Posted by Ken Accardi on Wed, Sep 05, 2012 @ 12:31 PM
Veteran employers will tell you that no matter what industry you work in, pay is a strong motivator. It is the reason most people work in the first place, but is it the only rationale behind building a career? No, as critical as fair wage is in the world of home care, there are other considerations, as well. Jeff Haden explains some of the responsibilities employers have to their workforce in this piece for Inc. titled “8 Things Your Employees Need Most.”
Mission
Everyone needs a reason. When it comes to home care, the mission is in the service. It is an industry like no other, distinctive in its requirements. Remind them they are a piece of a larger purpose.
All industries benefit from adding a mission statement to define the reason for the job. Working in home care means others rely on the service, so the mission is a unique one. Part of the development process is letting the employees choose what the mission means to them. After all, it is about motivation, so it is their thought process that matters. You might take
suggestions and let them vote on one statement, for example. After selecting a mission, use it as a mantra.
Expectations
Give them clear guidance and the tools to succeed in the job. Training is a critical part of expectation. Home care has standards and regulations meant to protect both the employee and client. Education for employees should be vigorous. With proper training, home care employees go into the workplace understanding exactly what is required of them. They will have a toolbox of skills that helps them meet those goals. When you set criterion and provide concise training, everyone wins. Use continuing education to improve the quality and adjust to changes.
Future
Job security and the possibility of moving up is a promise you can give employees. Reward good service through internal promotions and pay increases to bolster morale. When the time comes to select a new field supervisor or another management position, give the employees the first bite at the apple.
Keep work reviews productive. You can find something good to say about each employee. Take the opportunity to point out what they do right in the job. This is the time to make suggestions on ways to improve, as well. Balancing the evaluation with positive reinforcement will promote a sense of job security. When they see you appreciate good skills and service, they will work harder to earn your favor.
Home care is about giving. Your employees give to their clients every day. You need to give them appreciation for that effort. Respecting them as part of a team will grow your business and lead to a long-lasting partnership. Find out more about giving back in business by reading the full article here. We look forward to hearing your comments.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota.
Posted by Ken Accardi on Tue, May 22, 2012 @ 09:30 AM
Today's article is a republication of a story by Stephen Tweed from Leading Home Care (www.leadinghomecare.com). The story ran in their May 16th email news letter and as described below, it is part of the training that Stephen presents in their Academy for Home Care Leadership. The title is reminiscent of one of the management books I read early in my career, entitled The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (originally released in 1989 by Stephen Covey. I guess the expression "Great Stephens think alike" holds here (or maybe that was "great minds").
The Top Ten Competencies of a Highly Effective Home Care Leader
I was on the phone today with the Vice President of Business Development for a
new client of ours in Canada. The company has engaged me to speak for their annual conference in the fall, and we were talking about the two presentations I will be making. The opening general session will be our newest program, “Serving More Patients”, based on the results of our home health, hospice, and private duty sales and marketing survey.
The second presentation will be a leadership track from our Academy for Home Care Leadership. I was describing the Top Ten Competencies of a Highly Effective Home Care Leader. My colleague asked me to tell him more about the ten competencies. I listed them:
1. Seeing the Bigger Picture
2. Communicating Expectations and Directions
3. Making Decisions
4. Coaching and Counseling
5. Setting Priorities and Managing Time
6. Planning
7. Recruiting and Selecting Good People
8. Measuring and Managing Team Performance
9. Inspiring others to follow you
10. Solving Problems
He asked me how we arrived at the top ten, and how we would present this information to their conference participants. I described the research we did, starting back in 1997 where we surveyed 200 home care CEOs across the country. Then we conducted
interviews and focus groups, and narrowed the results down to our top ten list. Then we conducted further research into exactly what each of those competencies means in home health care and hospice.
In our survey, we found that the CEOs who responded felt that the first three … seeing the bigger picture, communicating expectations and directions, and making decisions … are most important by a significant margin. In our workshops, we present all ten top competencies, and then focus on a few depending on the time available. In a one hour conference breakout, we’ll have time to go in depth into the top three.
If you would like more information on the Top Ten Competencies, you can order a copy of our Academy for Home Care Leadership Learning Guide.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota.
