Facilitating Focused Process Improvement Efforts in Home Health Agencies to Improve Utilization Outcomes Effectively and Efficiently

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify a smaller set of clinical practices most associated with the utilization outcomes of the home health agencies. A secondary data analysis approach was adopted using the publicly accessible Home Health Compare repository as the main data source; the control variables such as rurality, agency size, and median income levels were obtained from other public data repositories. Checking for fall risks and starting care in a timely manner were most associated with hospital readmissions. These two practices and treating patients for pain are most associated with the emergency room visit rates. The results provide additional guidance to home health agencies in their prioritized and focused performance improvement initiatives to improve their utilization outcomes.