Driving operational success in home-based palliative care with Sarah Kivett, BSN, RN, CHPN, Director of Palliative Care Services, Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County
In this episode of the Post-Acute POV, our host, Melissa Polly, director of marketing for home & hospice, sits down with Sarah Kivett, BSN, RN, CHPN, director of palliative care services, Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County. The topic for their conversation is driving operational success in home-based palliative care and how to start a palliative care program within your organization.
Join Melissa and Sarah as they discuss the foundation of success for a new home-based palliative care program: ensuring organizational buy-in, understanding payer sources, being patient, and more. This episode will provide a firsthand look at obstacles your organization may face when starting a palliative care program and tips for finding success. Listen to their discussion below.
Topics discussed during today’s episode:
- [01:11 – 03:23]: Sarah provides her origin story and explains outpatient palliative care and its importance.
- [03:35 – 06:05]: She then shares her top tips for creating a successful palliative care program, including organizational buy-in and a strong understanding of palliative care.
- [6:21 – 9:20]: Next, Sarah and Melissa discuss the reasons organizations may fail when starting a palliative care program, including being impatient and failing to understand their payer sources.
- [9:46 – 13:01]: Sarah walks us through how Iredell’s hospital-based palliative care program works and how clinicians document using the EHR.
- [13:22 – 17:48]: They then discuss the types of interoperability that are key in palliative care, including e-referrals and direct messaging.
- [18:06 – 19:38]: Finally, Sarah describes how CommonWell and Carequality have helped her team drive operational success.
- [19:54 – 21:54]: Sarah leaves us with advice for organizations considering starting their own palliative care program.
Resources
- Learn more about MatrixCare at: https://matrixcare.com/
- Find out more about Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County: https://www.hoic.org/
- Listen to more episodes of the Post-Acute POV
Related resources
Points to consider when getting started in palliative care
Many home health and hospice agencies want the ability to offer their patients continuous care, from the home all the way to hospice. To do so, many are considering expanding into palliative care. So, if your agency has thought about making this move, read some key points to consider.
Interoperability done right can improve care, decrease costs
Facilities that refer patients to post-acute care settings increasingly expect robust interoperability to make patient transfers as seamless as possible, for both the patient and providers. Iredell County Hospice and Palliative Care have seen first-hand the difference interoperability can make for their referral sources and staff when implemented correctly.
