Why should cardiac programs matter to you? Research shows that most hospitals have a cardiac diagnosis within their top five admitting diagnoses. CMS has identified heart failure and MI as two of the most expensive diagnoses for Medicare, and new cases are increasing at a rate of 550,000 annually. The next mandatory bundled payment being considered by CMS is cardiac conditions.
Where Does the SNF Fit Into All of This?
We can be the best postacute care partner in our communities by sharpening our clinical skills in nursing and therapy to bridge the gap between a hospital stay and home.
Since implementing the Heart PARC (postacute rehab center) program in 16 of our buildings over the past year, we have begun to see some encouraging results:
- Increased skilled census for this condition type
- Reduced rehospitalization
- Increased functional outcomes using the CARE data
- Increased confidence in working with clinically complex patients due to focused training and education
- Increase confidence from our health partners in our clinical expertise
The graph below shows the cardiac-specific skilled census at Park View PostAcute (PVPA) in Santa Rosa, California, from September 2015 (first month of Heart PARC implementation) to December 2015:
This graph shows the shift in skilled census at PVPA from September 2015 to December 2015:
The below graph shows PVPA hospital readmissions from September 2015 to July 2016:
The side-by-side graphs from PVPA below show that during the eight months of implementation, the cardiac census went from 20 over an eight-month period prior to HP up to 81 patients in the eight-month period post-Heart PARC. The bars below demonstrate a significant change in function using the CARE item set. Prior to Heart PARC implementation, on average, the cardiac patients still required 25 percent physical assistance at discharge. After Heart PARC implementation, on average, the patients only required verbal cueing.
So How Do I Get Training in My Building?
Currently therapy and clinical resources are being trained in a train-the-trainer format. Please signify your interest in bringing this program to your building by reaching out to your therapy or clinical resource, and we will get information to you on first steps.