Calling all HH Nurses, roll call

Specialties Home Health

Published

Hi, as a newly appointed moderator, I want to live this forum up a bit. I just resigned my position as a HH supervisor, to go back to the field.

I have been a nurse 20 years, 17 in critical care, mostly cardiac critical care, and the last 2.5 years in HH, or asthma disease management , which I also had to leave because I hated to be in a cube farm all day.

I still love HH, even though PPS is the pits, even though the OASIS would make good kindling for a massive bonfire, and even with all the rest of the paperwork, it is the most rewarding nursing I have ever done!!

PS, I went back to my former VNA who is now paying $30/hr, yes, you read that right, to work 3 out of 4 weekends. Since weekends work well for me, it's a good deal.

Let's hear from all the HH nurses out there. Out of all those registered members, there's got to be plenty of us on this BB!! :D

Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.
Like AnnemRN said, we have a couple of DME companies in our town and we aren't in a large city. We fax the order to the DME company along with Medicare or Ins # , demographics,etc and they handle the rest. They bill Medicare and handle all the paperwork. They even deliver IV meds such as Vanc to the home. Of course some are better than others so it is great when you can establish a good relationship with one and use that one whenever possible.

Yep... ditto the above. That's just how it is here with my agency and DME compaines. Exactly as above. :)

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Specializes in LTC/hospital, home health (VNA).

Hi. Thought I'd formally say hi and introduce myself...though I have posted a few times already. I have been in HH since 2001. First as an LPN doing private duty/shift work. Now as an RN with VNA doing visits. I absolutely love it! Though it has it's cons and bad days...I feel that it's pros FAR out weigh them!

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Hi all........I am pleased to see other home care nurses posting here. I have been in home care for a little over 17 years now and have watched it evolve tremendously during that time. When I graduated from nursing school 27 years ago I had proclaimed I was going to be the next Florence Nightengale! I never dreamed that nursing would turn into a business, but with the onset of PPS seven years ago.....and now the refinement of 2008 to look forward to, that is exactly what it has done.

The patients we see today as compared to 17 years ago are much sicker. The elderly want to remain in their homes. Too often the spouse is trying to take care of a sick mate, only to be in almost as bad of shape as the patient....or worse. Home health care is the place to be.....however, there is such a shortage of nurses, it concerns me that too many of this older population will find themselves without the help they need.

What creative ways can we lure others in our field to the home care realm? I would welcome any suggestions.

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Hi

Been a while since I've posted anything but here goes. I'd love to have some ideas to interest people in home health too. I've only been in it for 20 years so apparently I love it. We've had some nurses come and go pretty rapidly lately. seems as though when they applied, they thought it was an easy job. They didn't realize just how much autonomy you have when you're out in the community without someone around the corner to ask an opinion of. But to me that is the selling point, I enjoy the challenge of confronting a problem and helping the patient/caregiver find the solution. I really like the ability to go into our patient's homes and not only take care of the person I'm there to see, but also help the caregiver to understand how to provide the care they should as well as take care of themselves. Anyway, I ramble so I'll stop now. Just wanted to say there are lots of good things about home health and a lot of challenges, if you like that sort of thing.

Gelia :twocents:

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Specializes in Wound Care, Infusion, ER, HH.

Hello everyone! I have been in HH for about 7 years. I can honestly say that a team of wild horses could NOT put me back inside a hospital realm to work. I know a lot of hospital based nurses think HH is an easy job, and we "really don't work for a living" but when some of them have tried it, they quickly go running back to the hospital. I love teaching the pts & their families one on one and seeing the pts get better in the comfort of their own home. And yes the OASIS is horrible! But the pros far outweigh the cons. Long live HH!

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hello everyone! i have been in hh for about 7 years. i can honestly say that a team of wild horses could not put me back inside a hospital realm to work. i know a lot of hospital based nurses think hh is an easy job, and we "really don't work for a living" but when some of them have tried it, they quickly go running back to the hospital. i love teaching the pts & their families one on one and seeing the pts get better in the comfort of their own home. and yes the oasis is horrible! but the pros far outweigh the cons. long live hh!

amen to that!! it's funny, but i was just coming home a while ago from seeing my last patient for the day, a patient who has had 2 cardiac surgeries over the past month, and was in the hospital over 35 days...i am baffled by the lack of teaching this patient got, and the condition of her wounds when she got home...thank goodness she will now have the one on one care she will need to finally recover...

the oasis forms is just part of the package...the work itself, priceless!:redpinkhe

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.

Nothing better than Home Care and Hospice, even on the bad weather days when even the postman stays home! Have been in this line of nursing for 10 years off and on, now am Clinical Director for a small agency. Biggest problem is finding qualified staff, or even staff that want to learn Home Care. Seems to be a recurring theme!!

