Thinking About Discharging A Client For Cause? Sometimes The Only Answer Is To Do It Now.
June 9, 2023
As a home care agency, you work so hard for clients. Your goal is to get the referral, provide the requested care, and then have a satisfied customer for years, right? Realistically, you normally spend more time on those who are not satisfied than the ones who are. If you are at wit's end, then you need to consider if it is time for the client to go somewhere else. Ultimately, it may be the best thing for your agency as well as the client.
Reasons To Discharge A Client For Cause:
- Abuse of Caregivers: We have all had these clients. There is certainly a difference between the client who can be grumpy at times versus those clients that have caused your agency to lose good staff. Now your abusive client has caused you staffing issues across the board because caregivers resigned. There is no question that we cannot afford to lose good staff because they are treated poorly in client homes. Caregivers do not have to endure physical or verbal/ emotional abuse and agencies should not tolerate it.
- Client Needs do not fit agency expertise: If you determine the client has needs your staff does not have the skill set to provide, don't take the client. If you already have, then work with the client to find an agency able to provide the services that meet their. There is nothing wrong with communicating to your client that your specific specialty is different and that the client would be better served elsewhere.
- You do everything as asked, but it is never enough: All of you are currently picturing a particular client, aren't you? These individuals take up a ton of staff time without a true resolution to "problems". As soon as you fix one thing, it is something else. Ultimately, you have to ask yourself if you actually lose dollars by continuing to serve the client. You may have a lot of time invested versus the reimbursement you receive. Plus, you have to ask what kind of complaining this individual does in the community and whether servicing them hurts your business.
- Accusations against staff: Of course, any accusation against a caregiver needs investigated. In working with agencies, we have seen those clients who accuse multiple caregivers of the same infraction such as theft of medication or items of value. These same caregivers may be in many homes with never a complaint from anyone. One wrong accusation throughout the communities you serve can hurt your businesses.
- Expect Discounted Services: We have found that agencies offering discounts for services often have the clients who are never satisfied. If the client has gotten discounts related to complaints, then the client is potentially incentivized to complain. We understand the client may have financial concerns, but discounting your services minimizes your value.
We understand your agency wants to keep as many current clients as possible, but not all clients help you build your business, retain employees, and have a positive profit margin. For these clients, there may be an agency that is a better fit or the client may need to have different and realistic expectations from the caregivers in the agency.
At Kenyon Homecare Consulting, we help agencies achieve clinical, operational, and financial goals while providing high quality care. Call us today at 206-721-5091 or contact us online to see how we can help you get there.
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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!
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