News

Right at Home Corporate

• Right at Home Selected for Government Funding to Curb Hospital Readmission Rate
  

  After Success of Winston-Salem Pilot Program, Government Taps Right at Home for Help Lowering Readmissions

  With one in five Medicare patients returning to the hospital within 30 days of release, the U.S. government has implemented a financial penalty in an effort to reduce the staggering number of readmissions and curb the $17 billion annual cost associated with preventable readmissions. In search of solutions, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMS) developed the Community Based Care Transitions Program (CCTP), which provides funding for different models that aim to reduce hospital readmissions. As part of their efforts, the Community Care Networks of North Carolina received funding for two programs from CMS where they exclusively contracted three Right at Home offices to run a transitional program.

  Right at Home’s care transitions initiative is referred to as RightTransitions. Originally developed by Right at Home of Greensboro franchisee, Greg Brewer, and is now rolled out throughout the Right at Home system, RightTransitions is a program that partners with hospitals to create personalized plans that help outgoing patients complete the transition from hospital to home. The Center for Technology and Aging estimates that 76 percent of readmissions are preventable, but the need for a healthy and safe recovery period is critical. RightTransitions seeks to prevent the avoidable patient readmissions and costs associated with Medicare.

  Each RightTransitions program is uniquely designed for the patient it serves, and can range from 24-hour assistance to transportation and a few hours of in-home care immediately after leaving the hospital. Available services also include help with meal preparation, or ambulatory assistance in order to reduce the chance of an injury that could send an individual back to the hospital.

  “RightTransitions is a game changer for hospitals and the senior care industry as a whole,” said Brewer. “One major reason that readmissions occur so frequently is the lack of support patients have after leaving the hospital. Through our work with several hospitals in the area, we are able to implement this program and further show our ability to dramatically reduce the rates of readmissions and costs to hospitals, while providing each individual the necessary support in order to truly improve their quality of life.”

  During the RightTransitions pilot program in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, a local hospital saw a 65 percent reduction in readmissions, and as a result, the hospital realized $1.1 million in savings. With the success of this program, the Community Care Networks of North Carolina submitted proposals to CMS and reached out to other Right at Home offices in the state including Brewer, along with Tom Arnold of Wake County and Marc and Tori Reid of Durham-Chapel Hill, to invite them to participate in the Community Based Care Transitions Program.

  Through the funding from CCTP, all three franchisees have begun working with hospitals in their local communities to offer the RightTransitions program at no cost to patients who volunteer for this service.  As the only in-home care providers asked to participate in these two programs, the franchise owners recognized the opportunity they were given to show the impact in-home care has on reducing hospital readmission rates.

  “Many hospitals did not have a good understanding of the power of in-home care,” said Arnold. “Through our work with RightTransitions, we are granted the incredible opportunity to enlighten the healthcare community on how a little extra help after leaving the hospital can have major benefits for outgoing patients, and will dramatically reduce their chances of being readmitted within that 30 day window.”

  The funding runs through January of 2015, and all three Right at Home franchisees involved are very optimistic about the results hospitals and patients will see.

  “My goal is to help bring about a better system, reducing both the monetary and emotional cost of going back to the hospital,” said Reid. “We are a home care provider so we want to be chosen as the benefactor, but we are also tax payers and understand the rising cost of Medicare.  Any programs that can reduce these costs will help us as a community and a nation.”

  ABOUT RIGHT AT HOME

  Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship and personal care and assistance to seniors and disabled adults who want to continue to live independently. Local Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff, each of whom is thoroughly screened, trained, bonded and insured prior to entering a client’s home. Right at Home’s global office is based in Omaha, Nebraska, with more than 300 franchise offices located in 42 states nationwide and throughout the world. For more information on Right at Home, visit About Right at Home at http://www.rightathome.net/about-us or read the Right at Home franchising blog at http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/blog/. To learn more about franchising opportunities, please visit http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/.

  With one in five Medicare patients returning to the hospital within 30 days of release, the U.S. government has implemented a financial penalty in an effort to reduce the staggering number of readmissions and curb the $17 billion annual cost associated with preventable readmissions. In search of solutions, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMS) developed the Community Based Care Transitions Program (CCTP), which provides funding for different models that aim to reduce hospital readmissions. As part of their efforts, the Community Care Networks of North Carolina received funding for two programs from CMS where they exclusively contracted three Right at Home offices to run a transitional program.

