Considering Home Health but not buying their story . . .

Specialties Home Health

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  • Specializes in Pediatrics, Clinic, Long-term Care.

You are reading page 3 of Considering Home Health but not buying their story . . .

SmittyLPN

17 Posts

Specializes in Pediatrics, Clinic, Long-term Care.
I would drive--in one day, mind you--from Springfield to ten miles past Bruner, to Republic, and then back to Springfield. Other days, I would drive from Springfield to Mt. Vernon, then Humansville, Bolivar, and back to Springfield. I often spent more time in the car than in the homes. But I loved it. So much freedom and autonomy!

This drive sounds like what I would be doing. At least one day a week I would be driving what I call the "country loop", 117 highway miles round trip plus the miles for whatever stops in towns along the way. It's at least 2 hours of drive time but 2 hours in the car is way better than 8 hours confined to an office any day.

Home Health Columnist / Guide

NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN

10 Articles; 18,300 Posts

Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

My previous employer provided aides for personal care assistance funded by state medicaid monies.

Supervisory visits were required every 14 days in patients home: 1 visit in person with aide, other visit with just client to confirm no issues pt was too afraid to discuss with aide present.

Visit included:

a. Review of care plan in the chart matched careplan on refrigerator--- or did that care plan grow legs and missing again. Did care plan need to be adjusted due to change in pts health status?

b. Did aides notes match care plan?

c. Was aide showing up and staying for entire time interval supposed to be in home?

d. Was aide abusive to patient?

e. Did patient look well cared for, home reasonably clean and neat, food in refrigerator, current meds in home?

f. Any decline in patients health or unmet health needs that showed need for skilled visits?

g. Provide monthly verbal report to office of aging case manager.

h. Monthly medication prefills needed for some patients -but was considered skilled care under another program.

i. Provided monthly inservice topic to aides and was able to give them 1 hr credit.

I sometimes had 10 patients in one senior highrise ---could be in and out of patients home within 15-20 minutes and see all 10 regulars in one day. Other days, patients all lived in outlying territory and may drive 125 miles roundtrip and only see 5 paitents. Calling clients 2 days before visit to make sure would be home + reconfirming expected visit time afternoon before helped to eliminate missed visits.

I'd found pts in roach infested homes as aide didn;t show up for days and uneaten food from MOW delivery piled up next to couch.... forgetful souls signing blank forms and aide in and out in 30 min but wrote down 2 hrs.... wonderful aides who kept wc/bedbound paitents alive as only person patient saw as family abandoned them and aides did everything to keep them in their home and out of nursing home.

It was one of the most rewarding positions I had as able to make great impact on individual lives---taught me community resources that I was totally unaware of and added to my bag of tricks today.

SmittyLPN

17 Posts

Specializes in Pediatrics, Clinic, Long-term Care.

I just want to thank everyone who posted on this thread. I appreciate your input and your suggestions. I spoke with the HH agency one last time today to clarify hours, benefits, etc and they had already dropped the number of visits to 15 instead of 20 and said it may go down from there. I have decided not to pursue this right now. Perhaps once both of my kids are in school and daycare is not an issue I will look into HH again. But for now it's back to clinic (and corporate) life for me. I will miss all the extra time with my kids :sniff: but at least I'll be able to afford all of their sports and school activities now . Thanks again for all of your help!!

rancin98

7 Posts

Our agency pays approx. $30/visit for LVN's. Mileage is 0.50cents/mile, and yes it can add up quickly.

Specializes in long term care, geriatric population.

It sounds like the agency you're talking to provides Medicaid waiver services. These are services that are not skilled. Basically it is mostly aides helping give showers, light cleaning around the house. On top of that the patients get visits from a nurse for routine monitoring of the patients' conditions. (I should say that this is from what I understand. I work for a Medicare certified home health agency in MI and we refer a substantial number to the local Medicaid waiver program.) Good luck!

CooperNurseRN

21 Posts

Specializes in HH, ER, Primary Care, QI, Risk Mgmt,.

I have to tell you that I think you are not getting a competitive offer. I realize that rates of pay do vary depending on the region. However, your offer seems really low. My advice would be to conduct a salary survey. Go to salary.com and find out the rate of pay for your area. That websight isn't always correct but it will let you know if they are even close to what you should be paid.

Wishinonastar, BSN

1 Article; 1,000 Posts

Her description of visits sounds like Medicare, not waiver or supervisory visits which are very low paying at least in my area. I hate to say it, I know it is too late, but I would have taken the position. I think they were looking at easy visits plus travel which would have averaged $13.50 an hour and yes, it is fun. I have been in home health since 1988, and our LPN gets the easier visits that are not as stressful or as involved as the RNs. She never takes call, and has little paperwork. I would love to be an LPN in home health. $13.50 an hour is not bad pay in my area for an LPN. You have to consider what her needs are, and with kids sometimes you have to make sacrifices to have a good life as a mom. Plus, she could always supplement her pay with other work. The travel is both a blessing and a curse, especially in the winter. I think it sounds like a nice little job, and a foot in the door to future opportunities.

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