New ProMedica Care Option Enables Select Patients to Receive Hospital-Level Care at Home

ProMedica, a mission-based, not-for-profit health and well-being organization, is pleased to introduce ProMedica Acute Care at Home, an alternative care option for patients that brings virtual, high-tech hospital-level care directly to the homes of patients who would have traditionally required hospitalization.

ProMedica Acute Care at Home provides high-acuity medical care to patients for several illnesses, including COVID-19, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pneumonia and cellulitis. The solution offers a network of services and health care professionals who are available to respond to a patient’s health concerns at any time.

The health care model offers individualized care plans and a variety of features, including:

• 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week access to a patient’s care team that will respond to medical needs in person, by video and/or telephone.
• Patients are under the care of a hospitalist and they receive daily video visits by the physician and acute care nurses.
• Vital signs obtained using remote monitoring equipment.
• In-home visits by health care professionals, such as mobile integrated health paramedics, registered nurses, nurse practitioners and physical and occupational therapists.
• Lab tests, mobile imaging like X-ray and ultrasound, and IV therapies performed in a patient’s home.
• Durable medical equipment like shower chairs, grab bars, oxygen and hospital beds.
• Collaboration with a patient’s primary care physician and/or specialists.
• Complete report of a patient’s care sent to his or her primary care physician.

“When we live by our mission and values, we create an environment that is centered around our patients. The goal of ProMedica Acute Care at Home is to deliver acute hospital-level care to patients in the comfort of their own home,” said Holly Bristoll, chief integration officer, ProMedica. “By providing this level of care when appropriate, we are able to improve patient outcomes while reducing health care costs and enhancing the patient experience.”

ProMedica admitted its first patient to ProMedica Acute Care at Home on October 1, 2020. The service, which is covered by some commercial insurance plans, is one of the first in the nation to receive approval for a special waiver from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The waiver, developed to help U.S. hospitals and health systems manage inpatient volume during the COVID-19 pandemic, enables ProMedica Toledo Hospital and ProMedica Flower Hospital to provide ProMedica Acute Care at Home to qualified Medicare patients. ProMedica plans to request CMS approval for additional hospitals within its system soon.

“We are glad we have ProMedica Acute Care at Home up and running, especially given the needs associated with the current pandemic,” said Bristoll. “Also, we are grateful CMS recognized the benefits of being able to treat qualified acute care patients in home settings and acknowledged ProMedica’s ability to appropriately and safely provide this innovative care.”

A 2016 study by the Commonwealth Fund compared patients in traditional hospitals with similar conditions to patients who received hospital-level care at home. The patients who received hospital-level care at home experienced fewer readmissions, lower mortality rates, reduced falls and lower costs.

“In addition to enabling better outcomes for patients, the ProMedica Acute Care at Home option allows patients to be more engaged and empowered with their medical care,” said Brian Perkins, MD, vice president, medical operations, ProMedica Acute Care at Home. “Doctors and nurses can see patients who are in the comfort of their own living space, and help evaluate any physical barriers in the house, stay abreast of dietary needs or changes, and monitor emotional health and well-being.”

ProMedica chose Medically Home Group as its ProMedica Acute Care at Home partner based on the organization’s innovative clinical and services model for delivering acute-level hospital care in the home. Medically Home’s technology platform and associated decision-support and advanced analytics functions allow physicians and nurses to manage all aspects of a patient’s care, the supply chain needed to deliver that care in the home, and the collection and proper handling of patient data, meshing with hospital electronic health record systems.

“Together with ProMedica, Medically Home leadership shares a passion for transforming health care to include stronger bonds between patient and health care provider, reduced costs, improved clinical outcomes, faster recovery times, and a return to a more compassionate delivery of high-acuity care in the patient's home, when appropriate,” said Rami Karjian, CEO of Medically Home.

The Hospital at Home Model: Bringing Hospital-Level Care to the Patient (Sarah Klein, Martha Hostetter and Douglas McCarthy; Commonwealth Fund; 2016)