Posted by Ken Accardi on Tue, May 08, 2012 @ 06:52 AM
In a tough economy like we're living in, it's great to be in a position to be hiring and creating jobs, as is the case in home care. What becomes tricky and stressful, however, is staffing.
The caregivers in your organization are ultimately your product, your face to your clients and the community and even your reputation. In her post 4 Steps to Reduce Your Home care Staffing Headache, expert home care consultant Ginny Kenyon offers some sage advice and outlines a four step plan to hiring quality caregivers who reflect the values of your organization.
In Ginny's post, which you can read in its entirety here, Ginny recommends four steps and also points you to some additional resources from her company and from Stephen Tweed (also seen often on the Ankota blog). Here are the four steps:
- Assess the needs of the clients your home care agency serves, including identification of the skills and personal attributes the home care aides will need in order to properly care for them.
- Develop a profile of the ideal aide. Use the home care aide profile you develop to screen all home care aide applicants.
- Require all applicants to take a knowledge test of caregiving (A 50-question test is available through Kenyon HomeCare Consulting.) Additionally, we recommend hands-on skills testing administered on-site or through a local nursing home to establish the presence of the desired skills.
- Require the applicant to take an online personality test such as the one through Steven Tweed Leading Edge to determine the presence of desired personality qualities once it is determined the applicant has the basic knowledge and skill.
Ginny goes on to caution that between 60 and 80 percent of applicants might not meet your screen. In the end she explains that if these steps are not enough due to extreme competition for talent in your region, that Plan B might be to build your own caregiver training school.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota.
Posted by Jed Hammel on Mon, Apr 23, 2012 @ 10:24 AM
The warm weather that many of us have experienced lately might make us think of finishing up our studies, but in the Private Home Care field, there is always more to learn!
A number of educational and "trade show" events are coming up designed to help us innovate and grow our business. I was directed to these events by Merrily Orsino (Twitter handle: MerrilyO). She is a Home Care Marketing Expert from Corecubed and she focuses on Internet marketing, website design, SEO, and social media marketing.
Will you be attending any of these events? If so, please let me know how they went for you or comment below about your past experiences!
Home Care Conferences, Live Events, and Web Events
Southwest Regional Home Care Conference & Exhibition
April 24-25, 2012 - Oklahoma
For more information and to register, click here: Register
Association for Home Care & Hospice Private Pay Conference: Think Big!
May 8, 2012 - Texas
For more information and to register, click here: Register
Executive Leadership Forum
June 5-6, 2012 - Dallas
For more information and to register, click here: Register
New York State Association of Health Care Providers’ 2012 Annual Management Conference & Exhibition
October 16–18, 2012 - New York State
For more information and to register, click here: Register
National Association for Home Care & Hospice Annual Meeting & Exposition
October 21–24, 2012 - Florida
This one involving Merilly seems particularly interesting. From her website: "With my breakout seminar on, “Inbound Marketing: A Natural for Home Care with Mobile Apps, Website Resources, and Social Media,” I’ll be talking about all things mobile. More and more, the mobile phone and tablets are fast becoming the hub for much of home care sales and marketing. Growing a business is more about having the right information available in a variety of online ways, and interacting and responding appropriately. Attendees will leave ready to get social!"
For more information and to register, click here: Register
National Private Duty Association (NPDA) Webinar: The Agency Website as the Core of Marketing Strategy
April 25, 2012 - Online
Another interesting one from Merrily: As more people search for resources online, the agency website has become the core for marketing services. Making the most of the agency website, not only in design, but in content, and having the search engines rank the site on the first page, are key goals for marketing. Learn the basics from Will Chatham and me, in this interactive webinar where live sites will be used as examples.
For more information and to register, click here: Register
New Report Says That More Senior Living Communities Needed
From ALFA (Assisted Living Federation of America):
Presenting the results of the American Housing Survey, a new report describes the housing challenges presented by the increasing senior population and strategies for facing these challenges, including expanding affordable housing choices for older adults.
The report, created by the non-profit Center for Housing Policy, states that many of the senior housing challenges we are facing now, will be exacerbated in the coming years.
What are your thoughts on the article? Any comments you'd like to share?
Please let me know if you have any blogs, articles, or other resources that you'd like to suggest to our readers. Let's share the wealth of knowledge out there so we can all become more informed and more successful!
