In Conversation with Tim Rowan to Bring His Insights on the Significance of Technology in Home Care

Technology is revolutionizing the home care landscape, enhancing client care and efficiency.

Devices like wearable sensors monitor vital signs, detecting potential issues early. Telehealth platforms enable remote consultations, bringing home care directly to clients’ homes. Smart homes offer increased safety and independence through automated systems.

Beyond client care, technology aids care providers. Electronic health records streamline documentation, improving accuracy and accessibility.

Remote monitoring reduces the need for frequent in-person visits, optimizing caregiver time. Overall, technology empowers individuals to age in place with dignity and independence while supporting care providers in delivering high-quality care.

To shed some light on the same, we interviewed a home care industry expert to bring his perspective on the significance of technology in home care.

Let us now delve into what he has to say about the significance of technology in-home care:

Question 1: What inspired you to become a home healthcare expert?

I entered into home health, hospice, and home care through the IT side. When I was teaching for a computer training outfit, a home health agency owner and his team took some classes from me. They liked me and offered me a job as the agency’s Director of Information Technology.

During my five years there, I managed their IT systems, helped them select a superior EMR system, led software trainings, and built a wide area network as they grew from one location to five. Through that experience, I got to know a few people on the national stage, including some writers of a national newsletter.

I was invited to speak at one of the newsletter publisher’s conferences, where I met a nationally known home healthcare IT consultant. In 1997-98, there was a major cutback in Medicare payments to home health. About eight of us at the home health agency were laid off on the same day.

But because I had met these people, I started working with them. I started writing for that newsletter and working with the consultant.

Eventually, the consultant and I bought the newsletter from them, took it off on our own, and expanded it. I learned under his tutelage for about ten years, when he suddenly passed away.
So, I stepped into his shoes and continued to write, interview, and learn more about home health technology and regulatory issues. It was through the newsletter, now under my name, that I became known as a home care technology expert in my own right.

Question 2: How to assess a senior’s needs and develop a personalized care plan?

Of course, I’m not a clinician, but I have come to learn about this side of the business by observing clinical practice from the IT side. I have learned that cooperation between the referring physician or hospital and the home health nurse who is doing the initial assessment and building the care plan is essential to customize a care plan for each client.

It used to be that the physician was not all that involved and would sign off on whatever the home health nurse would send to him/her. But today, there is much more collaboration between hospital physicians, the primary care physician, and the Home Health nurse.

In addition to interaction with the physician, much sophistication is built into IT systems in recent years. So, the home health nurse has a great deal of assistance from an EMR that supports her with intelligent analysis of the patient assessment, which in home health, of course, is the OASIS assessment. Many EMRs go on to assist with the building of the care plan.

In the old days, there was less coordination, and the care plan did not always match the patient’s assessment and history from the hospital in the care of a hospital discharge. Today, the caregiver can build care plans with guidance via data analytics powered by software that can look at both the assessment and the care plan. Home care software can find out discrepancies and recommend better solutions.

Ultimately, it is the collaboration between the physician, the home health nurse, and the software that helps make care planning much more customized to each client.

Question 3: What challenges do most home healthcare providers face when delivering care?

The main ones today are decreasing reimbursement and the constant need to do more with less. It is important to mention that the primary cause of that decreasing reimbursement is the shift from straight Medicare, traditional Medicare, to Medicare Advantage. More than half of Medicare beneficiaries today have opted into Medicare Advantage (MA), which is provided by insurance companies, not by the government.

They tend to pay for home health at lower rates and deny care too often, including care that traditional Medicare would have approved.

More and more home health providers are following what some hospitals have done and refuse to take MA clients, citing the low reimbursement rates and frequency of care denials.

The other problem is the nurse shortage. Home health agencies struggle to compete with what hospitals can pay. Hospitals are experiencing the same shortage, especially after the COVID crisis, but they are able to offer sign-on bonuses that home health simply cannot compete with.

Question 4: What advice would you give someone looking to enter the home healthcare field?

A home health agency is not the easiest business to operate, what with declining reimbursement rates and the nursing shortage. However, home health is growing because it saves the payers money.

Home health offers better care and is less costly than a hospital admission or nursing home stay.

So, you see some entrepreneurs without healthcare experience investing in home health because they think it might be lucrative. We often see home health nurses moving on and opening their agencies.

The advice we give to them is to be sure they understand both the business and the clinical side before they get into it.

The key is to surround yourself with people who understand the regulatory environment so you have help remaining compliant. And expect, if you are starting a new agency from scratch, that you will sell it in three to five years to a larger organization.

Many mergers and acquisitions are happening, and large organizations are gobbling up the small ones at a historic rate. So, look at your startup as a temporary investment.

Remain committed to client care, not just the business, while being aware you are running a business. I know that sounds contradictory, but people who get into it just for the profits will be disappointed.

Their star ratings and client satisfaction will suffer if they overbalance toward profit. Focus on client care and the profits will come.

In Conclusion

Technology is transforming home care by enabling personalized care plans, improving efficiency, and enhancing client outcomes. Tim Rowan, a seasoned home care technology expert, emphasizes collaboration between physicians, nurses, and technology in developing tailored care plans.

While challenges like decreasing reimbursement and nurse shortages persist, the industry’s growth potential is undeniable. Rowan advises aspiring home care providers to prioritize client care while understanding the business aspects and preparing for industry consolidation.

Lastly, he emphasizes the importance of data-driven care planning, the impact of Medicare Advantage on reimbursement, and the need for strong business acumen alongside clinical expertise.