What is home health?
What is the main purpose of home healthcare?
To provide skilled care to eligible residents in their home. Such as SN, PT, OT and ST, and provide support to prevent re-hospitilizations.
What 3 things does a resident need to qualify for home health?
1. A following physician
2. A qualifying diagnosis
3. Resident is “homebound”
True or false: A resident can receive more than one home health discipline when medically necessary.
True. Residents can receive SN, PT, OT, ST at the same time.
What is one of the strongest predictors of future fall?
A previous fall. Approximately 15% of people who have experienced a fall return to the ED within 6 months
What percentage of home health episodes result in residents improving their walking and functional mobility?
Up to 88.5% of home health episodes result in residents improving their walking and function mobility.
What can a home health nurse do during a visit?
Assess the residents condition, provide medication education, monitor certain health conditions, wound care, catheter care, infusion IV care, and vital assessment.
True or false: I don’t have a primary care physician so I don’t qualify for home health?
False: We can work with your specialist or help provide resources for a mobile primary care physician or transitional care provider.
Which service can help a resident improve strength, balance mobility, and safety?
Physical therapy
True or false: Someone doesn’t need to have a fallen recently to have fall risk concern?
True. There are a number of factors that contribute to fall risk such as gait and balance impairment, muscle weakness, medication, vision impairment, contigitive impairment and environmental hazards.
By approximately what percentage did excessive interventions such as home health therapies reduce the rate of falls?
In pooled studies excessive interventions reduced the rate of falls by approximately 15%.
Who generally orders home health services?
A qualifying physician, authorized practitioner, or a skilled nursing facility or hospital.
What are some signs you may be eligible for home healthcare?
Some signs you may be eligible for home healthcare include a new diagnosis or worsening of an existing condition, a new medication or change in medication, wound care, catheter care, intravenous or nutrition therapy and frequent visits to your doctor or hospital.
Which service can help a resident safely perform daily activity, such as dressing, bathing, and using adaptive equipment?
Occupational therapy
Which home modification would generally provide the greatest reduction in environmental fall hazards?
Removing loose rugs, and improving lighting can reduce the risk of falls.
Residents improved their ability to take oral medication correctly while receiving home health by approximately what percent?
Approximately 86.4% of residents improve their ability to take oral medication correctly while receiving home health services. Residents showed higher level of independence, reliability, and safety while preparing and taking the oral prescription medications.
How much does home health cost?
$0!!! Home health is 100% covered by insurance.
True or false: A resident must be completely confined to the home to meet homebound requirement?
False. A resident can still leave home for medical appointments or limited activities. To be considered homebound it must be a “taxing effort” to leave the home.
Which discipline could potentially address medication management, and safety education?
Skilled nursing
Which type of exercises can potentially reduce fall risk?
Balance and strengthening exercises can potentially help reduce the risks of falls.
By receiving at least 4 skilled nursing visits during a home health span lowers the odds of re-hospitalization by what percentage?
Receiving at least 4 skilled nursing visits cuts re-hospitalization odds by 61% to 62% compared to having fewer visits.
What is the difference between home health and home care?
Home Health provides skilled services such as SN, PT, OT ST. Home care provides unskilled care by caregivers like bathing, cleaning, meal prep, errands, etc.
What will your health care provider need to complete along with submitting a home health referral?
-A face-to-face evaluation: to determine your need for home healthcare. This evaluation should document your condition and the specific skilled services you required.
-A certification: once your doctor has evaluated you, they must certify that you need home healthcare and that services are medically necessary.
A resident recovering from a hospitalization for pneumonia and now is having significant weakness, impaired endurance, and difficulty safely ambulating. Which services could appropriately address these deficits?
Physical therapy, occupational, and skilled nursing.
Which healthcare professionals can help, assess, and address mobility and fall safety concerns in the home?
A physical therapist and occupational therapist can identify, address, and provide education on fall safety concerns in the home.
True or false: More than half of falls among older adults happen at home?
True. Residential Falls are the leading cause of injury for people age 65 and older. 1 in 4 older adults (approximately 36 million individuals) fall each year in the US.