Home care leading the health reform charge

Is health reform already underway in home care National Association for Home Care (NAHC) president Val Halamandaris believes so. He points to the growing use of modern technologies, patient-centered outcome measures, and evidence-based best practices as a sign that home care is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of a growing senior population. A major new study due out later this year--conducted by Fazzi Associates--is expected to back Halamandaris' claim.

The research, entitled “The BlackBerry Report: The National State of the Home Care Industry Study,” was sponsored by Research In Motion and co-sponsored by the NAHC and its affiliate, the Hospital Home Care Association of America (HHCAA). So far, initial findings are compelling. For instance, the research indicates that just over 65 percent of all agencies now have EMR systems. Eighty-three percent of these agencies report that the use of these systems has improved quality of care coordination.

And nearly 40 percent of all agencies now utilize some form of POS system in the field.  While most are using laptops, the use of handheld POS is expected to experience the largest growth, since handhelds currently only account for 6.3 percent of hardware being used. However, 36.8 percent of those seeking to purchase new hardware report that they are most interested in handheld devices.

There's also a push underway to get home health aides to adopt electronic documentation. Currently 78.3 percent of aides document care using paper forms, but one in four agencies plans to change the way personal care is documented, which the research suggests will grow handheld use from 11.5 percent to 74.6 percent.

Of course, smartphone use is also on the rise, with more than one out of every three home care leaders currently using such devices.

While these initial findings are promising, I'm looking forward to seeing the final report. Who knows, we may even have a final health reform bill by then.