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Home Instead Senior Care Introduces Post-Discharge Care Initiative; Aims to Reduce Hospital Readmissions Among Seniors

By: Home Instead® |  24 Shares     205 Reads

“Returning Home” Initiative is Introduced in Light of Upcoming Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program

OMAHA, Neb. - September 18, 2012 - (BUSINESS WIRE) - The Home Instead Senior Care® network, the nation’s leading provider of in-home companion care services, has introduced a program to help address a national problem – unnecessary hospital readmissions. The initiative, entitled “Returning HomeSM,” aims to offer care and supporting services – particularly for seniors following their discharge from a hospital – which will result in an overall decline in the rate of hospital readmissions.

Returning Home has been introduced in light of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program, which requires the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to reduce payments to hospitals with excess readmissions effective for discharges beginning October 1, 2012. By offering a tailored program that meets seniors’ post-discharge care needs, Home Instead Senior Care aims to play a key role in solving the critical issue of unnecessary hospital readmissions.

An estimated 20 percent of Medicare patients are unnecessarily readmitted within 30 days of discharge, according to a New England Journal of Medicine study. CMS estimates that about $15 billion is spent annually on hospital readmissions for Medicare patients; and about $12 billion of that amount is preventable.

“Readmission among seniors is often due to avoidable mistakes, such as not taking the proper medications, missing follow-up appointments, and maintaining a poor diet,” said Jeff Huber, President and COO of Home Instead, Inc. “The Home Instead Returning Home program positions us to partner with hospitals to help ensure successful recovery for patients, reduce the rate on unnecessary readmissions and, thereby, help hospitals limit their exposure to CMS penalties for excessive readmission rates,” said Huber.

The key elements of the Returning Home program include:

• Discharge coordination and execution: Home Instead CAREGivers^SM work with the senior's hospital discharge planning staff to help ensure the plan of care is understood and followed by family and other home caregivers to improve chances of a successful recovery.
• Medication management: Home Instead CAREGivers work with the senior and his/her family to ensure that prescriptions are filled and medication is taken as directed, and to help prevent adverse effects.
• Follow-up physician visit assistance: Home Instead CAREGivers make sure the senior keeps track of and attends follow-up medical appointments, assisting with transportation as needed.
• Nutrition management: Home Instead CAREGivers assist with meal planning, shopping and preparation to ensure that the senior receives wholesome, healthy food, stays hydrated and, more importantly, they offer nutrition education for a sustainable healthy lifestyle.
• Record keeping: Home Instead CAREGivers are trained to track specific data on the senior’s progress.

For more information on the Home Instead Senior Care’s Returning Home program, please visit: http://www.homeinstead.com/SERVICES/Pages/ReturningHomePost-DischargeCare.aspx

About Home Instead Senior Care

Founded in 1994 in Omaha by Lori and Paul Hogan, the Home Instead Senior Care® franchise network is the world's largest provider of non-medical in-home care services for seniors, with more than 950 independently owned and operated franchises providing in excess of 45 million hours of care throughout the United States, Canada, Japan, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Switzerland, Germany, South Korea, Finland, Austria, Italy, Puerto Rico and the Netherlands. The Home Instead Senior Care network employs more than 65,000 CAREGiversSM worldwide who provide basic support services – assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs), personal care, medication reminders, meal preparation, light housekeeping, errands, incidental transportation and shopping – which enable seniors to live safely and comfortably in their own homes for as long as possible. In addition, CAREGivers are trained in the network’s groundbreaking Alzheimer’s Disease or Other Dementias CARE: Changing Aging Through Research and EducationSM Program to work with seniors who suffer from these conditions. This world class curriculum also is available free to family caregivers online or through local Home Instead Senior Care offices. At Home Instead Senior Care, it’s relationship before task, while continuing to provide superior quality service that enhances the lives of aging adults and their families everywhere.

Contact:

Home Instead Senior Care
Dan Wieberg
402-498-4466
dwieberg@homeinsteadinc.com

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