Day three of the 2012 Private Duty Homecare Association Leadership Summit began with attendees learning from their peers at our Birds-of-a-Feather Roundtables. Facilitated by experts on various topics, attendees sat around tables to get input and to discuss ways to grow and improve what they are doing related to the topic. The questions were flying and watching agency owners share their best practices was a great collaborative exercise. Many continued their discussions post-session and planned to exchange contact information post-conference.

Topics at the roundtables included:

• Alternative service offerings
• Modeling private home care services based on a concierge model
• Social media as a marketing tool
• Google & Grandma: SEO tips
• Health care reform
• Grass roots lobbying efforts for home care issues
• Ethics and the new age of private duty home care
• Disaster preparedness
• Long-term care insurance ins and outs
• CRM and workflow processes
• Wage and hour issues

Software Speed Dating

For those interested in learning about scheduling and management software, attendees joined the first-ever software speed dating session. Four different vendors presented for 15 minutes each. They highlighted what differentiated their software as well as highlighted the items that current customers find the most beneficial. Vendors that participated were eSolutions, Generations, Shoshana Technologies, Rosemark and Heath Trust Software.

Closing General Session

Private duty home care agencies are facing business-changing issues from current legislation. From health care reform and all that trickles down from those initiatives, Bill Dombi, Vice President of Law for NAHC, closed the conference with a thorough download from Washington DC Bill opened with the fact that our biggest concern should be how we are going to meet the great and growing demand for care. He added that, because it is an election year, he predicts we will not see the health care reform act repealed in 2012. However, it will be a central part of the 2012 campaigns for presidential election.

In 2012, several issues are on the forefront, including the fate of healthcare reform law at the US Supreme Court. Everyone is really looking toward the US Supreme Court to see what they are going to decide with these cases. What will be affected out of these decisions will be:

• individual mandate which addresses the minimum coverage provision
• Anti-Junction Act which deals with applicability

What might be considered the most impactful issue on the table for private duty is the Companionship Exemption. Bill went through many of the updates about where legislation stands as well as what we can expect in the near future. For a recap of these updates, please watch the Legislative Update videos at www.youtube.com/PDHCA.

NAHC has an action plan which includes conducting an economic impact study as well as a media campaign. Bill mentioned that agencies can go the NAHC website to send messages to Congress.

Post-Conference Intensive: Focus on Sales

Led by Barbara Akst, BA, MA, CEO of Training Unlimited of Virginia, this time served as an interactive work session. Attendees came prepared with their sales plans to focus on goals and objectives to establish action items to carry out upon returning to the office. A key take-away from the session for the attendees was to understand and determine the difference between knowing goals vs. objectives. Another great learning from the session was the acronym “SMART” Goals. SMART stands for specific, measureable, achievable, results focused, time bound. Barbara encouraged attendees to think about what is it that they want in a sales professional in terms of characteristics, what their role will be and what their performance expectations are.

Watch what happened at the Private Duty Homecare Association Leadership Summit on the PDHCA YouTube Channel! 

When Dr. Lance Secretan was introduced and he walked up to the front of the room and continued right past the podium where most speakers would take their station, we knew we were in for something different. Walking the floor with the audience, he engaged from the very beginning. He led with, “We are going to talk about inspiration.”

He discussed leadership as an old concept with a missing piece, which is inspiration. How can you inspire others if you, yourself are not inspired? To dive into that concept, he talked about motivation and how we often as a society confuse motivation with inspiration. We have built companies, incentives, etc. on motivation, which is a fear-based concept. Dr. Secretan encourages us to throw this idea out and shift thinking toward inspiration. To be inspiring to others and to yourself, you must change the words you use. Inspiring words are those with compassion, care and love. “Love leads to inspiration.”

Dr. Secretan asked, “How do you run a healthcare business when the game around you changes all the time?” Take a good look at your leadership team. He stated that because we are human beings, all leadership teams are dysfunctional to some extent. The first thing we need to do is align and correct  these teams. To do so, ask three questions and have everyone in the leadership team share these responses with each other.

1. Why am I here? This is your destiny.
2. What is my calling? This is your calling.
3. How will I be? This is your character.

This is called the “Why Be Do.”

Another major component of Dr. Secretan’s insight had to do with the concept of Permission Space. What will people allow you to do? What is accepted by your customer base? You will be given permission to be great if you do these things. As an agency, figure out what those things are, plot them on a map and follow it.

“Inspiration drives performance.”-Dr. Lance Secretan.

“Authenticity is the alignment of the mind, the mouth, the heart and the feet.” -Dr. Lance Secretan

Paul Kusserow, Humana

Paul opened with a powerful statement. He believes home care, despite the uncertain healthcare landscape, is an extraordinary business to be in—and will change the way we age.

He discussed how Humana took the principles of Dr. Secretan and changed the dynamic of the company. Fundamentally, Humana wanted to establish a continuum of care for their customers. They wanted to start the dialogue about wellbeing with customers before they were ill. They believed this was in their permission space.

To this end, Humana began to research their customer base to see what their customers’ impressions of wellbeing were.

