60% of Referral Sources Would Switch to a Home Health and Hospice Provider that Accepts Electronic Referrals, Survey Reveals
Survey also finds only 4% of home health and hospice organizations are able to accept electronic referrals from a referral source EMR system
The survey was conducted by Porter Research, and is the first to interview both home health and hospice providers (675 respondents) and their referral sources (440 respondents). It found that electronic referrals are high on the priority list:
- 70% of home health and hospice organizations reported an increase in the number of referral sources requesting referral data to be sent electronically over the past 1-2 years;
- 60% of referring providers said they would switch to a new post-acute care provider if that organization were able to accept electronic referrals; and
- Only 4% of home health and hospice organizations reported they were able to accept electronic referrals from a referral source (electronic medical record) EMR system.
This lack of automation and reliance on manual labor takes a toll on post-acute providers’ bottom lines. According to the survey findings, almost two-thirds of home health and hospice organizations require several full-time equivalents (FTEs) each month tracking down data and documents they feel could be obtained with better integration in place.
“Interoperability is no longer an option, but an essential aspect of any home health and hospice business,” said Nick Knowlton, Brightree vice president of strategic initiatives. “We were pleased to find users of our Brightree home health and hospice solution were among respondents reporting the highest ability to receive electronic referrals properly, but there’s still tremendous opportunity to continue bridging the gap.”
Many post-acute care providers are considering interoperability a business necessity. According to the survey:
- 30% of home health and hospice organizations said they are planning to expand their efforts into interoperability this year; and
- 31% claim they would even switch electronic health record (EHR) systems if they found one that could better support their interoperability needs.
Download the survey’s white paper and full results at http://info.brightree.com/SurveyPR.html
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About MatrixCare
MatrixCare enables long-term, post-acute care (LTPAC) organizations to provide better health outcomes for seniors while successfully managing risk in out-of-hospital care delivery. Multiyear winner of the Best in KLAS Award for Long-Term Care Software, MatrixCare is trusted by thousands of senior living, skilled nursing, and accountable care organizations; life plan communities; and private-duty, home health, and hospice agencies. MatrixCare’s active care management platform helps providers connect and collaborate to keep America’s seniors healthy and optimize outcomes for the populations under their care.
MatrixCare is a wholly owned subsidiary of ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD). To learn more, visit matrixcare.com and follow @MatrixCare on Twitter.
About Brightree
Brightree enables out-of-hospital care organizations to improve their business performance and deliver better health outcomes. As an industry-leading cloud-based healthcare IT company, Brightree provides solutions and services for thousands of organizations in home medical equipment and pharmacy, home health, hospice, orthotic and prosthetic, home infusion, and rehabilitation home care. Brightree is a wholly owned subsidiary of ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD). To learn more, visit www.brightree.com and follow @Brightree on Twitter.
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