HCA last week shared with state health officials the findings of a home care provider survey on COVID-19. It uncovered that the vast majority of home and community-based providers (68%) do not have access to adequate personal protective equipment in their COVID-19 response.
Almost half (48%) report instances where patients and/or family members refuse entry of staff in the home due to concerns about the virus at a time when home health agencies are working vigorously to screen caregivers and patients alike for the safety of both.
Thirty-three percent of providers have had to transfer patients to other levels of care due to workforce shortages, about 38% of providers had to transfer patients to other levels of care because of suspected coronavirus, and over 50% had to transfer patients to other levels of care because of safety issues.
“School and daycare closures, meanwhile, have greatly impacted case coverage, exacerbating a chronic workforce shortage that, before COVID-19, was already among home care’s top challenges,” we state in the survey findings. “The use of telehealth technology and modern, commonly used applications such as virtual video telephonic visits will help to alleviate this burden, assure continuity of care, and minimize spread of disease.”