Through this process, Humana realized that they wanted to be “all things senior.” They see a great deal of opportunity for home care companies in telehealth and helping families become a part of the care process. Agencies should think about how to expand their influence. He concluded with, “Humana wants to inspire people to be the best they can be and partner with them to do that.”

Make sure to see Val J. Halamandaris’ recap of his thoughts on the keynote speakers at http://youtu.be/NbsU5jzQNDU.

Education Sessions

PDHCA was honored to host a series of education sessions in the afternoon with dynamic content for attendees. For clips of the sessions, visit PDHCA’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/PDHCA.

Session topics included:

• Get more web visibility, traffic and leads
• New rules of home care growth in the post-recession age
• Negotiating the sale of a home care agency
• Legal issues concerning websites, blogs and social media
• Attracting and retaining the A+ caregiver
• Making sense out of private duty’s role in transitional care
• Focused networking as an art form that drives sales
• Obtaining insurance benefits for your clients’ care
• Quality & customer service: two sides of the same coin

Continue to follow PDHCA Conference updates at #PDHCASummit on Twitter and watch important video of conference speakers on the PDHCA YouTube Channel! 

• Mommy and baby programs
• Day of sugary support
• Cruise companions
• Home modification
• Holiday helpers

She pointed out that business is anything your customers are willing to pay for and that you can provide confidently. She also recommended that you heed caution when considering new services. In other words, give careful thought before launching. Make sure you follow state rules.

A big focus in the pre-conference intensive was the Operations Dashboard. Knowing where you are in terms of data will be the only way agencies can remain profitable and successful during growth. Agencies have to know what costs are: productivity of staff, cost of leads, cost of referrals, conversion ratios, average hours per new client, per active client, loss ratio, etc.—bottom line, you have to look at gross profit and net. A good operational dashboard will help you figure that out. According to Ginny, “Salespeople should be making 25 to 30 sales calls per week.” Additionally, she advises that agency owners should make sure salespeople know their “speak” when marketing to referral sources.

Next up was Patricia Drea, focusing on benchmarking. She recommended that small agencies (those with revenue under $500k) track key indicators such as:

• Lead tracking
• Lead conversion
• Monthly profit & loss

For agencies with $1M and above, Patricia noted that a referral analysis should be added. It is also at this point that she recommends following up with customer service surveys to make sure the quality of service is still there and allowing for measurement of change.

Once an agency moves into the $3M and up revenue category, a comparative performance between people on staff should be added. Scorecards and process improvement are necessary for improving performance, and Patricia was quoted as saying, “Make sure to continue to use benchmarking after implementing process improvements so you don’t slide backwards.”

Some of the numbers that agencies should pay attention to when benchmarking are the average number of hours per care recipient. This value lets you know if you are recruiting fast enough. Also, pay attention to profit margin. Patricia stated, “Industry standards say that the average profit is 15 to 20%.”

A big takeaway for the groups was this simple, but powerful statement, “You won’t make up profit margin with volume.

Patricia also recommended that office staff salaries and benefits should be 12 to 16% of total gross revenue.

A great take-away from the entire pre-conference intensive for all agencies is, “Private duty agencies need to become data-driven organizations.”

Scott Spangler wrapped up the morning session with a quote about the positive effects of having a functional operational dashboard, “The dashboard is a great tool to catch greatness.”

Continue to follow PDHCA Conference updates at #PDHCASummit on Twitter and watch important video of conference speakers on the PDHCA YouTube Channel! 

The pre-conference workshop will happen Monday, January 23, 2012, from 8:30-11:45 a.m.

Topics covered:

• How to set up a private duty business correctly.
• Chart of accounts.
• How to read a P&L statement.
• Cash flow and profitability.
• What is the best way to classify home care for accounting?
• Dashboard – division of types of services, by hours scheduled.
• From tuck-ins to wake-ups to live-ins, and the costs related to each as a way of determining service mix.
• Caregiver types, pay and responsibilities.
• Referral sources by type.
• Admissions by source – understanding where referrals come from that are turning into real clients.
• How to get more of the clients with the higher revenue.
• Service offerings that make the most money? Differing offerings and how to measure and manage each.
• Caregiver turnover ratio and how to figure.
• How to develop a profile for the ideal caregiver and orientation.
• Screening and hiring processes and training.

Enjoy the chance for unbeatable professional development, and learn from educational sessions on effective operations, marketing and human relations at this year’s Private Duty Home Care Leadership Summit & Expo. For more details about the conference, please visit: http://www.nahc.org/Meetings/PD/12/program.pdf.

PDHCA is hosting a great lineup of expert speakers, and you will certainly profit from three intense days, packed with innovative and easy-to-implement ideas. Learn how you and your staff can provide better service and be more productive every day while keeping ahead of the competition.

Why Attend this Meeting?

