Amedysis

Home Health Columnist / Guide · May 10, 2010

use our search engine at top of page to find previous threads about this company..

latest thread: amedisys - nursing for nurses

KateRN1 · May 10, 2010

run!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mel1213 · May 11, 2010

Hello! I currently am an lpn working for amedisys! You may get different opinions about the company. Believe me I did my research...but took the chance...I love it!! My DOO (director) is the best! As an LPN we only get to do straight visits without all the extra paperwork! I get what I need for my patients...they don't give me more than six patients a day. As long as you are organized and get a system down I do not have anything negative things to say. A RN on the other hand may have a diff opinon...I see what they go through! If you have any other questions feel free to ask me....good luck!

PALPN4018 · May 11, 2010

mel - I've never done home health. Mostly offices and nursing home care. Can you describe what you do for your six patients. I am certified in phlebotomy and IV therapy. Will Amedysis use my skills in those areas??

Willow Moonsidhe · May 11, 2010

I took a job with them a week ago. It is in a small town though and a small office. I am hoping it will be better than the one I have now. It can't be much worse. I am thinking positive until I see other wise. Every since I have made a come back from disability I have been really disappointed with what I see in nursing. I have been a RN for 25 years. I am 50 years old and there has to be people with heart out there some where. Good Luck to us both hehe!

~Willow

caliotter3 · May 12, 2010

Do a read on the many threads that mention this company so you get a feel for what the majority think about the company. You also might want to do a search on jobvent.com or the forums section of indeed.com.

Willow Moonsidhe · May 12, 2010

Yeah I went with my gut on this particular office. Both managers and the one RN there have been with that office since it was housecall. I got a really good feeling there. I hope my gut was right. There was a picture of Mother Theresa (Believer as an artist that how you decorate says a lot about a person =) ) in the front and I loved the way the DON talked about the patients with affection. She had been out on the road doing calls because they lost a RN. My current DON was sitting in the office looking for a tiny mistake to yell at people about when we had 9 calls in 8 hours. Total different feel. This lady had integrity I could feel and there was not a fake grin plastered on her face with a knife behind her back lol. I am going to go in with my heart on this job and believe there are still real people out there that really care. If I get knocked down I will brush off my pants and start all over again.

Blessings

~Willow

mel1213 · May 13, 2010

PalPN-

Yes they will use your phlebotomy skills! I have never done HH before myself. I started in November...My DOO was willing to train me. I have never done phlebotomy before I started and believe me I learned rather quickly!! for my pts I do whatever it is that they are being skilled for... plus whatever else they need. Teaching....alot of teaching on disease proccess, s/s of exacerbations of disease, wound care, call PCP's. I really really enjoy it!! My Director will not even think twice about going out to do a visit if we need help. As far as IV I don't know if LPNS are allowed to insert IV's according to thier policy. You will get many different opinions regarding this company...I was nervous to try it out after all the negative. However it turns out it really is not negative at all! Good Luck!! let me know what you decide!!

Willow- we have Mother Theresa hanging in our office as well!

Home Health Columnist / Guide · May 14, 2010

from wall street journal

may 13, 2010

by [color=#093d72]barbara martinez

senate investigating amedisys - wsj.com

senators question in-home caregivers

the senate finance committee launched an investigation into the practices of amedisys inc., the nation's largest home health-care company, and three other companies that provide in-home therapy visits reimbursed by medicare.
the committee is investigating whether the companies deliberately boosted the number of home therapy visits to trigger higher medicare reimbursements.
[color=#093d72]a wall street journal article last month described how the companies' medicare patients received a high number of the most profitable therapy visits, but few of the least profitable ones.
the three other home health companies are [color=#093d72]lhc group inc., [color=#093d72]gentiva health services inc. and [color=#093d72]almost family inc.
companies "working with medicare should not be allowed to target seniors or manipulate care simply to get higher reimbursement rates," said sen. max baucus (d., mont.), chairman of the finance committee, in a statement.
"it appears that either the home health care reimbursement policy is flawed, some companies are gaming the system, or both," said sen. charles grassley, (r., iowa), ranking member of the committee. "we're working to figure out what's going on."
the home therapy numbers cited in the article, which came from publicly available medicare claims, "suggest home health agencies intentionally increased utilization for the purpose of triggering higher reimbursements," the senators wrote in letters that were emailed wednesday to the chief executives of the four companies....

KateRN1 · May 14, 2010

I was just coming to post this, but NRSKaren beat me to it.

FYI--all the offices have that same Mother Teresa print. Trust the decorating only when it's done by someone in the office, not mandated by corporate. They know there are people who will fall for it and plan accordingly.

Willow Moonsidhe · May 14, 2010

I know at the agency I am at right now that Medicare patients get many more HHA visits than Medicaid patients. So it is no wonder these companies are being investigated. It is going to get to the point a sick person at home gets no care at all. We are so close to just throwing old people under the bus as it is. I have a patient right, on medicaid with my current job, who has 3 huge venous stasis ulcers being discharged. They just let a patient with horrible CA of throat go also. She has no one to help her. It is all about the money no matter what company you work with. It is only going to get worse. I can remember when doctors told the insurance companies what patients needed and they did it. Now it is the other way around. The Insurance companies tell doctors what they can do. It is sad. Most of the Senate can not even relate to the plight of the people on medicaid or medicare. They would not even know what to do if they lived on $400 a month with no one to help them get a bath and they could not do it themselves. I have seen old people who worked all their lives live in the projects and eat dog food to pay for their medicine. We are the riches country in the world and send Billions over seas but we can't take care of our own.

I don't know what is happening with Amedysis since I have not started work their yet but I do know from being a nurse 25 years care is the pits now and mostly it has to do with government regulations and insurance companies greed.

Also you have to remember they are going to target the larger companies with crap because that is were the money is.

~Willow