Using Home Health Compare

When it comes to finding the right care for your loved one, many factors come into play. You have to think about cost, location, quality of care, patient outcomes, and many other aspects.

The process of choosing which service to use can be pretty overwhelming. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have developed an online database to help you choose the right health care provider for your loved one. The database shows you nearby providers who are “Medicare-certified.” Home Health Compare can help you learn how well agencies care for their patients, shows you how often each agency used best practices when caring for its patients, and whether patients improved in certain areas of care. It also shows you what other patients said about their recent experience with that agency.

The first thing you will notice from the list of providers is the different services offered. It will show you if that agency offers skilled nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, medical social services and home health aides. You can then select up to three different providers to compare their results.

When comparing quality of patient care between providers, you can look at the national average, state average and the results of each provider. Under the quality of patient care results, it will tell you the percentage of patients who showed improvement walking or moving around, the percentage of patients showed improvement in getting in and out of bed and the percentage of patients who showed improvement in bathing.

You can also see the national and state averages when comparing patient survey results. These results will compare how often the home health team gave care in a professional way, how well the home health team communicated with patients, if the home health team discussed medicines, pain, and home safety with patients, how the patients rate the overall care from the home health agency, and if patients would recommend the home health agency to friends and family.

When comparing home health care providers, Home Health Compare can be a valuable tool for caregivers and their loved ones. It should not be the only tool used, however, since some factors affecting results are not included. For instance, some providers work primarily with severely sick and frail patients, making it more likely that patients will not show improvement on some factors. Be sure to supplement the information you receive with other information, such as personal referrals, in person interviews and physician recommendations.

Home Health Compare is an easy-to-use database that compares nearby home health agencies that are Medicare-certified. It's a great way to find health care for your loved ones; just remember to consider all of the information carefully.