Home care sales professionals play a vital role in helping seniors transition from skilled nursing facilities to home care. To be successful in this field, it's helpful to understand the daily challenges and needs of the social workers who coordinate these transitions. Here are some key insights from a conversation with Angelica, a rehab social worker.
Find us at https://asnhomecaremarketing.com/home-care-sales-training-options/
Home care sales professionals play a vital role in helping seniors transition from skilled nursing facilities to home care. To be successful in this field, it's helpful to understand the daily challenges and needs of the social workers who coordinate these transitions. Here are some key insights from a conversation with Angelica, a rehab social worker.
Find us at https://asnhomecaremarketing.com/home-care-sales-training-options/
Hi everyone. I'm Dawn Fiella with the Prove Senior Network. Today we're going to be interviewing a social worker that does discharges in a skilled nursing facility. We I know we all really want to hear their day-to-day and how we can help them, and so today that's what we're going to be doing, and I also have Annette with me. Annette, go ahead and introduce yourself.
Speaker 2:
Hi, I'm Annette Ziegler and I'm with the Proof Senior Network and I'm one of the sales training experts, and I am very happy to introduce Angelica, who is a rehab social worker.
Speaker 1:
Hi, angelica, thank you so much for joining us today. I know that this series is going to be so popular because I've been doing it and also it's not to age both of us, but we've been doing this for close to 20 years and I've just always wanted to know, well, what do they want? You know, what can we do, how can we help? Because we're very anyone in the senior care industry is very just heart right. We're all about the heart and taking care and we're passionate and we want to do everything we can to make the discharges easier for the patient and for you as well. So we just have a few questions for you, although I could probably talk all day on this. First of all, do you have home care? Liaisons stop by to see you. So, first of all, do you have home?
Speaker 3:
care liaisons stop by to see you. I do quite often. Sometimes it's the pop-in visits where they'll leave something, you know at the front desk if I'm not available or not in my office. But some of them do try and set up some meetings so that we can sit down and either do like a little lunch and learn or something.
Speaker 1:
Okay, okay. And so you do meet with them from time to time to hear about their services. How, how do they? What's the best way for them to approach you to? Because this we do a training class, and so when we talk to them we say you know, the social workers know what home care is like. They're not going to spend time with you to hear about what home care is. You need to have something of value to share with them. Do you agree with that? What kinds of things are they sharing with you? Or what do they say to you that goes I need to talk to this one, I need to sit with them, I need to hear what they have to say.
Speaker 3:
Definitely if they have a specialty. I've noticed some agencies that have been kind of popping up around in the community. Some of them focus more on like wound care or something or a specialty. You know a lot of our folks here in rehab lately have been quite medically complex. So when they have those like attention grabbers that's a big thing too and just to kind of hear about, sometimes like pamphlets will drop off or something, have an immediate like price or a time frame that you know they have at the minimum. That's something that's definitely intriguing and it's always good to know. Some agencies you know have a minimum of you know, six hours every other day. So things like that, just kind of knowing those off the bat, those are normally the most helpful pieces when I meet with them.
Speaker 1:
Okay, okay, great, and so how big, I mean, how many beds do you have where you are? I'm just trying to get a general sense of people discharging, is there?
Speaker 3:
Discharges are very frequent. We have 16 beds on this rehab here 16 or 60?
Speaker 1:
16, one, six, okay, so there's 16 beds, and so how many discharges would you say you have in a given week?
Speaker 3:
On a very busy week, we're looking at probably four or more. On a longer week, we're probably looking maybe one to two.
Speaker 1:
So so up to a quarter of your people kind of revolve, and then you're you're filling beds at the same time, right, and so it's like this forever. So do all of the people that discharge go home with home care or what? I'm sorry I'm throwing different questions at you, but I'm just curious. Do they all kind of go home, like what is the deciding factor? Like this one needs home care, this one's gonna be just fine without home care.
Speaker 3:
So it's kind of a mix. It depends on, like again I was saying, a lot of our folks here are clinically complex, not your typical hips, knees and feet, you know, fractures in a week or so. A lot of our people I'm knowing have or noticing have a lot of um extenuating circumstances that either get them more time in rehab or a very short time.
Speaker 3:
On average, I would say our patients here get about two to three weeks, based on what insurance sees in their progress. A lot of people are either staying for long-term care if their needs can't be met in the community or if they prefer not to hire care at home. But if someone is returning home with care, there's either therapy is unable to make them independent before insurance is cutting coverage, so we're recommending that as a safe discharge plan or if they're just feeling that they want a little more support at home. A lot of people come from living home alone or if they return to an assisted living facility, sometimes they may have a wound or something that the facility won't manage and they'll hire an agency to kind of subsidize what they need.
Speaker 1:
Okay, okay. And so why do you choose? We were asking this question of everybody. Why do you choose one home care agency over another? What is it that maybe builds your confidence in them? Is it the rep you just feel like you can trust? Is it? What is that essence, or whatever it is that gets you to go? This one's the real deal. You know I can trust her. Or maybe it's not that, I guess. I don't know.
Speaker 3:
I would say kind of a mix of things. The reputation of the agency obviously is important. Different experiences that I would have with the liaison Agency obviously is important. Different experiences that I would have with the liaison. A lot of families too. I ask them to check back and kind of give a little update on how their experience was. So just from my experience in the field I kind of put together what agency I feel would fit best for the particular client too. If I know their personality and kind of the personality of the caregivers that they may have at home, that kind of helps me try to match it up. And then, if we have enough time, like if insurance isn't an issue quite yet, I typically recommend the families to do interviews themselves to see who they feel most comfortable with and encourage the patient to if they want to.