• There will be something for everyone—from new agencies to well-established, multi-office operations
• Earn continuing education credits in nursing and social work
• Build relationships & network with industry vendors and peers
• Benefit from an interactive Home Care Software Speed Dating session, plus Software User Groups
• For the first time, PDHCA is offering a pre-conference intensive on operations & systems, and a post-conference intensive on selling for experienced sales and marketing personnel

Type of Education Offered?

• A surprise keynote speaker to motivate and move attendees
• A panel of referral sources giving attendees an inside look as to why they would refer
• Educational sessions on effective operations, marketing, and human resource
• Peer-to-peer learning at Birds-of-a-Feather roundtable discussions guided by industry leaders

To register or for more information on the conference, please visit  http://www.nahc.org/Meetings/PD/12/. Be sure to mark your calendar. Viva Las Vegas!

My experience spans nearly all aspects of the home care industry—from owning and operating a home care agency to serving on national boards and influencing political leaders on home care issues. Today, I’ve assumed the role of home care marketing expert and provide counsel to national organizations and businesses on aging and care issues as well as strategic marketing for products aimed at those targets. I’m also armed with strategic knowledge of the latest developments in mobile technology and social media, a new frontier for leaders in home care—so I aim to introduce a fresh marketing perspective that is relevant to audiences today.

More details about the Private Care Conference can be found here. Have questions about marketing your own home care agency? I would love the opportunity to strategize your marketing needs.

Let PDHCA know how you fit into this leadership conference as a presenter, or send me some ideas about ways that home care is working to engage clients and patients so their aging in place experience is not a lonely, isolated one without activity.

Thank you for your consideration and participation!

Proposals are accepted until July 15^th . The theme for this year’s conference is “Activity Enhanced Home Care,” and how to provide best in class products, services and training to direct care staff to help engage those who are receiving in-home care. The theme would also work for management and operational ideas to make activities and engagement a goal for working with in-home care, coordinating with NAHC’s five equities: intellectual equity, financial equity, physical equity, psychological equity and spiritual equity.

As the in-home care industry matures, and more players enter the market, what services are offered, how they are offered, and how processes are put in place to monitor and add value are all changing and evolving.  PDHCA as an association is ahead of the curve in assisting membership to grow businesses, and understand the nuances of long term in-home care.

Think about either how you can fit into this leadership conference as a presenter, or send me some ideas about ways that home care is working to engage clients and patient’s so their aging in place experience is not a lonely,  isolated one with no activity.

January 22-25, 2012
Bellagio Resort & Casino
Las Vegas, Nevada
For more information, visit NAHC’s website.
Registration coming soon!

Wednesday in Austin for the Texas Association for Home Care and Hospice private duty conference where the crowd was attentive about using social media and ways to target chronic care for best results for clients and for agencies.

Today is New Mexico and the New Mexico Association for Home and Hospice Care and their spring conference where attendees will listen raptly to innovation and adaptability as keys to success, which is really a combination of all that has gone on this week, plus some industry insights, trends and suggestions as to how to compete in this rapidly changing marketplace.

Also, although I did mention the latest Gold Award on the last post, I failed to mention that this award was sought after by 3000 entries and corecubed‘s wining it with one of our MOST themes, puts us in the top 5% of agencies in the country.

Options to Age at Home wins Aster Award

With all that is happening around the world, and with so much affecting each of our worlds, I have a momentous task this morning of bringing it all together at the Missouri Alliance of Home Care’s Annual Conference in the Ozarks where I key note on social media, industry trends and changes in the home care world.

My mother used to say to me, “Whoever told you life was fair?” and I have oft repeated that. However, fairness and really learning how to live with what we are given, how to set goals and strive for me that is within our reach, and how to best work towards a future that we want for our grandchildren and theirs should be on all of our minds.

Today’s key note will not be THAT all consuming, but that quote “Life isn’t about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.” Is one that I think should bring a smile to everyone’s face and help out when the going gets tough.

The first is a song by Brett Ethridge about Raymond, the maintenance man at a memory care facility,  who one of the residents thought was her son. That “getting inside the life” of the Alzheimer’s patient was one theme of Dr. Carson’s talk, and no more powerful way to understand that than to see the interaction of the maintenance man with the patient.  It is copywrited, so cannot show it here, but there is a link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txCUwSKo1kg&ob=av3el

The second example was music, and Naomi Feil, an icon in validation therapy, brings a 3^rd stage Alzheimer’s patient into interaction through singing and touch. This powerful and moving video is proof that even at end stages of this degenerative disease, breakthroughs are possible if the caregiver gets inside the lives of the patient. For some reason I cannot embed this video, but here is a link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrZXz10FcVM

Retrogenesis is a controversial topic, but it is just one method of working with Alzheimer’s patients, and those who care for someone with Alzheimer’s should have many tools in their tool boxes, and whatever works best is what should get used. The goal is quality patient care and Dr. Carson certainly can teach how to communicate with those who have Alzheimer’s.

Jones is currently Chairman of Kayak.com and CIO of Sabre, Inc and a true innovator. Come to Long Beach, join the conference, and listen to Terry Jones start us off with envisioning the future.

Then you WILL have a Happy New Year for certain, as you will be ahead of the competition!