Do You Ever Feel Like A Dog At The Track Who Can’t Catch The Rabbit? Does It Feel Like A Never Ending Struggle In Your Home Care Agency?
Kenyon HomeCare Consulting • March 3, 2021
We have all seen the dog races at the track. The greyhounds work so hard to get the rabbit and it just doesn’t happen. It can feel that way in the day-to-day at our agencies. You try to do everything right and yet clinical outcomes just aren’t there. You try to successfully recruit and retain employees, but they just don’t stay very long. Finally, you have tried to cut costs where you can and still you are struggling to make a profit margin. Maybe it is time to quit chasing the bunny and let a home care consultant take a look.
5 Reasons To Consider A Consultant:
Here is the thing. If you are reading this, then you are probably considering some help. Senior level consultants have a vast range of experiences to guide you to what your agency needs. Let’s looks at 5 different ways a consultant can help you reach your potential:
Recruitment/ Retention:
Sometimes we have been doing recruitment the same way for a very long time. What was once successful may no longer be the case today. Our agencies currently are working with Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, Gen Z, and Millenials all in the same workplace. To think that retention practices are the same today as when it was just the Baby Boomers and Gen X’s is not realistic.
Marketing/ Boosting Referrals:
Many times agencies do not have a true targeted marketing plan. You need to analyze what you are doing today that really works and what doesn’t. Many times the same traditional marketing sources are targeted by every home health, hospice and private duty out there. If you don’t have something that truly differentiates you, then you might be wasting marketing dollars. Consider non-traditional referral sources within your community that may not know about what you have to offer.
Clinical Training: Have you lost a lot of money on ADR denials? Are clinicians not documenting the information you need yo cover yourself at audit? Are you missing dollars because Oasis is not being filled out accurately. Do all clinical disciplines function within full scope of practice to prevent extra visits being made unnecessarily? Are you a start-up with newer clinical staff and need someone to show the clinicians the documentation “ropes”.
Operational Flow:
If you are knee deep in the day-to-day, you may not see where operations can be more efficient. You may not know where or how to do things more efficiently. For example, how many employees have their “hands” on an admission until the nurse is ready to do the admit? Does the number actually hinder your ability to admit the patient sooner?
Outsourcing Needs:
Sometimes, the most cost-effective and operationally sound decision in your agency is to outsource certain aspects of your business. In many agencies, ICD 10 coding is done in-house. This may be done by a non-certified coder who also functions in other roles within your agency. Outsourcing ICD 10 coding can often get agencies $500 or more per episode in reimbursement on Medicare patients when using certified coders. Same things goes for Oasis. If you don’t have any looking over Oasis and you don’t utilize a sweeper, you will often miss legitimate chances for reimbursement you are due for the patient. Based on your operational flow, billing may be done more efficiently and be more cost-effective if outsourced. You need to know and understand what opportunities are there for your agency.
Kenyon Homecare Consulting Can Help:
At Kenyon Homecare Consulting, we can help you function more efficiently and work towards better clinical and financial outcomes. Call us at 206-721-5091 or contact us online to see how we can help you reach your goals and maximize your potential. We have senior associates with expertise in all backgrounds including clinical, financial, billing, and operations.
Results Based Consulting
Did you find value in this blog post? Imagine what we can do for your home care or hospice agency. Fill out the form below to see how we're leading the industry with innovation, affordability, and experience.
Contact Us
For agencies in 2026, Medicare home health is a labyrinth of costly red tape. Regulatory complexity has become one of the single greatest barriers to efficiency.
Attracting and Keeping Talent: Effective Solutions to Address the Silver Tsunami in Home Health Care
Silver Tsunami- by 2030, 1 in every 5 Americans will be of retirement age. With an unprecedented rise in chronic illness the demand for home health services is huge.
