A former business associate of Leading Home Care's Stephen Tweed went on to build a business that writes books based on the words of various groups of leaders. His most recent book is "In THE WORDS OF 100 HHC Directors," which is available as a downloadable e-book. Below, courtesy of Stephen Tweed, we share some of the top findings from the book. The original article is by Stephen Tweed in Home Health Care Today #231 dated March 7th, 2012.
In The WORDS of 100™... A unique glimpse into the real world of 100 Home Health Care Agency Executive Directors
by Stephen Tweed
In 1990, I merged my company, Tweed Corporation, with my friend and colleague, Al Weber,
to start a consulting company called Tweed-Weber, Inc. Our focus was strategic planning, training, and consulting in the home health care industry. In 1992, I married Elizabeth Jeffries, moved to Louisville, KY and set up another office of Tweed-Weber. In 1996, we sold Tweed-Weber, Inc. to Al and our employees, and Elizabeth and I started Tweed Jeffries, LLC. All very confusing.
Except, now there are two companies with my name on the door, both serving the home health care industry. Tweed-Weber has evolved into a research and planning company, and they have broadened their services beyond home health care. However, they still do some research and strategic planning for some home health agencies.
Their newest venture is a series of books called, “In the WORDS of 100,” based on interviews and sureys of 100 practitioners in various industries. The newest book is based on surveys of executive directors of home health agencies. In the WORDS of 100™…A unique glimpse into the real world of 100 Home Health Care Agency Executive Directors is now available online. This 92 page WORDS of 100™ e-book is packed with Insights, Ideas and Inspirationthat will connect current and aspiring Home Health Care Agency Executive Directors from across the country in a very unique way.
Some Key Findings from the Research
The interviews gave us some very interesting information about the hearts and minds of successful home health agency leaders. Here are some highlights from the study.
Important Qualities to be a Home Health Agency Director
1. Good Leadership Skills
2. Good Management / Organizational Skills
3. Be a Strategic Thinker
4. Be knowledgeable of the industry
5. Be knowledgeable of regulations
6. Be empathetic, compassionate, patient
7. Be adaptable / flexible
8. Be a good communicator
9. Show honesty, integrity, and fairness
10. Be a good listener
No surprises there. Here are some other insights from the study.
The Main Challenges of a Home Health Agency Executive
1. Reimbursement and Financial Issues
2. Recruitment and Retention of quality personnel
3. Regulatory and Medicare changes
4. Personnel and staffing issues
5. Competition and growth
6. Providing enough staff education
7. Providing quality care to patients
The book is laced with quotes from the participants like:
"Recruiting competent staff is the biggest challenge. In home health care, you can find nurses, but finding the level of competency that is required is tougher. Nurses are waiting in line to come to work, but many of them don’t have the skills we need."
The book also contains some interesting insights on how to address these challenges. I’m sure you’ll find these ideas very useful.
What did some of the 100 participants say?
Here’s what some of the 100 CEOs who were interviewed said about their interview experience:
“I can’t wait to see what others in my position had to say. It can feel very
lonely in this job when you feel like no one understands the pressures we face on a daily basis. I hope what I’ve shared helps someone along the way, and I hope I will learn from the experience of others. Thanks for wanting to talk to me.”
“I hope your results on this will tell me what I can improve. I usually never do these things, but I’m very glad I took the time to talk to you. Thank you for choosing me. I can’t wait for the results!”
“This was a great interview! I really enjoyed talking to you about what I do. It’s fun to talk about the personal side rather than just the technical side. People don’t usually ask me about that.”
“It is so important to feel connected to others in my same position, but sometimes I just don’t have the time. This book will be a really convenient resource when we want to see what everyone else thinks.”
“Wow. What a great interview! I feel a million times lighter than I did this morning. Great questions! I’ll be excited to see if others share my opinion.”
“This survey is truly about what this role is. I thought it was going to be more generalized questions, but it truly is about this position. Thank you.”
“This will be a wonderful catalyst for discussion at many of our home care meetings. Thank you for wanting to connect all of us.”
To learn more about this book, go to www.wordsof100.com. The book is available for immediate download for only $24.95.
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