republicans to recognize the critical and value-based role that home care plays as part of the solution,” concluded Halamandaris.

Source: nahc.org

For more information about cost-effective home care options for you or your loved one in Grosse Pointe, MI and surrounding areas, call Pure Home Care Services today at (586) 293-2457