Home Health Nurses, how many opens and visits do you have a week?

[owleyes]

Hi,

I started in home health about 3 months ago, and it seems like I have about 2-3 new opens every week and take about 30 or more visits each week. I felt fine when I had around 26-28 visits per week- but almost can't handle anything above 30. Unfortunately there are a few nurses who have set the bar high and have taken 50 visits each week, so now I just feel like a wimp. Just curious what is normal for other HH nurses- and opinions on how many visits and opens is tolerable each week. Thanks!

[Zippy83]

On 7/28/2011 at 8:42 AM, Chemistry Sux said:

Not sure how much has changed in the last couple of years, but I use to work for a medical solutions company and lots of nursing visits per episode were a bad thing. I assume nurses get paid per visit like therapy does, and more visits equals more money, but from a profitability standpoint for the agency, the more visits the less profit. If you are being efficent with your time and the pts are getting what they need then that's whats most important.

When you are talking about cost and efficiency, I assume you were talking about the number of visits for an individual patient per episode? She doesn’t say that the other nurses are taking on more visits for the same amount of patients. It’s more likely that the nurses taking on 50 visits a week are taking on more individual cases. So the company makes more profit if they can take on more patients.

I certainly know some nurses who cut corners in order to do lots of visits and make lots of money, but I also know nurses who just work a lot of hours.

Personally, I keep my weekly visit limited to about 30 also, but every once in a while when there is a lot of work available and I could use some extra money to save or for an upcoming vacation or something, I will go ahead and take on 50 visits or so, but that does mean probably a 60 or 70 hour week, weekends included, so there’s just no way I could do that regularly.