Frail Home Health Patients More Likely To Be Readmitted Than Facility Care Patients

Frail patients who are admitted into home health following a hospital stay have a higher chance of being readmitted, in comparison to individuals who receive facility-based care after their release.

This suggests that frail patients receiving home health services may require heightened observation, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society that connects the impact of frailty on hospital discharge settings and readmission outcomes. 

As part of the study, researchers looked at over 23,000 hospitalized older adults at one U.S.-based health care system from January 2021 to September 2023. The average age of the study cohort was 76.7 years old.

While seniors receiving home health post-hospital discharge were more likely to be readmitted compared to those who were discharged into facility-based care, the study also found that these patients were in a better position than individuals who were sent home without any care. Researchers found that these home health patients had a lower risk of readmission.

“This may reflect that frail individuals receiving structured home care may benefit from closer monitoring,” the study’s authors wrote.

Researchers also categorized seniors in accordance with their frailty levels. Specifically, 22% of study participants were considered non-frail, 46% pre-frail, 23% frail and 8% severely frail.

The study found that frailty was a risk factor associated with 90-day hospital readmissions and mortality. Overall, 21% of patients were readmitted within 90 days of a hospital discharge and 15% of patients passed away within 90 days of hospital discharge.

Over the years, some home-based care providers have made it their mission to tailor their care for the sickest and frailest seniors.

Care Advantage is one example of this. The company once teamed up with Anthem to form a pay-for-performance program that focused on this patient population.

HarmonyCares currently partners with Medicare Advantage (MA) plans to serve their high-needs, frail populations, through value-based arrangements.

The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) is also well-positioned to address the needs of frail seniors.

“The PACE model is successful because it’s designed to meet frail seniors where they are — providing what really is a concierge-like care experience to help them stay independent, as long as possible,” Dr. Richard Feifer, former CMO of InnovAge (Nasdaq: INNV), previously told Home Health Care News on an episode of Disrupt. “That is the entire mission of PACE.”

The post Frail Home Health Patients More Likely To Be Readmitted Than Facility Care Patients appeared first on Home Health Care News.