In-home NP Medicare Assessments

Specialties NP

Published

I have seen several job postings for these type of positions. I am interested in the position because it sounds like there is a good amount of flexibility.

Does anyone have experience doing them? What exactly does the visit entail? Did you enjoy it? What did you think of the salary? Thanks!

@kjpham

Yes I am still with them! I'm sorry you didn't get an offer...keep your chin up and keep looking!

@kjpham

Yes I am still with them! I'm sorry you didn't get an offer...keep your chin up and keep looking!

Does UHG have a slump at the beginning of the year like EMSI?

Specializes in Hospital medicine; NP precepting; staff education.

I keep getting notices in email for this type of thing. Advertised rate is $130 per visit (this is in the South East, coast of SC). I don't want to drive all over the place right now. I'd be covering at least two counties. My home county is the largest in the state.

Those groups are Matrix Medical Network (Only promising part time) and United Health.

It's not my cuppa right now.

An RN can complete a Risk Assessment . Are you signing 1147's or completing prior authorizations ? How detailed is the home assessment ? If it's simply data collecting and a visual physical exam with no labs , why are NP's completing what is a rather basic template built assessment ?

Wellness assessments and risk assessments are very simple template forms usually used by insurance companies . Medical records of the patient can be reviewed to compare accuracy but aside from recording medications , which may also be inaccurate if meds have been changed or DC'd , this is a very simple home based subjective assessment . As reported by your patient / family . Any training will most likely center on using the company's laptop . Most of the time , vitals are measured and the assessment can include wound inspection or other visuals , but this is not the same as an in office physical . It's a questionnaire with medical terminology . And I reiterate , it's subjective report from the patient and or family . Medication checks / reconciliation or DME , LOC assessments , etc are also commonly inaccurate unless you're lucky enough to speak with a knowledgeable staff member from the discharge team who can verify discharge date , physician , condition, medications , etc . RN's and social workers have been performing these for years ( for junk pay ) . Think of it as an intake eval without much to validate what the patient reports . I'm rather surprised the role is being offered to NP's when RN's can complete them and full timers are very time efficient (and well versed in the type of problems that will crop up when attempting to coordinate care . I'm not here to discourage NP's but use the extra school to make better money and perhaps stick with office / hospital physicals that are thorough and can include diagnostics and labs . HRA's can and have been delegated out to RN's and LPN's . For about 30/HR . Unfortunately , incompetent staff completes the assessments as well and they are a sloppy embarrassment . We used to audit the forms and notes and many times it appeared as if the home "assssor" was checking off boxes and rushing through it . The good staff members completed to the best of their abilities considering it was largely subjective and there were a lot of no shows . But .. best of luck if NP's want to do such simple data work .

@Funluvinmommy, I am a new FNP in Nashville TN and am about to start this type of work with Your Home Advantage (Humana). The market here is pretty saturated and finding an NP job as a new grad in a new area has been DIFFICULT! My hope was to do this while I continued to look for a more permanent position in a practice. Aside from the insane taxes, and inevitable no shows, were there any other cons of working with this company? Thank you in advance!

Hi carachel2, I just had my second interview with UHG this morning and they're going to set me up for a final interview with the clinical manager. Is it a similar interview format with scenario-based questions? Any advice? It sounds like this is an amazing job and UHG seems to be great to work for, I've only heard good things so far. Thanks in advance!

[COLOR=#000000]I was laid off and am in need of some part-time hours to getme through until the money starts coming through insurances. Can anyone give memore information on how to go about finding the openings for getting thesejobs? Specific insurances which pay better??[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#000000] [/COLOR]

[COLOR=#000000]Lacie Asher[/COLOR]

An RN can complete a Risk Assessment . Are you signing 1147's or completing prior authorizations ? How detailed is the home assessment ? If it's simply data collecting and a visual physical exam with no labs , why are NP's completing what is a rather basic template built assessment ?

Hello! RN's cannot do HRA's- You must be an NP, PA, or MD because you are diagnosing and the health care companies are using these diagnoses very heavily for Medicare reimbursement. And of course you need to be in advanced practice to bill the feds. It is a lengthy visit due to needing to gather so much data because its an annual visit. You will be trained on what to gather- Ive had two HRA jobs already and theyre pretty much all standard nationally.

There are pros and cons to this job.

The PRO's: Super flexible, specially if you are part-time or per diem. Its great for NP's with families or who just need additional income. I usually just schedule 3 patients a day and I am done to pick up the kids at school. Meeting nice patients and families- I love to look at gardens, and they always like to take me around their properties to show off. I love to educate, and we all know so many things happen in the home they aren't telling the office providers which you can catch (specially safety issues). When you have a great scheduling department, this is like gold.

The CONS: It tends to be seasonal: What I mean is, you will sometimes have NO pts for weeks or months on end, while the company tries to renegotiate contracts with the health plan. So, many of my colleagues have 2nd jobs. Those who do full-time/salaried are then asked to do other admin types of duties, or are asked to travel over-night to other cities. The drive can be horrendous specially in urban areas, and the more the pt appts dwindle, the farther you are sent. Visits can get really long- I can do a very thorough job for an hour (maybe 1.25 hrs d/t labs) but it becomes a 1.5 to 2 hour visit for pts who need your translation service. Therefore, in my mind (I make less money per hour because we are paid per case/visit). It behooves you to work faster but thoroughly. And of course, you will meet many types of characters in their homes (I haven't quite met a hoarder yet), and there are not so swanky neighborhoods (thankfully, I haven't met danger). Working with bad schedulers can be a nightmare (not my current employer).

I WOULD NOT DO THIS if I was a NEW GRAD. Its just me, but as a new grad I would want to be somewhere where I can get the most experience diagnosing and treating, and this isn't it. It is great if you want a more kick-back role as an NP. Don't get me wrong, it is still a job that needs you to be OCD with "crossing every T and dotting every I". You need to capture every possible dx you can get, and having matching meds/PE/labs/hx to prove the dxs (otherwise you wont hear the end of it from QI and your NP manager). Ive been an NP for 20 yrs so this is perfect for me.

Which area are you? I need a job bad.

I am currently looking at a full time position with Matrix Medical. How was your experience?

I am looking at an HRA position that I interviewed for over the phone. The interviewer said I can start right away (new grad NP) and that a laptop would be sent to me and also I would have to do some training modules. Can anyone speak to the depth of their training for this type of position? For anyone that worked an HRA NP job, how long did you continue with it? Thanks guys!

+ Add a Comment