Press Release on HCA's Home Care Month Ad Campaign

For Immediate Release:

November 5, 2008

Contact:
Roger L. Noyes (518) 810-0665; (518) 275-6961 cell

Download: Press Release on HCA's Home Care Month Ad Campaign

HCA Ad Campaign Engages Patient Perspective in Recognition of National Home Care Month

In honor of National Home Care Month (November) and Home Health Aide Week (November 9-15), the Home Care Association of New York State (HCA) has launched an innovative advertising campaign — called "Get the full Story" — which tells the narrative of home care through the voice of patients.

Consisting of three stories, all anchored in patient perspectives that are both unique and universal, HCA's Home Care Month ad campaign conveys the broad range of personal experiences with home care. Please download the PDF version of this release for samples; in addition, a motion version of these ads can be viewed on the Home Care Month page of HCA's website at http://www.hca-nys.org/homecaremonth/.

Through the campaign, audiences will hear about: home care's power in helping children attain a sense of normalcy by receiving care in the home rather than in an institutional setting; a spouse's feeling of self-empowerment in continuing to provide for a chronically-ill loved one at home with the assistance of a home health professional; and the experiences of elderly patients whose home care services allow them to remain near to the comforts of life that sustain them.

Each of these stories sounds a broader message about home care: that home care helps keep families together, allowing patients to receive vital health, therapy and social services in their setting of first choice — the home — where the patient experiences the greatest sense of security and belonging.

"The purpose of National Home Care Month is three-fold: to recognize the value of our home care system, to share the inspirational stories of patients served by home care providers, and to applaud the dedication and compassion of home care personnel. HCA's Home Care Month advertising campaign achieves these three interrelated goals," said HCA President Joanne Cunningham. "The ads begin by providing a brief glimpse into a patient's personal situation, character, or the values he or she holds dear. The ad then turns to a statement about the home health aide, nurse or therapist who is instrumental in either reinforcing or resolving those initial values or experiences."

"Though the story is told from the patient's perspective, it is as much a story about the caregiver as it is a story about the patient," Cunningham added.

HCA's "Get the Full Story" campaign is part of a comprehensive public outreach effort throughout the month of November to raise awareness about home care during National Home Care Month and Home Health Aide week.

As part of its National Home Care Month celebrations, HCA will also be holding an awards ceremony on November 5 at our Clinical and Technology Conference in Albany to recognize direct-care staff who have made a difference in the lives of patients. Media are encouraged to attend. The ceremony begins at 6:45 p.m. (A media advisory with further details is available on our website at http://www.hca-nys.org/pr.cfm)

HCA has also launched a home care month webpage at http://www.hca-nys.org/homecaremonth/ where individuals can learn more about our Home Care Month activities.

Considered to be a less-costly alternative to care provided in the nursing home or hospital setting, home care encompasses a broad spectrum of health, therapeutic and social services delivered at home to persons with disabilities as well as patients who are chronically ill or recovering from an illness. Home care patients include newborns requiring maternal-infant care services, children in need of therapy services, elderly patients whose chronic medical condition requires skilled nursing care or home health aide assistance, technology-dependent patients who depend on life-sustaining home medical equipment, and many others.

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