Speaker 1:
Oh, that's great. Okay, and how can a home care agency make your job easier? What can we do as liaisons? I know that we in training we say you know it's probably best to do the assessment there in the facility, so discharge is ready. You know, we have the caregiver, everything's all set for when they discharge. That's one thing I've thought through the years might make things easier for you guys, and maybe it does. I hope that it does, but is there anything else that would make your job easier?
Speaker 3:
I definitely say like meeting the patient and their family. You know, if they're doing the interviews and assessments in the rehab facility, that's best. Obviously we want to try to figure out what level of care they're needing before they get home. It's easy for the families to if they're already visiting their loved one. No-transcript, probably like scheduling a meeting time. I just I always feel so guilty if I'm not at my desk or not able to if someone pops in. So just being able to kind of connect, I would find that most helpful. Leaving like pamphlets or brochures or something like at the front desk if I'm not there, obviously that's wonderful too. But just for some kind of like follow-up too, it's helpful to actually meet some.
Speaker 1:
That just brings me to another. So when we, when we do the training, we're explaining, you know, just drop off, don't expect a face to face all the time. So it's probably better. I didn't think about the guilty part Because maybe, yeah, I can, I can see that now that you say that I'm so glad we're doing this, now that you say that I can see, like, oh gosh, she's at the front again and again I can't see her, it may be best not to try to bring you out and just leave it Like and I used to do that, I used to just like not even try, and then I would. I would leave a voicemail or email hey, I just left you something, just wanted you to know, and then off I ran because I didn't think about the guilt. But it would be hard if, like every day, every time, she's here again and I still can't meet. You know, I can understand the guilt behind that.
Speaker 3:
Yeah, and I definitely do feel bad, you know, if it's the same agency too and that happens often where they'll leave things and they don't expect me to, you know, run out from wherever I am. But still, I just kind of would like to kind of close that loop and be able to connect. But it is, I think, most helpful if someone was to for personally for me an email, so we're not playing phone tag and I, you know, normally that's when the disconnect gets there.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, yeah, I think emails are good and that we've had others say that as well. So how many companies I don't know. And again, some skilled nursing facilities have like rules like you have to give three companies for each family, or do you have? How does that work where you are, or just where you've worked ever, you know, do you need to give more than one company or how does that work?
Speaker 3:
So the facility that I'm working for right now there's not a minimum per se, that you know. They don't say we have to recommend so many. Just from personal experience I try to do three to four if I can, and again depending on what the patient's need is. If they're needing just hands-on care, you know you go one route. But if they're just a companion level of care, there's normally fewer agencies that do that. So it just kind of depends on how many are available to at that time.
Speaker 1:
Okay, okay. And how many days does someone typically stay in your rehab? I know it's based on you, know, but on average, what would you say? The average is for the short-term rehab.
Speaker 3:
I would say anywhere from 14 to 21 days We've been seeing a lot of people with. They're very medically complex so they get a little more time if they have something like IV antibiotics or a PEG tube or they're non-weight bearing for a while. But if someone comes in with just like a simple elective, like hip surgery, they're shying more on the seven to 14 days side of things. So it really depends on each insurance too.
Speaker 1:
And so if you had someone coming in, so so I I'm just going to put myself in your place and I could be totally wrong. But someone comes in and they've got the whole IV and they're medically complex and stuff and they're going to be here a while, versus someone maybe with hip and it's going to be 14 days or whatever. When do you start thinking about discharge? When do you get that home care provider stuff going Like is it close to discharge halfway through?
Speaker 3:
What are your I always say discharge planning starts on the day they get here.
Speaker 1:
honestly, I've heard that too. I didn't want to put you on this spot, but I have heard that that is like my motto.
Speaker 3:
I had five admissions yesterday and I'm already planning it today, kind of thing, and it depends on the person. So we've had, like you were mentioning, we've had some people that come in and they're on IV antibiotics for six weeks. So they're going to be covered for at least that six weeks. So we have a little more time to kind of. So I look a little more as maybe like two or so weeks in just to see what level they're at, versus if someone's coming in and we think it's going to be a shorter stay, we're going to start looking within the first week. I already start the conversations with the patients, if you know, if they can, and their families to start looking, encouraging all that things, cause there's other things that also go with hiring a home care agency is the home setup, is the medical equipment you know already there? Do we have to purchase it? Things like that. Just so we try to make it as seamless as possible for everyone.
Speaker 1:
And that's, and that's a good thing for us to realize Like we're just a piece of what you're doing for discharge there's. There's a good thing for us to realize Like we're just a piece of what you're doing for Discharge. There's a whole lot, because maybe now they need a walker and maybe now you know like things could have. This could have been a life changer event for them, you know, especially as they get older. Yeah Well, I really appreciate all of this. Angelica, thank you so much for being a guest today. I really appreciate it. And Ann, I didn't know if you had anything to. I asked so many questions. There may not be anything left.
Speaker 2:
I mean you pretty much asked everything you know. One other thing I was wondering too was so I had asked I just you know I know email's good to connect with you, but a lot when I was in the field I had a lot of the social workers' cell phones so I would text, and how do you feel about that? I felt that was quicker, and you know my point of view. I was able to connect with the social worker quicker. Are you okay with that? Do you like when they text you and or would you prefer email, or how do you feel about that?
Speaker 3:
Kind of. I mean, I have my cell phone on me most of the time. We're normally not supposed to have them on the units, but like if you have Apple watches, it's kind of easy. I don't mind, if you know, if they text obviously within reason.
Speaker 1:
Not every single day Right.
Speaker 3:
Just about a client Texts are normally easier for me, so I don't mind it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, okay, good Well thank you. It was great to meet you. I appreciate your time today and and thank you so much.
