QAPI Program Utilization_Manual

None Limited Moderate Substantial Extensive 1 2 3 4 5 »Developing a Home Health Specialty Rehabilitation Program Several of the Home Health Compare Outcomes are a direct measurement of a patient’s independence to perform certain tasks. These including: bathing, ambulation, transferring, and managing oral medications. Several studies indicate that providing specific, standardized protocols can enhance patient function and lead to improved outcomes. Therapist can also have a great impact on fall prevention through gait and balance training, and strengthening. Steps to Establish a Rehab Specialty Program 1. Select a person to coordinate all aspects of the project on a daily basis and to keep momentum sustained. This person should have a general understanding of therapy interventions and outcomes management. He/she should have a keen knowledge of office policy and procedure. 2. Have key leadership staff, as well as those who will market the program, involved in the initial discussion about offering this new service. Include quality management, staff development, and the Director(s). Include senior rehab staff as approppriate for your organization. 3. Discuss how this program can affect the agency’s quality quality outcomes business plan and marketing strategy. 4. Include fall prevention as a clinical strategy and as a community outreach program for older adults. 5. Consider agency outcomes in addition to Home Health Compare outcomes that you may want to measure. For example, compliance with home exercise program, measurements from Tinetti balance, and fall and injury/outcomes. Keep the number of additional outcomes small and manageable. 6. Choose the instruments to collect data. For example, a specific outcomes collection tool, a pathway, a protocol, or choose a process whereby data is collected from the therapy evaluation and/or visit note. 7. Develop the data collection process. Quality management should oversee this process on a regular basis. 8. Select the individuals who will routinely analyze outcomes. Select therapists to be involved in the analysis on a periodic basis. 9. Educate and train staff. 10. Set a timeline for use of tool(s) on a trial basis and have therapists use for at least on-two weeks. 11. Discuss and decide upon a marketing plan. 12. Implement trial use of the program. 13. Revise policy, procedure, outcomes tools, and/or process accordingly. 14. Re-educate staff as needed. 15. Implement program and marketing plan. 16. Analyze outcomes monthly for three months to determine if measurement are correctly made and entered into the measurement system, if interventions are provided as agency intends, and if staff understands their role in helping to achieve outcomes. 17. Decide on monthly or quarterly outcomes aggregation and trending for agency outcomes (those in addition to Home Health Compare). Large organizations may find monthly aggregation easier to management, while smaller agencies may find quarterly aggregation more effective. » Fall prevention 104