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota
Posted by Ken Accardi on Thu, Apr 19, 2012 @ 08:02 AM
Jeff Haden, author and leadership consultant, authored an article in Inc. magazine entitled 
The 5 Qualities of Remarkable Bosses. The subtitle makes a bold claim:
"Consistently do these five things and the results you want from your employees--and your business--will follow"
If this claim is right, we should take a hard look at whether we can be great home care bosses. Here are the five things:
- Develop every Employee
- Deal with Problems Immediately
- Rescue your Worst Employee
- Serve Others, not Yourself
- Always Remember Where You Came From
In home care we have the challenge that we don't see our caregivers every day, but that's no excuse not to do these things. If we take ownership of problems, work to grow every employee, even those who have mis-stepped, and serve others as our top priority our teams will follow us and we'll be successful.
Please be sure to check out the full article in Inc. magazine at this link.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota.
Posted by Ken Accardi on Thu, Mar 01, 2012 @ 06:47 AM
We enjoy Ginny Kenyon's home care consulting blog so much that we share her stories frequently. In this week's post which she entitled "Leading Healthcare Into the Future – Any Takers?," Ginny lays out ways in which good leadership has evolved, and gives us some
guidance on closing the gaps in our leadership skills. She gives us the following self-assessment quiz:
- How effective are we at embracing the "new world" of home health and home care?
- Do we know what the “new world” in healthcare might look like?
- How good are we at implementing new things and achieving a target, and sustaining it for months and years?
- How good are we at hiring well and systematically hiring for fit?
- How good are we at engaging people and having them enthusiastically follow you to achieve a goal?
- Are you an authentic and transparent leader?
- Are you a truth teller or do you tend to skirt away from an answer or bend the facts just a little toward your benefit?
- Are you able to speak up in opposition, respectfully?
- Do you have to be right?
- Do you take credit for wins or do you shine the light on others?
- Do you take feedback well that helps you improve?
I'm sure that everyone has areas to improve upon. Why not read the rest of the advice in Ginny's post.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota
Posted by Ken Accardi on Tue, Nov 15, 2011 @ 01:40 PM
Sobering statistics show that falls resulting in injury can be the beginning of the end for seniors--not only of independence, but also their lives. Among the dangerous consequences of falling, hip fractures sustained in a fall are tragically common among seniors.
Shockingly, injuries resulting from falls kill tens of thousands of seniors each year. Falls affect
nearly 1 in 3 seniors annually--about 300,000 seniors will suffer a quality-of-life threatening incident this year.
It follows that preventing falls from happening is key in extending the lives of seniors.
Importantly, fall prevention also preserves quality of life. Home care is a major factor in keeping seniors attended, functional, significantly safer, and able to live the independent lives they deserve.
Home Care can extend their clients' lives by preventing falls.
Previous coverage on the Ankota blog explores this topic and its relation to your agency. Find it here.
The blog post shares a simple yet crucial piece of advice: when shopping for Home Care, look for an agency's record in fall prevention as a true measure of quality care.
A new article in AARP magazine makes the case compellingly clear. The article lays out the numbers, which are not at all encouraging. Yet it also provides a comprehensive list of measures to take to significantly reduce this all too common threat to the quality of life for seniors.
"The Deadliest Break" gives an example of a 91-year-old woman who was able not only to survive, but also to thrive after her fall resulting in hip fracture.
Unfortunately, it goes on to explain, she is in a select minority of seniors who are able to resume activities of daily living unassisted after such an incident.
Does aging itself necessitate a resigned attitude toward inevitable decline of one's own abilities and capacities? The article explores an insidious bias, while giving clear directives for restoration and renewal. It shows how to overcome a prevalent notion--that recovery from hip fracture or other fall-related injuries will not result in fully restored vigor.
Why are falls resulting in hip fractures particularly deadly to seniors? The article looks at co-morbidity factors affecting this population, plus takes on other damaging factors, including "the vanishing" of continuing care at a crucial juncture--care which could restore an injury sufferer to previous levels of functionality in daily life.
The article is followed by a list of definite measures--some perhaps surprising--to bolster a senior's chance of preventing an incident.
Naturally, prevention is paramount. Yet early treatment, thorough rehabilitation, and continuing care at the right time are the simple yet uncommon measures to improve the situation for seniors and those who care for them.
Find the full article here: "The Deadliest Break."