  Right at Home’s care transitions initiative is referred to as RightTransitions. Originally developed by Right at Home of Greensboro franchisee, Greg Brewer, and is now rolled out throughout the Right at Home system, RightTransitions is a program that partners with hospitals to create personalized plans that help outgoing patients complete the transition from hospital to home. The Center for Technology and Aging estimates that 76 percent of readmissions are preventable, but the need for a healthy and safe recovery period is critical. RightTransitions seeks to prevent the avoidable patient readmissions and costs associated with Medicare.

  Each RightTransitions program is uniquely designed for the patient it serves, and can range from 24-hour assistance to transportation and a few hours of in-home care immediately after leaving the hospital. Available services also include help with meal preparation, or ambulatory assistance in order to reduce the chance of an injury that could send an individual back to the hospital.

  “RightTransitions is a game changer for hospitals and the senior care industry as a whole,” said Brewer. “One major reason that readmissions occur so frequently is the lack of support patients have after leaving the hospital. Through our work with several hospitals in the area, we are able to implement this program and further show our ability to dramatically reduce the rates of readmissions and costs to hospitals, while providing each individual the necessary support in order to truly improve their quality of life.”

  During the RightTransitions pilot program in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, a local hospital saw a 65 percent reduction in readmissions, and as a result, the hospital realized $1.1 million in savings. With the success of this program, the Community Care Networks of North Carolina submitted proposals to CMS and reached out to other Right at Home offices in the state including Brewer, along with Tom Arnold of Wake County and Marc and Tori Reid of Durham-Chapel Hill, to invite them to participate in the Community Based Care Transitions Program.

  Through the funding from CCTP, all three franchisees have begun working with hospitals in their local communities to offer the RightTransitions program at no cost to patients who volunteer for this service.  As the only in-home care providers asked to participate in these two programs, the franchise owners recognized the opportunity they were given to show the impact in-home care has on reducing hospital readmission rates.

  “Many hospitals did not have a good understanding of the power of in-home care,” said Arnold. “Through our work with RightTransitions, we are granted the incredible opportunity to enlighten the healthcare community on how a little extra help after leaving the hospital can have major benefits for outgoing patients, and will dramatically reduce their chances of being readmitted within that 30 day window.”

  The funding runs through January of 2015, and all three Right at Home franchisees involved are very optimistic about the results hospitals and patients will see.

  “My goal is to help bring about a better system, reducing both the monetary and emotional cost of going back to the hospital,” said Reid. “We are a home care provider so we want to be chosen as the benefactor, but we are also tax payers and understand the rising cost of Medicare. Any programs that can reduce these costs will help us as a community and a nation.”

  ABOUT RIGHT AT HOME

  Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship and personal care and assistance to seniors and disabled adults who want to continue to live independently. Local Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff, each of whom is thoroughly screened, trained, bonded and insured prior to entering a client’s home. Right at Home’s global office is based in Omaha, Nebraska, with more than 300 franchise offices located in 42 states nationwide and throughout the world. For more information on Right at Home, visit About Right at Home at http://www.rightathome.net/about-us or read the Right at Home franchising blog at http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/blog/. To learn more about franchising opportunities, please visit http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/.

  
  
  
• Transitional Care Program Will Benefit and Assist ‘High-Risk’ Patients at Providence Hospitals
  

  Columbia, S.C.,— With an average of one in five Medicare patients returning to the hospital within 30 days of being discharged, the U.S. government has implemented a financial penalty in an effort to reduce the staggering number of readmissions and curb the $17 billion annual cost associated with these.  In search of a solution, Providence Hospitals in Columbia, S.C., has partnered with Right at Home, an in-home care and assistance franchise, to develop a new transitional care initiative. The program, which is funded by a two-year grant from the Duke Endowment & Fullerton Foundation, is designed to significantly reduce readmissions by safely assisting the transition of elderly patients from the hospital to their home.

  “Hospital readmissions can be dramatically reduced through programs like Right at Home’s care transitions initiative, RightTransitions, decreasing the financial cost to hospitals and the physical and emotional toll on outgoing patients,” said Right at Home of Columbia owner, Charles Brown. “It is imperative to have a professional physically present to assist these fragile patients and to ensure their transition is smooth and seamless after discharge from the hospital.”

