It stands for congestive heart failure and is also called “chronic” heart failure at times, but what is it? It sounds impending, and ominous, but with research you’ll find comfort in understanding your diagnosis. Congestive heart failure means that your heart can’t pump blood as well as it should be able to. When the heart has less power to pump blood to the body, this can ultimately damage organs and fluid can collect in the body and lungs.
Pressure redistribution surfaces (airbeds) are a vital part of any skin program. In over 25 years of serving the medical community I have yet to see a skilled nursing facility, hospice program, hospital, or in-patient rehabilitation facility that did not integrate airbeds into their plan of care. They can be a double-edged sword though. When set inappropriately these devices can increase pressure and often lead to a higher risk of falls.
As professional care providers we are always looking for effective ways to manage resident pain and increase social participation. Unfortunately, that can be difficult without the use of pharmaceutical intervention or leaving them to the comfort, and isolation, of their bed. Learn how the right seating system can help your facility increase patient outcomes.
If you have recently been to a supermarket looking to stock up on supplies for the potential threat of a Covid-19 pandemic you’ve likely been disappointed. Most stores have run out of standard precautions such as hand sanitizers, masks, gloves, wipes, and other similar items. But does the average person really know how to use those items in a way to avoid cross contamination? Probably to some degree. But even the proper donning and doffing is missed by the most seasoned nurses and healthcare staff. I am just happy I get to use the term doffing in a blog!
There are essentially 2 types of cleaning systems. An Ozone system such as SoClean often seen on TV. The second is an Ultraviolet cleaning system like Lumin.
We have compared both systems head to head and recently received a defining endorsement for our choice.
PAP machines…it’s not just for snoring anymore! As a Respiratory Therapist I'm approached all the time about someone's significant other snoring and asking if I think they need a Pap (CPAP or BiPAP) machine. Well, possibly…but there’s many other factors that can get you a script for a CPAP or BiPAP.
OSA Occlusive Sleep Apnea is due to upper airway obstruction ex: floppy airway, obesity, deviated septum, alcohol use etc. CSA Central Sleep Apnea is when your brain isn’t telling your lungs to breath. Certain medical issues can cause this ex: stroke, Parkinson’s Disease, cervical spine injury, chronic drug dependency etc. There’s also a combination of both.
“It’s uncomfortable”, “I feel suffocated”, “I can’t sleep on my stomach”, “It dries my mouth out” are many excuses I’ve heard for not wearing your Pap. What’s the big deal if you do or don’t wear it? One immediate factor you’ll notice if you wear it is feeling well-rested. “I have more energy”, “I’m not tired all the time”, “I have a sharper mind”, “I don’t feel depressed”. Being compliant with your pap machine can help you lead a more productive energy filled life! Reasons that may not be as noticeable but certainly important are decreased blood pressure, less chances of diabetes, heart-attack, stroke or even sudden death.
There are many ways to ensure a comfortable, quiet peaceful rest with a PAP machine. Decrease the heat, expand the slope so that it doesn’t feel like you’re breathing a tornado during initial wear, SmartStart, more humidity… Also, there are numerous full face masks, pillows, nasal masks, and so on. The sky is the limit on headgear comfort. An experienced respiratory therapist is key for finding the proper fit. They know the right questions to ask and help you achieve a comfortable and compliant night’s sleep on your Pap machine.
If you are with a SNF or Hospice agency and want to know more about how ProCare’s Respiratory Program can help your patients improve compliance and gain the therapeutic advantages of PAP therapy, please call us. We are here to help. Our main number is 208-322-5055. Just ask for Rebecca!
Written by Rebecca Hindman, RT
After a long relaxing vacation, it’s time to get back to work and produce the long-anticipated conclusion to this series. This month we are going to discuss how experience matters with your DME provider.
Prior to my 25-day vacation, I thought about how my team would be tested in my absence and wondered how they would respond. I’m glad to say this ultimate test of teamwork was a success. After nearly 20 years of owning a company, this is the first time I can say that everything ran smoothly and I didn’t receive one panicked phone call, or have to spend a substantial amount of time putting out fires. Why was this the case? It really came down to one key variable… experience!
According to the most recent report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national number of total separations from companies continues to rise. Fortunately for ProCare we don’t fall into this statistic, when others zig we zag. Employees at ProCare stick around for the long run, leading to a low turnover rate. As a result, the team can learn and grow together, becoming better and better at what we do.
How does this help the patient? Because our technicians stick with us, they continue to train and learn not only the equipment, but the unique markets we serve as well. They understand that hospice and skilled nursing are not the same, and that delicate situations are a part of the job and must be handled in calculated ways.
By deploying well-trained and highly-experienced technicians, our patients receive expert, high quality instruction and care.
Our staff is enveloped in ProCare’s culture of compassion and service. Thus, our philosophy of, “we are an extension of your brand” philosophy helps your organization look more professional. We often get calls from our client partners letting us know that they received a compliment about their DME service. Word of mouth is huge. Achieving a great reputation means more admissions.