In 2026, the management of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart failure moved away from a reactive "wait-and-see" model to a 24/7 proactive ecosystem. Driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) , technology is no longer just a tool for tracking data—it is a "co-pilot" for both patients and clinicians. By analyzing thousands of data points in real-time, AI can effectively turn the patient's home into a sophisticated clinical hub. 1. Predictive Analytics: Seeing the Crisis Before It Starts The most transformative use of AI in 2026 is its ability to identify subtle patterns that human clinicians might miss. Machine learning models now achieve 93% to 97% accuracy in detecting early signs of health deterioration , such as heart attacks or sepsis, often before symptoms even appear. Early Warning Systems: For patients with heart failure, AI can detect gradual weight gain or changes in respiratory rate that signal fluid buildup. Risk Stratification: Predictive models analyze years of electronic health records (EHRs), genomic data, and lifestyle factors to flag "high-risk" patients months in advance, allowing for preventive interventions that reduce emergency room visits by up to 40% . 2. The Evolution of Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) RPM in 2026 has moved beyond basic blood pressure cuffs. The integration of AI has created a "continuous monitoring" environment that is non-invasive. Contactless Vitals: Using ordinary cameras and AI-based analysis, systems can now estimate heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure trends without the patient needing to wear a single device. Smart Wearables: Devices like smart rings and biosensor patches continuously track glucose levels, inflammation markers, and heart rate variability . If a threshold is crossed, the AI automatically alerts the medical team or triggers an emergency response . Adherence and Engagement: AI-driven smart dispensers and virtual assistants ensure medication compliance by providing personalized reminders and alerting caregivers if doses are skipped. AI vs. Traditional Chronic Management (2026) Data Collection Traditional Care (Pre-2025): Episodic (at office visits) AI-Enhanced Care (2026): Continuous (24/7 real-time) Diagnosis Traditional Care (Pre-2025): Reactive (responding to symptoms) AI-Enhanced Care (2026): Proactive (predictive patterns) Treatment Traditional Care (Pre-2025): Standardized/Protocol-based AI-Enhanced Care (2026): Hyper-personalized/Precision-based Readmission Risk Traditional Care (Pre-2025): High (post-discharge gaps) AI-Enhanced Care (2026): Reduced by up to 38% 3. Combating Clinician Burnout with "Ambient AI." While patients benefit from better care, healthcare providers are using AI to solve the administrative "paperwork crisis." Ambient Scribing: AI "scribes" now listen to patient encounters and automatically generate clinical notes , reducing the time clinicians spend on documentation and allowing them to focus entirely on the patient. Triage and Workflow: AI systems triage incoming data from thousands of RPM devices, only alerting doctors to the cases that require immediate human attention. This allows small primary care practices to manage larger patient volumes more effectively . 4. Challenges: Ethics and the Digital Divide Despite these advances, the adoption of AI in 2026 faces significant hurdles. Data Privacy: Using synthetic data (artificial datasets that mimic real patient data) is becoming a standard way to train AI while protecting individual privacy. Algorithmic Bias: There is an ongoing effort to ensure that AI models do not widen existing healthcare disparities by being trained on non-representative data. Trust: Clinicians and patients alike must navigate the "black box" of AI, learning to trust recommendations while maintaining human oversight for critical medical decisions. In 2026, technology will have effectively moved chronic disease management out of the clinic and into the "smart home." While the human-doctor relationship remains central, AI provides an invisible safety net that will ensure a minor health fluctuation doesn't turn into a major medical crisis. If you are not educating all your staff, nurses, therapists, and yes, aides as well as using current AI-integrated EMRs, you are already far behind the curve. If you need assistance with education, Kenyon HomeCare Consulting has DSHS-certified, Online Chronic Disease Education . If you need assistance, call 206-721-5091 or email gkenyon@kenyonhcc.com . WE ARE HERE TO HELP!
The patient's clinical picture must match the data provided to CMS. Here are the most frequent scoring errors found in OASIS, along with how to avoid them.
In home health, ICD-10 coding and OASIS integrity shape clinical story, support reimbursement, and influence care planning from from assessment through discharge.
In the complex landscape of home health and rehabilitation, the Physical Therapy (PT) Director serves as both a clinical anchor and a strategic navigator.
In the high-stakes environment of home health, the difference between a routine day and a medical crisis often rests on a single observation. Education counts!
The HOPE tool captures clinical, psychosocial, and spiritual patient needs patient at multiple intervals. This is better than the HIS for the entire clinical picture
In 2026, an updated home health or home care P&P manual serves as defense against litigation, a blueprint for operations, and a mandate for federal reimbursement.
Here is the "ABC" guide to building a successful foundation for your starting your new home health, home care or hospice agency. It is necessary for success.