The home health care market is expected to reach more than $515 billion by 2027—and with good reason, given the potential impact that these services can have on the $4.5 trillion that the United States pays for health care every year. Hospitals and medical facilities all over the country are experiencing workforce shortages and are made to maintain operations with shrinking budgets and ballooning costs. Great stretches of rural America suffer in vast medical deserts where the nearest hospital could be hundreds of miles away and unable to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
In order for the homecare market to continue to grow, it must innovate and implement viable solutions for these hospitals and medical facilities and develop the tools and technologies that make care more efficient, more effective and, most importantly, more accessible.
Reducing Rehospitalization
Advancements in telehealth and digital technologies have begun to bridge this gap in health care. More than ever, doctors and nurses can access patients who previously couldn’t be seen in any other setting besides a critical access hospital. With the help of in-home care and continued innovation in the field of digital health technologies, these patients are now able to receive the same level of care in the comfort of their homes. Patients suffering from chronic illness and/or receiving end-of-life care were once made to endure an interminable cycle of rehospitalization. With the deployment of these at-home care models, rehospitalization rates can drop nearly 25%, meaning patients are no longer subjected to the endless shuffle between hospital and home, and the time and resources of health care providers can be leveraged in a more focused and optimized manner.
Home health agencies have long existed but lack the infrastructure to provide high-acuity care alone. Bridging the gap between these critical access hospitals and home-based providers with technology is key. Advancements in virtual and mobile health care can enhance these acute homecare models and outpatient-at-home programs, providing long-term solutions to many challenges in health care delivery. By equipping these agencies with digital health tools, higher levels of care and more expansive services can be offered to a larger patient pool. This approach allows doctors and nurses to monitor patients’ vitals remotely, providing actionable insights for medical professionals to diagnose conditions, offer treatment plans, and prescribe medications delivered directly to the patient’s door.
Better for Patients
Virtual and mobile care have obvious benefits for patients. For many patients who require frequent rehospitalization, a trip to the hospital may take hours from start to finish. When physicians and nurses are able to expand the scope of high-level quality care into the surrounding communities, patients no longer have to suffer through long waits at overrun hospitals, where they are put through a gamut of medical testing and vitals checking before they are able to receive the care they need.
These services, in addition to keeping patients happier and more comfortable, also keep them healthier and allow them to avoid crowded waiting rooms where the risk of contracting another illness may be elevated. Finally, when comprehensive and convenient care is possible outside of the hospital setting, the patient not only benefits from the ease and speed of treatment but also in its efficacy. Patients who are more comfortable in their care and experience one-on-one interaction with medical professionals are more likely to comply with treatment plans and adhere to prescribed medications.
Patients who enjoy these home health care services experience a higher level of engagement with their personal health, leading to better physical and mental health scores.
Efficiency & Equality
In addition to the benefits to patients, the further use of home health care has a significant impact on the operational efficiency of these hospitals and medical facilities. These teams of mobile clinicians and nurses—in conjunction with the latest in virtual and telehealth care—streamline the care process and help expand the reach of these services into the surrounding communities.
At-home health care promotes better compliance with treatment plans and medication adherence, which leads to healthier patients and reductions in rehospitalizations. By reducing rehospitalizations, these hospitals and medical facilities are able to better focus their efforts and resources on those who truly need the hospital setting in order to receive the care and treatment they require. Through this optimization of care, hospitals experience shorter wait times, less administrative headaches and doctors and nurses are afforded more time with each patient face-to-face to ensure that their needs are met and their questions answered.
Virtual and mobile care are now pivotal resources in our continued efforts to streamline and improve not just the accessibility of treatment but also its quality. By harnessing these technologies, hospitals and medical facilities all over the country will be able to see more patients, treat them more efficiently and effectively, and alleviate the strain that our current health care system has been under.
As more and more health agencies adopt these digital health technologies, health care will continue to push out from behind hospital walls and into living rooms all over the country. We may be on the doorstep, both figuratively and literally, of a seismic shift in health care delivery.