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Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.
Nothing better than Home Care and Hospice, even on the bad weather days when even the postman stays home! Have been in this line of nursing for 10 years off and on, now am Clinical Director for a small agency. Biggest problem is finding qualified staff, or even staff that want to learn Home Care. Seems to be a recurring theme!!

Woohooo ! Welcome BRHomeRN. :spnngwlcm:

I see you're in my neck of the woods, too ! :D

Enjoy your stay here at Allnurses.. make yourself at home.. you'll be an Allnurses Addict before you know it ! :typing

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.

Thanks for the welcome. I'm on the Central VA side of the mountains--shout out to anyone interested in info on a small, nurse run agency!! I'll be back to pick everyone's brain, as i'm new to being a Clinical Director and have lots of questions!

:icon_hug:

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Specializes in infection control, peds, home infusion.

hi everyone! i have been in home health on and off for 10 years now, nine of those as a lpn. previously, i worked in both a hospital and ltc, but i have always had a soft spot for home health. now as a rn, i do two private duty peds high tech shifts a week, plus several wound care visits. i expect to begin iv therapy within the next month. hh has been wonderful in that it has given me the flexibility to be with my family while at the same time getting to spend quality time with my patients. i truly feel blessed :):D

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hi everyone! i have been in home health on and off for 10 years now, nine of those as a lpn. previously, i worked in both a hospital and ltc, but i have always had a soft spot for home health. now as a rn, i do two private duty peds high tech shifts a week, plus several wound care visits. i expect to begin iv therapy within the next month. hh has been wonderful in that it has given me the flexibility to be with my family while at the same time getting to spend quality time with my patients. i truly feel blessed :):D

:redbeathethanks for your positive post! i also feel blessed to be able to work in home health, and cannot imagine doing anything else. it truly is a blessing to be able to care for our patients on our own time table, taking the time we need to make an impact in their lives. keep up the good work!:redbeathe

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Specializes in OB, HH, ADMIN, IC, ED, QI.

I worked in L&D, taught prenatal classes and was in charge of a 52 bed Maternity Home in the '60s in L.A. The latter was my foray into the community, and for the next 2-3 decades, while waiting for an administrative type of job, I signed on "per diem" with about 7 Home Health agencies (5 at one time, in L.A.).

Doing the paperwork for each agency was a challenge....... finally I created my own. At first I visited Maternity "early discharge" patients who went home within 24 hours of birth, did assessments on moms and babes, taught infant feeding, (became a lactation consultant), nutrition, early infant development, s/s to report to MDs, etc. It concerned me greatly that more and more newborns by the 1990s became jaundiced by day 3, and I did heel sticks for testing; and some docs wanted the moms to stop breast feeding.

Once 24 hour discharges for NVDs became the norm, and hospital Nurses mumbled myriad instructions to exhausted parents at discharge, Home Health visits for them came to a grinding halt, unless there was concern about complications or security.

So I began seeing adult and geriatric patients, doing wound care, diabetic teaching, med management, etc. I enjoyed that, but not having years of med/surg hospital experience was a hindrance. The paper work became overwhelming (especially the repetitious OASIS - do you think someone could get reasonable, nurse friendly software for that?).

So I took a job at the "Regional Center" and did monthly home visits for developmentally disabled children, at their homes or facilities where they were cared for in small groups.

That lead to work at schools' special classes when a "student" required Nursing care. One such girl was comatose, blind and deaf, required frequent suctioning and GT feeding, and I couldn't help but wonder if she wouldn't have been more comfortable (being left behind) at home, without the sense of not being where she was most comfortable, hurried into her wheelchair to go there, etc.

The development of better and better dressings for wounds, and the advent of specially certified "wound Nurses" is a great asset now. However, doctors need to become aware of those services so they refer their patients to Home Health agencies, rather than submit them to painful, sometimes lengthy excursions to clinics and offices for that care. I 'm helping with the home care of a good friend/close neighbor who had ankle surgery, is on antibiotics (round 3) and has a weeping wound that won't close. I suggested that she call the lofty MD's office at the University clinic where she's seen (every 2 weeks!), and ask for a Home Health wound specialist, so she won't have to pay exorbitantly for dressings that are inappropriate (I love the 2-3 2X2 gauze sponges they send home with her each visit). However, as a licensed professional acting voluntarily, I can't do more than she's been told to do (how I'd love to irrigate the ever expanding site, get some silver dressings, etc.)

Well, thanks for opening this thread. As isolated as Home Health Nurses are, it's great to hear from others.

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