For more information: Sara Butterfield, sbutterfield@nyqio.sdps.org or 518-426-3300 ext. 104
IPRO Celebrates National Home Care Month(Albany, NY) - November is National Home Care Month, and IPRO, the Quality Improvement Organization for New York State, applauds the New York home health agencies working to improve their clients' quality of life by making care processes more efficient. Estimates show that more than two million Medicare beneficiaries receive home health care services, including skilled nursing care, physical and occupational therapy, speech-language therapy and medical social services provided in the comfort of home.
IPRO is working with the state's 192 home health agencies to reduce the rates of patients returning to the hospital once they've received home care. As part of the effort to reduce hospitalization rates, IPRO is collaborating with agencies that want to incorporate telehealth technologies into the care management process. This component of telehealth may be something as simple as touching base with a client by phone to follow up on various aspects of care.
QIOs across the country -- under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services -- are also working to assess and improve organizational culture by conducting a survey on agencies' practices, systems and staff satisfaction. Survey results will subsequently be used to assist agencies in developing quality improvement activities. In addition, IPRO will be working with agencies to implement systems to assess whether clients have received influenza and pneumococcal immunizations and providing follow-up as appropriate. Data from 10 quality measures -- which were updated in September 2005 -- are used in the Home Health Compare tool available on Medicare's public Web site at www.medicare.gov.
National Home Care Month is celebrated each year by groups such as the National Association of Home Care and Hospice. Quality home health care services may have improved quality of life for you or a loved one, and IPRO would like to recognize the individuals working hard to bring the right care to the every person every time.
For more information on IPRO and quality improvement resources for home health agencies, contact Sara Butterfield. To view quality measures for home health agencies in New York State and across the country, visit Home Health Compare at www.medicare.gov by scrolling down the page and clicking on "Compare Home Health Agencies In Your Area," or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
With over 20 years experience in health care quality evaluation, IPRO holds major contracts with state and federal governments to review the cost and quality of services provided to Medicaid recipients, Medicare beneficiaries, and patients enrolled in managed care. IPRO also holds contracts with private-sector clients to improve the quality of privately financed services.