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November 2006

Simplifying Wound Care in the Home Care Setting

Home care agencies continually seek new and innovative ways to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality. Data from the most recent National Home and Hospice Care Survey shows that 7.2 million Americans receive home care services and approximately 5.6% of these individuals are diagnosed with chronic ulcers of the skin. This is only second in rank to diabetes for Medicare Community Beneficiaries.¹

It is essential that home care agencies control costs by minimizing utilization since Medicare now reimburses on a prospective payment system. Labor is by far the greatest cost driver in home care. Therefore, a key strategy for reducing home care cost is to reduce nurse visit utilization. This can be accomplished without sacrificing quality of care through the standardization of wound care with research-based products and protocols, and by the redefinition of the role of a nurse to that of an educator and facilitator rather than a direct provider of care.

A study was conducted by 3M to measure the impact of simplifying wound
care through standardized protocols and self-care teaching guides in the home care setting.

They found that the implementation of standardized wound care products and protocols in combination with patient teaching materials helped decrease the average number of nurse visits per wound between the pre and post intervention groups. This was accomplished by shifting the role of the wound care nurse from that of a direct wound care provider to that of an educator. Patient outcomes were similar throughout pre and post intervention which indicated that these cost savings were accomplished without sacrificing quality of care.

For a copy of the complete study, click here. To request more information on the patient care kits utilized by St. Vincent’s Hospital Home Care from Green Bay, Wisconsin, and other wound care resources available exclusively from Briggs, click here.

Reprinted with permission of 3M Healthcare
St. Paul, MN.
www.3M.com/healthcare




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