National Alliance for Care at Home, Transcend Strategy Group Release Hospice Report

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia & WASHINGTON—The National Alliance for Care at Home (The Alliance) and Transcend Strategy Group, a marketing agency for homecare companies, published the results of their Rural American Hospice Insights report, a new study that explored perceptions of hospice care among rural and small-town communities. The Alliance said the survey, which included 400 participants, aims to provide health equity and break down barriers to accessing hospice and homecare through knowledge sharing, data collection and collaborative discussion.

“Ensuring access to high-quality hospice and homecare in rural communities is critical,” said Steve Landers, CEO of The National Alliance for Care at Home. “These communities deserve care that is tailored to their unique needs, and in an America where more and more health care desserts are arising due to provider closures from inadequate reimbursement, maintaining quality care and continuing to build trust in the care provided is of the utmost importance. The Alliance and its members remain committed to working toward an America where everyone has access to the highest quality, person-centered health care, wherever they call home.”

In addition to offering insight into hospice care perceptions, the report intends to offer recommendations for hospice providers that help increase understanding of hospice care and overcome barriers to access.

The report’s key findings and recommendations include:

• Communication and Learning Preferences: On average, younger individuals tended to prefer less direct, asynchronous forms of communication like text messaging. Older individuals preferred direct, face-to-face conversations with health care providers.
• Caregiver Experiences: More than three quarters of respondents agreed, to some degree, that being a caregiver can be mentally and emotionally exhausting, on top of balancing other responsibilities such as childcare and careers. Similarly, nearly three out of five respondents agreed that, at times, they needed a break from caregiving, but were unable to get one.
• Hospice Awareness and Beliefs: More than 40% of respondents couldn’t name at least one hospice provider that serves their community. Familiarity with local hospices was greatest with younger caregivers and least among older caregivers.
• Hospice Expectations: When asked about their expectations surrounding hospice care—including if hospice workers would respect and understand them and provide non-judgmental care—between 27% and 42% of respondents had some degree of doubt. Additionally, when asked to rank different features of hospice care by importance, respondents’ top stated priority was having hospice offered wherever the patient lives.

“Part of Transcend’s mission is to ensure people have greater access to the best possible care, and our partnership with The Alliance to tap into the needs of rural communities truly spoke to our hearts,” said Stephanie Johnston, president and CEO of Transcend Strategy Group. “The Alliance’s commitment to ensuring access to the highest quality care possible for all Americans is inspiring. We are honored to contribute our skills and expertise to this project and look forward to more ways we can collectively impact the industry in a positive way.”

The full report details are available here.