  Providence Hospitals' Transitional Care Program will be available to patients 65 years of age or older who are identified as being high risk of returning to the hospital within 30 days. This program is based on their specific illness and other criteria such as operative issues, physical disability, and history of falls or cognitive decline.

  Providence Hospitals has employed a dedicated Transitional Care Nurse Navigator,  Brittany Hudson, RN, BSN,  who will work exclusively with these patients to ensure they receive the care they need while in the hospital and after they are discharged. After patients are released, Right at Home will provide professional caregivers to assist them in their homes until they regain strength and become independent.

  Brown cites the success of a similar transitional care program at the Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., where hospital readmissions of high-risk Medicare patients were curbed by 65 percent, saving the hospital $1.1 million due to prevented readmissions.  “Based on the Forsyth Medical Center program, along with other transitional care models, Providence Hospitals developed this hybrid initiative that will benefit patients by helping them recover more quickly while improving their quality of life,” Brown added. “I find that patients are able to better self-manage their conditions after having one on one assistance and education in their homes,” said Providence Hospital’s Transitional Nurse Navigator Brittany Hudson, RN, BSN.

  In-home services covered under the grant include transfers, bathing, toileting, meal preparation, transportation to medical appointments, medication reminders, light housekeeping, laundry and assistance with errands. The level of in-home support provided will be determined by the Navigator as part of a comprehensive assessment which covers the patient’s needs while in the hospital and in their homes. This could mean a caregiver may be needed for a few hours of care on the day the patient is discharged, or alternatively for extended assistance spanning several days.  Right at Home continues to introduce new patients each week as well as provide care for existing clients already in the program.

  “The goal is that this program will become a best practice for the hospital and become a catalyst for strengthening additional coordination efforts to provide quality medical services across the entire continuum of care within our community,” said Brown. “We have already seen tremendous success with this program at Providence Hospitals and at other Right at Home offices across the country, and we are very optimistic about the positive effect RightTransitions can make on the lives of those we serve.”

   

  About Right at Home
  The Right at Home, Columbia, SC is a locally owned and operated franchise office of Right at Home, Inc., serving the communities of Lexington, Richland and Kershaw Counties. Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship and personal care and assistance to seniors and disabled adults who want to continue to live independently. Local Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff, each of whom is thoroughly screened, trained, bonded and insured prior to entering a client’s home. Right at Home’s global office is based in Omaha, Nebraska, with nearly 300 franchise offices located in 42 states nationwide and throughout the world. For more information on Right at Home, visit About Right at Home at http://www.rightathome.net/about-us or read the Right at Home caregiving blog at http://www.rightathome.net/blog. To sign up for Right at Home’s free adult caregiving e-newsletter, Caring Right at Home, visit http://caringnews.com

  About Providence Hospitals:

  Providence Hospitals is the Midlands leading provider of cardiovascular and orthopaedics services. Providence is composed of two hospitals, twelve physician practices, a network of rehabilitation centers, two sleep centers, a school of cardiac diagnostics and is an accredited chest pain center. In total, Providence employs over 2,000 dedicated staff. 

  Founded in 1938 by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Augustine, Providence is known state wide for outstanding clinical quality and compassionate care. The Providence open heart surgery program has ranked consistently in the top 10% of open heart programs for the past four and one-half years. Both the orthopaedics and cardiac services have received the South Carolina Blue Cross center of distinction designation. For more information, visit our web site at www.providencehospitals.com.

  About The Duke Endowment:

  The Duke Endowment, located in Charlotte, N.C., seeks to fulfill the legacy of James B. Duke by improving lives and communities in the Carolinas through higher education, health care, rural churches and children’s services. Since its inception, the Endowment has awarded $2.9 billion in grants.