Is your DME company experienced in your specific industry? Are their technicians trained both in the use and education of the equipment and how to handle your patients and their families? There are some amazing DME partners out there. Make sure yours has the experience necessary to bring you the highest value.
With 20 years in the DME rental business I’ve had the opportunity to learn from some of the country's best DME providers. From Fall River, MA to Ontario, CA I have met some of the most dedicated professionals in the country. The common theme across these wildly successful organizations is a partnership mindset. Each company carefully crafted a corporate culture of dedication and compassion for their employees. We’ve made it a mission to emulate this paradigm within our own organization. Our model has three pillars. First, we look at ourselves as an extension of our customer’s brands. Second, we always carry a win/win mentality. Finally, we enter every client partnership with the expectation of a long-term relationship.
Our first pillar, the extension of brands, is a core part of our mindset. We understand that every interaction we have with a patient is a direct reflection of the hospice/SNF providing care. If we perform well it reflects the professional care that our clients provide to their patients. We thrive on the compliments of case managers, nurses, and facility staff. Adversely, when the DME provider has a poor interaction with the patient and/or the patient’s family, the client hospice/SNF receives the complaint, and it’s usually directed at the agency and not the DME provider. Your vendors should work hard to make sure that your agency/facility receives rave reviews. Unfortunately, anyone who has been in this industry long has heard the horror stories of vendors that ignored the needs of a patient, dropped off equipment without so much as an explanation of how it works, or worst of all had a hostile attitude. If your DME partner doesn’t reflect your brand it may be time to have a frank conversation or maybe shop for a new partner.
No relationship survives long unless both parties brings a win/win mentality. This one is critical on both sides of the equation. As a vendor, we are often expected to go the extra mile, and we should. However, as a customer, the same expectation is not always reciprocated. We are blessed with outstanding partners that work with us for the best solution to a problem. Over the years though we’ve worked with some very demanding clients that weren’t interested in an amicable solution. It makes problem solving more difficult when any obstacles are met with “do it or we will switch providers.” A reed can only bend so far before it breaks. At ProCare we strive to exceed customer expectation. As a client, it’s important that you reciprocate. That type of collaboration means that your patients and their families get the best possible outcomes. Our philosophy is simple, focus on what we can do for our customers, and find solutions for the occasional requests that fall outside of our ability. Sometimes this means asking a competitor for help. That’s OK if the patient/client is taken care of.
I absolutely understand the pain associated with change. It’s the single largest obstacle I encounter when trying to close a new account. The exchange goes something like this:
Me: “Tell me about your current vendor.”
Prospect: “They aren’t able to get the equipment we need on time, they don’t answer their phone, their drivers are rude, the invoices are hard to read or incorrect… We would really like to find another vendor.”
Me: “Great, how would you like to start the conversion process?”
Prospect: “Um…”
In the end, all their existing pain points don’t equal to the pain associated with switching vendors. I can’t blame them. Changing vendors is a daunting task. That’s why we always expect a long-term relationship. That means it’s on us to earn our clients’ business each day. This final pillar may seem like a redundancy, but it’s important that we treat this concept as a standalone. This concept keeps us from getting stagnant and taking our accounts for granted. We currently serve accounts that have been with us for over 19 years! In the ever-changing high demand field of healthcare, I think that’s a notable achievement.
A partnership mindset is critical to collaboration and patient care. It is important to remember that this is a reciprocal component. For your agency/facility to provide optimal patient care you must have a mutual partnership mindset with your vendors. Look for vendor partners that share your organization’s core values. Talk with your vendor partners and establish appropriate expectations. Do your vendors act like an extension of your brand? Do they look for opportunities to help you win, and are you willing to do the same for them? Is it obvious that your vendors want a long-term relationship? If not, it may be time to sit down with them. When you and your vendors are in line, your patients win.
Cheers,
- Chris
Last month we explained how transparency plays an important part in your DME partnership. This month we are going to cover a topic that is near and dear to me, cleanliness of equipment. The idea that a DME company provides clean equipment is so fundamentally basic that most professional care organizations take it for granted. Sadly, industry standards have slipped with reimbursement rates, and you may not be getting the services you think you are. In the 2014 HME Business article “Keeping Things Clean” author David Kopf cites durable medical equipment, specifically support surfaces, as a potential risk to patients for cross contamination. He details the need for the DME industry to pick-up cleaning standards. With ever diminishing reimbursements, and pressure to keep DME costs down, cleaning is one of the first corners cut.
