Access to an organized inpatient hospice unit or facility can dramatically reduce the numbers of deaths in hospitals.
PORTLAND, Ore. (PRWEB) October 05, 2020
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has created turmoil in the hospital and post-acute environment. HealthPivots’ recent whitepaper describes an increase in demand for hospice services from patients hospitalized with COVID-19 diagnoses. HealthPivots’ hospice clients are on the front line of helping the terminal subset of these COVID-19 patients and their families that opt for hospice care. Several of these hospices have determined that there is a need, driven in part by COVID-19, for general inpatient hospice care in their local communities and hospitals.
Using HealthPivots’ Hospital-Based Unit Model, a well-utilized planning tool available in HealthPivots DataLab, these organizations are making intelligent development decision.
Heart of Hospice’s temporary inpatient unit, created as a ‘pop-up’ unit to serve COVID-19 patients in Louisiana, will now be a permanent service available to all patients. According to Carla Davis, CEO of Heart of Hospice, “When we were determining whether there was a need for a permanent hospice inpatient unit in New Orleans, the HealthPivots Hospital-Based Planning Model helped us determine not only that a need existed, but also the best location and size for our unit. The tool’s rich and detailed data analytics gave us confidence that we were making the best choice for our company and our community.”
Over the last few months, HealthPivots has observed a 30% increase in the use of this analytic planning model, developed to support hospices and hospitals in determining the right number of hospice inpatient beds to place in a hospital. The Hospital-Based Unit Model, vetted by a number of clients, formulates this analysis by combining data drawn from recent Medicare Fee-For-Service claims with a selection of modifiable assumptions. Chapters Health System, a HealthPivots DataLab client, provides hospice services to over 20 counties in Florida. Chief Financial Officer, David O’Neil, states “Inpatient hospice care is a core element of Chapters Health hospice program, and we have relied on HealthPivots DataLab for determining the need for hospice facilities for over eight years. HealthPivots’ analytic tools provide a flexible and reliable means of assessing the need for and potential utilization of hospice beds. Chapters Health is currently using HealthPivots DataLab to plan for additional development in the communities we serve.”
Covenant Care provides hospice services to 27 counties in Florida and Alabama. Odin Berg, Vice President – Strategy, states “Covenant Care has utilized the HealthPivots Hospital-Based Unit Model to determine bed capacity demand at various hospitals, and currently operates inpatient units at two of these hospitals. The tool accurately predicted bed demand at both hospitals. We were pleased with the results and plan to continue to use the tool for future inpatient unit planning and projects.”
Jay Cushman, President and CEO of HealthPivots, summarizes the benefits and bottom line as follows. “Our approach is based on our observation that good access to an organized inpatient hospice unit or facility can dramatically reduce the numbers of deaths in hospitals.”
Hospices and hospitals interested in utilizing the Hospital-Based Unit Model resource can request a free analysis from HealthPivots.
About HealthPivots
HealthPivots supports integrated healthcare systems, hospices, home health agencies, skilled nursing facilities and hospitals as they strive to improve their marketplace performance, enhance partnerships with other agencies and improve outcomes for patients. HealthPivots provides HealthPivots DataLab, a premier web-based analytics solution, as well as custom printed business intelligence reports.