  
  
  
• Help for the Growing “Silver Tsunami”
  

  The “Silver Tsunami,” or staggering tidal force of aging Americans, is beginning to change the way we interact, where we live, how we get around and the services we use from food preparation to home healthcare. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Administration on Aging summarizes how the deluge of older Americans is affecting our national population:

  • In 2011, the first wave of U.S. baby boomers turned age 65.
  • Every day the surge of elderly grows with 10,000 more people becoming seniors; this trend will continue daily during the next 20 years.
  • Nine out of 10 in the Silver Tsunami are expected to face at least one chronic illness, such as diabetes, a heart condition, cancer, a neurological disorder, or Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia by age 65.
  • The healthcare needs of the elderly are beginning to affect pocketbooks. The U.S. could save $26 billion per year if currently healthy older people remain fully independent throughout the course of a single year. The increasing concentration of seniors also affects ways of socializing through communications and services geared for home, including home healthcare, medication monitoring and meal preparation. For instance, a Roper Starch study finds that already 50 percent of Americans eat regularly home-delivered or home-prepared meals.

  As baby boomers continue to age and as the life expectancy of Americans continues to increase (according to the Division of Vital Statistics, it is now 78.7 years), the demand for family caregivers will increase. Younger generations will be taxed with providing care for their aging loved ones in addition to their responsibilities at work and home. Therefore, it’s important for family caregivers to know that help is available to ease the caregiving burden. Right at Home can provide home care for seniors and respite care for family caregivers. Family caregivers also can go to Right at Home’s Resource Links Web page to access more than 35 resources for help with caregiving.

  What is your greatest concern about the Silver Tsunami?

  
  
  
• Computer Training Helps Seniors Stay in Touch With Loved Ones
  

  It used to be rare when the elderly accessed the Internet. Back in 2000, the Pew Research Center tracked only 13 percent of seniors who were online. Today, the demographics research group reports that 54 percent of people over age 65 use the Internet, and more technology training is now geared toward older adults who don’t have to leave home to attend a class.

  That’s great news in an age when personal health records, banking, news, and company and service reviews are online. Plus, more and more seniors are sharpening their tech skills to stay in touch with family and friends, discover new interests, find jobs and volunteer work, and play games to improve their cognition and dexterity.

  Right at Home caregivers can help senior care clients connect to the world via the computer. Here are two other resources to help older adults improve their computer acumen:

  • The nonprofit Senior Net teaches computer skills including touching up photos, sending and receiving email, writing an autobiography, and managing personal and financial records. Senior Net also operates 50 learning centers around the country.
  • Connections, a nonprofit of the Oasis Institute, offers dozens of courses from digital photography to social networking. Classes are designed especially for those who tire easily or have limited attention spans. Workbooks are in large type with multiple illustrations. Oasis also teaches a range of senior-tailored computer courses across the U.S. in libraries, public schools, senior centers and senior housing developments.

  Local senior centers, community colleges and libraries also may have information on computer training specifically for seniors.

  Does your aging loved one know how to use a computer? If so, what does he/she use a computer for?

  
  
  
• See for Yourself: Cataracts Are Correctable
  

  For more than 22 million aging Americans, things can begin to look dimmer or glaring, fuzzy and hazy. The culprit is a cataract, the clouding of the eye’s lens over which old, dying cells have become trapped. Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness in people over age 55. But the dimming also can be a state of mind, a University of Texas study shows, because poor vision in the elderly can lead to premature mental decline.

  No one has to suffer a loss of sight or mind because of cataracts, Prevent Blindness America reminds us. That’s why the national nonprofit group designated June as Cataract Awareness Month. Cataracts are more preventable and correctable now than ever. Right at Home caregivers can help you check for:

  • Blurred vision, double vision, ghost images and a sense of a film clouding your eyes.
  • Light seeming too dim when trying to read or view something close up.
  • Lights that you would once describe as strong but now as blinding, like the noonday sun or vehicle headlamps at night.
  • A milky or yellowish spot in your pupil.
  • Worsening vision even with frequently updated eyeglass prescriptions.

  If you have even one of these symptoms in one or both eyes, you should have your ophthalmologist check your eye history, test your vision or “visual acuity” (including peripheral or side vision), and test you for glaucoma (the amount of pressure on the eye) and the effects of glare. You also will want your pupils dilated to examine the retina, which filters the visual messages passed along the optic nerve to the brain.

  To correct a cataract, outpatient surgery will have you back home after two to three hours. Many patients report clear vision within several hours after surgery, and they can resume normal activities often the day after surgery.

  What tips do you have for protecting and caring for your elderly loved one's vision health?