What is your agency doing to prevent falls? Please share your best practices in the comments. If you have a great story to share, we want to hear it. Be sure to contact us and we'll feature the best in our blog.
Ankota provides software to improve the delivery of care outside the hospital. Today Ankota services home health, private duty care, DME Delivery, RT, Physical Therapy and Home Infusion organizations, and is interested in helping to efficiently manage other forms of care. To learn more, please visit www.ankota.com or contact Ankota
Posted by Will Hicklen on Fri, Nov 11, 2011 @ 12:20 PM
This one will be a quickie. Every one of us wastes time every day and if you're like me, you may occassionally get frustrated when you realize that some of the important things did not get done. Volumes have been written on the topic of time management, but I tend to like the "quick lessons" that you can absorb and put to use...QUICKLY.
I share this summary below of tips on prioritizing tasks to you from a more detailed article in CBS Money Watch.
- People currently paying you. When a current client emails, respond right away. And initiate a lot more emails to paying clients.
- People who used to pay you. Past customers should get plenty of attention.
- People who say nice things. Responding to a compliment with a "thank you" takes seconds. If someone says something nice, make sure they hear back from you right away.
- People who say not-so-nice things. Take a little longer to respond so you reply thoughtfully. No one is always right -- and that includes you and me.
- People who ask good questions. Most people like to help people when they can. Almost never do those exchanges result in actual business, but that's okay.
As my fellow Ankotians will tell you, I'm fond of reminding our entire team to focus on W.I.N. -- "WHAT'S IMPORTANT NOW." Recognize that what's important isn't always what is urgent, and managing the difference can be a challenge. Too often, we respond to what feels most urgent. Looking at your list of items, quickly rate them by which are IMPORTANT and which are URGENT-- and be honest with your assessment. The ones that are BOTH IMPORTANT and URGENT deserve your immediate attention. The rest, well, those are the things that you can address next.
Posted by Will Hicklen on Thu, Oct 27, 2011 @ 12:50 PM
I suppose that my education qualifies me as an economist, but a detailed analysis of the effects of unionization on home care, home health and related services such as HME, Infusion, and home Therapy will not be forthcoming here. What I would simply like to do is to make you aware of this if you are not already: There are very real efforts out there to unionize healthcare services of all kinds. Home health care and home care is no exception.
The Seattle Times reported last week on Initiative 1163, which would increase training and continuing education requirements for targeted healthcare workers, and is being led by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) local 775. Initiative 1163 is largely described as an initiative to improve the quality and welfare of long term care employees, but often overlooked is the fact that it includes those who work in private homes, boarding homes and assisted living facilities.
Regardless of whether you think unions are valuable, obsolete, or inherently good or evil is irrelevant. If you don’t think that unions are paying attention to healthcare, think again. Consider why unions are targeting healthcare and home care:
- Union Membership Fell to a 70 Year Low last Year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Just 11.9% of Americans are now in unions, and now for the first time in over a century, more than half of them work for the government. More than 20% of the workforce was in unions just 30 years ago. See related article in The New York Times. Naturally, the decline in traditionally unionized sectors such as manufacturing and construction contribute significantly to these declines.
- Healthcare remains the largest and fastest growing employment sector, with a majority of that growth happening in ambulatory health care services. Non-medical home care is not even imputed in this statistic, grossly understating the real employment number. Data: Bureau of Labor Statistics report Oct 7, 2011.
- The one bright spot for unions seems to be healthcare, where membership is actually growing. Fewer Healthcare and home care workers in particular are unionized compared with non-healthcare industries. With many millions of workers in the fastest growing employment sector not unionized, the sector represents a huge growth opportunity for unions. Fierce Healthcare
- Segments targeted by Initiative 1163 are among the lowest skilled and lowest paid workers in the healthcare continuum, making them excellent candidates for union membership. As is the case in Washington, unions can point to areas where legislation and ensuing union membership has increased pay dramatically for these workers. In Washington State, after initiative 775, home care wages increased 18%+ and union membership soared from 1500 to more than 40,000 workers, according to the Seattle Times.
Still not convinced that unions are serious about home care? The local 775 of the SEIU spent $2.6 million on Initiative 1163 over the last four years, including more than $1 million on signature gathering alone. This was a business decision to invest in employment segment that will likely provide significant returns for them in growing membership.
