Hospice Management Advisor articles from March 2005

Hospice Management Advisor archives from March 2005

Pioneers in open-access trend cite benefits, as do relative newcomers: one hospice has 75-day length of stay.(In-depth report: open-access hospice on rise)
March 1, 2005... (Editor's note: Hospice Management Advisor presents in this issue the first of a two-part series about how increasing numbers of hospices are adopting an open-access policy that welcomes all eligible hospice patients, regardless of treatment...

Interdisciplinary pathway improves teamwork, care: pathways increase staff satisfaction.(Hospice Care Plus)
March 1, 2005... Hospice Care Plus of Berea, KY, switched to a pathway model for patient care in the mid-1990s as way to improve care for patients and their families. What they've found in the decade since beginning the process of changing their care model is...

Hospice interdisciplinary pathway chart in nutshell: here's how a pathway works.
March 1, 2005... Hospice Care Plus of Berea, KY, uses an interdisciplinary pathway chart that outlines steps and outcomes for each of five phases of care for hospice patients. With permission from Hospice Care Plus, Hospice Management Advisor reprints a...

'Medicine-On-Time' finds following among hospices: patients, families find it easier.
March 1, 2005... A new type of medication service is beginning to capture the interest of hospices and families of hospice patients. The system, called Medicine-On Time, provides patients with medication that is divided into doses corresponding to a...

CMS tackles chronic care costs of Medicare patients: use case management experience to get involved.(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
March 1, 2005... (Editor's note: This is the first of a two-part series that looks at care of chronically ill patients. This month we discuss the programs implemented by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS] to address high-cost and chronically ill...

Public reports on quality measures to increase: improve processes with team approach.
March 1, 2005... Public reporting of quality measures is likely to increase in the near future, and health care organizations should get ready for it, says Carolyn Scott, director of collaborative services and CEO work groups for clinical excellence with VHA...

Know how to avoid gaming the system: stay on the right side of a very fine line.(Guest Column)
March 1, 2005... Home health managers have responded admirably to an increasing emphasis on compliance in recent years. Routine compliance activities in home health agencies now include verification of data, pre-billing reviews, and reviews to identify...