Reimbursements are decreasing. Competition is increasing. So
what's an HME to do?
When our staff asks this question of providers, the answer we
get most often is the only one we would expect: the right thing, of
course.
But what exactly is that right thing? Because home health
companies are as different as the customers they serve, providers
tell us that means caring for patients in the best possible way on
an individual level.
For years the industry has struggled to define its role in the
health care continuum, and to explain that role to those in
Congress and at regulatory agencies who make the rules under which
providers must operate. There has been little understanding from
government (though recent industry efforts are beginning to yield
some progress). And now providers must continue to serve patients
well in a market that will undoubtedly toughen as provisions of the
Medicare Modernization Act roll out.
It is clear that extra care and services will not mean extra
reimbursement dollars. But showing good patient outcomes can
certainly mean more business — not to mention ending the day
with the feeling you have helped someone, the feeling that has led
so many caring providers into this business in the first place.
“Outcomes are what make us all feel better about what we
do. They are the reason we celebrate our work and the feeling we
get when we have provided the right product for the patient,”
says HomeCare columnist Louis Feuer. What's more, he
continues, measuring good outcomes, or showing how products and
services positively affect patients' lives, can turn into
“the message” that attracts and keeps the attention of
referral sources — and that brings in more business.
Hospitals, rehab centers and pharmaceutical companies are all
involved in understanding and tracking outcomes, Feuer points out.
“Now it is our turn to develop outcome information that can
be used as a selling and marketing tool.”
Today's increasingly knowledgeable and demanding consumers want
more than product delivery. They need and deserve the care that
goes with home medical equipment to achieve the outcomes
they expect. That is something providers can definitely supply.
It seems that one solution to success in HME's new landscape
could result from that special patient attention most providers
give so naturally. By “selling” the outcomes —
quantifying how equipment and services help to further patient
goals — maybe for once, the good guys in this business race
will finish first.
You can read more on patient care and outcomes in
“Focusing on Patient Care,” page 30. As always, your
comments are welcome to Editor-in-Chief Gail Walker at gwalker@primediabusiness.com.