Note that I am not taking sides—I’ve simply presented facts to prove that unions are likely to become a new and increasing factor in the areas of healthcare and home care that we serve. Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) will increasingly have to consider this in developing their Care Coordination models, as well.
The fact is that the business that Ankota’s customers are in is already under significant duress, with threats from payment reform, availability of labor, rising costs, and more. Unions are entering the mix at an increasing rate and must be accounted for. Like any disruption, this will present business risks and opportunities.
What do you think? Would unionization ultimately help or hurt your business? Would it help or hurt overall employement in our industry?
Posted by Will Hicklen on Fri, Oct 14, 2011 @ 10:30 AM
The title of this blog should read more accurately “How Private Duty Home Care, Home Health Care, Therapy agencies, Infusion, Geriatric Care Managers, those providing care for the elderly or planning for care transitions can THRIVE in this era of Health Care Reform” …. BUT that just doesn’t fit in the title block.
Put the incentives in the hands of those who deliver care and solutions that include telehealth monitoring, wellness coaching, early preventive care, toenail clipping, and free rides to appointments will take over. When organizations are accountable for the results and the costs, incentives are aligned. Providers are no longer consumed with fee for service and they are rewarded for being effective and efficient. These models can simultaneously improve the quality of care and reduce overall costs.
Here’s proof – and every Private Duty home care agency, Medicare certified Home Health agency, hospital, and physician providing Geriatric Care had better get on board:
CareMore, now owned by WellPoint, started bucking the fee-for-service trend in healthcare decades ago. CareMore’s founder, Dr. Sheldon Zinberg, envisioned a coordinated care model for the elderly that focused on early interventions and preventive care.
A lesson from business: A problem that costs $1 to solve early will cost you $30 to solve if you wait for it to become a big problem. It’s a principle proven repeatedly over the last 80 years or so since Deming first explained it and it is a fundamental axiom of business. Toyota and Proctor & Gamble live by it, and it drives a culture of both quality and cost management. Accountable Care Organizations understand it and will embrace it, as well.
Consider this example, all too common with elderly patients, borrowed from “The Quiet Healthcare Revolution,” in November issue of The Atlantic Monthly and written by Tom Main and Adrian Slywotzky.
“Ellen, an 82-year-old widow, lives in Anaheim, California. One Wednesday morning last year, she got on her scale, as she does every morning. One hundred and forty-six pounds—wasn’t that a little high? Ellen felt vaguely troubled as she poured herself a bowl of oat bran.
Half an hour later, the phone rang. It was Sandra at the clinic. She too was concerned about Ellen’s weight, which had jumped three pounds since the previous day. Sandra knew this because Ellen’s scale had transmitted its reading to the clinic over a wireless connection.
Given that Ellen had a history of congestive heart failure, a three-pound weight gain in 24 hours was a potentially dangerous development, a sign of possible fluid buildup in the lungs and increasing pressure on an already stressed heart. Sandra wanted her to come in for an immediate visit: the clinic would provide a car to pick her up and bring her back home. Ellen’s treatment began that very morning and continued for two weeks until she was out of danger. Had the warning signs not been noticed and addressed so quickly, she might easily have suffered a long, painful, and expensive hospitalization. “
Another example from the same article in The Atlantic:
“Dan, a retired letter carrier, is a patient at a clinic in the same system. At 87, he is decidedly frail, his once-sturdy legs now weak and unsteady. He is a classic candidate for a fall of the kind that has injured many of his friends, in some cases leading to weeks in the hospital and months of rehab. The elderly are prone to falls for many obvious reasons, including weak limbs, impaired vision, and medication side effects. But Dan’s doctors knew that some less obvious causes included shag carpets and long, untrimmed toenails. Because of this, they’d sent someone from the clinic to visit Dan’s apartment and make sure that his daughter replaced the 1980s-vintage carpets with low-pile rugs. Dan also visits the clinic regularly for light muscle-training sessions and periodic toenail clipping. Due to these preventive measures, Dan and his fellow clinic patients are one-fifth as likely as comparable patients elsewhere to suffer falls.”
Ankota's XChange Care Coordination Portal helps providers coordinate roles and assignments in Accountable Care models such as these. The Xchange Care Coordination Portal is part of Ankota's Healthcare Delivery Management technology (HDM), which helps individual providers make their own operations more productive and efficient.