DME plays a vital role in quality patient care. It is also a potential hotbed for cross contamination. The current industry standard for cleaning DME is a quick “spray and wipe” technique. All DME companies should at a minimum use a quaternary or phenolic disinfectant to kill germs. However, spraying the equipment and giving it a cursory wipe is a long way from truly disinfecting the equipment. At ProCare we take pride in our Patient Ready Certified (PRC) Program. We are so proud we branded it. All our rental equipment goes through a thorough cleaning that takes a substantial amount of time. We use toothbrushes and Q-Tips to clean those hard-to-reach places. Our air surfaces are disassembled and hand sanitized. The PRC standard is as close to factory new as we can possibly get it. This is probably our most inefficient process, but it’s critical for the safety of our customers.
This article is not intended to bash the industry or our competitors. There are a lot of good DME companies with strong cleaning procedures. Make sure that your DME partner falls into this category. Ask the driver how they process equipment. He or she is very likely to give you an accurate detail that the sales rep will not or cannot. If they clean the equipment in the van between pick-up and delivery for another patient… run. That is not cleaning for patient ready status. As bad as that sounds, it does happen. Sadly, many companies view this as an opportunity to cut expense from the process to stay competitively priced. Your patients are the unwitting potential recipients of this practice. Make sure that your expectations and your DME partner’s practices are aligned. If not, it may be time to shop.
Now the commercial… Despite the inefficiencies caused by a “deep clean” process, ProCare commits to maintaining the cleanest DME rental equipment in the industry. Our PRC Program is our promise that every piece of equipment we rent is disinfected, and as clean as humanly possible as the day we received it new. ProCare also offers equipment repair and maintenance programs for organizations that prefer to own DME instead of renting it. Our technicians deep clean and deodorize your equipment between patient uses to dramatically reduce the risk of cross contamination. We can also fix most of the stuff you have lying in a closet (or shed or back hallway). Support surfaces, concentrators, wheelchairs, and bed frames. Own it or rent it, we make sure it’s clean and working to provide the therapy your patients need. For more information about our PRC services please don’t hesitate to call us at 208-322-5055. If you have a minute check out our Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/ProCareInc and follow us to stay up to date on upcoming inservices and events.
Have a great spring!
Chris Hunt
President, ProCare Medical Equipment
We continue with part two of our five part series. Last month we discussed the value of service as a primary component of what to expect from your DME provider. This month we will cover the importance of transparency. If your current DME vendor’s definition of transparency means they are virtually invisible until they need something, then it may be time to have a conversation with them.
Expenses
The healthcare industry is a continuously evolving landscape shaped by state and federal regulations, accreditation requirements, the economy, political environments—the list goes on. As a result, we need real-time information to ensure that we stay ahead of the curve and make decisions based on accurate information. Your DME budget is a significant portion of your monthly expenses, and with the right information you can bring it in line with your revenue goals. This is where your DME value partnership kicks in. A good DME partner should help you understand your expenses, learn about your specific operational goals (as relating to DME), and help you choose the best products based on patient needs and not rental rates.
Reporting
You should have, at a minimum, regular access to what equipment is currently in your facility, what equipment is assigned to which patient, how long the equipment has been in your facility, the daily/monthly rental price and how much you have spent to date. This will allow you to make decisions about your DME program including when to purchase long-term rentals and how to manage the therapeutic needs of your patients, as well as maintain a vigilant eye for unnecessary items that may have been lost in the shuffle or billed past their pick-up dates. Over the past 10 years, I‘ve seen the average DME expense decrease by more than 50%, because facilities have reviewed this type of information on a regular basis.
Invoicing
Another important area of transparency involves invoicing. During my time with AP/AR professionals in hospice, skilled nursing, LTACH and in-patient rehab facilities, I’ve seen invoices ranging from immaculate to atrocious. Know that each customer (facility/organization) is different, and that each has specific preferences. It would be nearly impossible for a DME company to establish a perfect invoicing system that every customer would universally embrace. However, it shouldn’t take an interpreter with a degree in forensics to decipher your monthly invoice. You should be able to see at a glance what is/was in your facility and where during the invoicing period. In fact, if you have weekly rental reports, it should be easy for you to assess your invoices and move it through the system faster.
Does your DME partner provide a transparent system that helps you meet your DME goals? If not, have a discussion with them. It may be as simple as alerting them that you expect more. At ProCare we have an automated reporting system providing weekly reports to our customers regarding their current DME. We have the ability to customize reports, frequency of reports, and the distribution list of recipients. Again, not all DME companies have this ability. At the very least they should have some type of system that allows them to maintain accurate records of their inventory (that’s an accreditation standard). Ask for it. If they aren’t willing to establish something for you, it might be time to go vendor shopping.
I hope you all had an incredible 2016 and that your New Year’s went off without a hitch. We are looking forward to 2017 and the opportunities that it brings for both us and our client partners. Stay tuned next month for the third installment where we will cover the need for cleanliness. I know that seems like a no-brainer, but you might be shocked at what industry standards allow into your facility and for your patients. After that we will discuss “A Partnership Mindset” and “Experience.” Thanks again! See you next month.
Chris Hunt, CEO at ProCare