Our Government Relations department works tirelessly to advocate for decisions made by legislatures at the federal, state, and local levels that benefit home healthcare patients, families, and employees. With the ever-changing landscape and the nursing shortage, it’s essential to know what home health can expect now and in the years to come.
What is Currently Happening?
“In our 2022 blog, we discussed the nursing shortage,” said Bill Sczepanski, Team Select Vice President of Government Relations. “Well, it hasn’t gone away, and in my honest opinion, I believe the nursing shortage will continue to impact the home health industry for the next decade.”
But what is contributing to the nursing shortage?
While that isn’t an easy answer, there are several factors contributing to the nursing shortage, including:
- Nurse burnout
- Lack of rate increases
- Aging workforce
Speaking to a facility and hospital setting, studies also show that violence in the healthcare setting contributes to the nursing shortage. According to this article, “Violence in the healthcare setting plays a role in the nursing shortage, the ever-present threat of emotional or physical abuse, adding to an already stressful environment. Job satisfaction and work effort are affected negatively, as the physical and emotional insults take a toll on the well-being of the healthcare professional physically and emotionally.”
Last year, Team Select Home Care created several programs to help newly graduated nurses and those wanting to enter the home health space through training programs and tuition assistance under the Tuition Assistance Programs & Continuing Education opportunities. These programs also help combat the nationwide nursing shortage. These opportunities include:
This program serves as a home care concierge, parent advocate, and source of support throughout a parent’s educational journey to becoming an LPN. Team Select is proud to offer this program to parents of medically complex individuals and provides family-centered support!
This educational program is created for LPNs and RNs who are seeking continued education with future, job-related coursework, or seeking to obtain tuition reimbursement for their recent diploma, certificate, or degree (after January 1, 2021).
Created for new Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) and Registered Nursing (RN) program graduates. Team Select is prepared to offer up to $5,250 in direct tuition reimbursement, per LPN or RN, per year of employment.
There has also been significant movement with the expansion of the Family CNA Program nationwide, with three states currently implementing this program (Montana, Florida, and New Jersey).
“Though we have made this impactful program available in several additional states such as Arizona, New Hampshire, Indiana, Pennsylvania, California, and Massachusetts, there is still lots of work to be done to help additional medically fragile families,” exclaimed Bill.
The Family CNA Program offers an alternative, cost-effective care model that solves for struggling, medically fragile families and their loved ones. This program allows parents and legal guardians of medically fragile children to become paid, certified caregivers for their medically fragile loved ones at no cost to them or the state they reside in.
The reality of this program is – parents don’t have to jeopardize their relationships to properly care for their children and can feel more supported at every turn.
“Not long ago, on June 6, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the endorsement of paid parent caregivers for this medically complex and fragile population,” said Bill. “This is important and something Team Select and other home health agencies have been asking for – for years. Not only will this help home health agencies, but will drive more awareness at a federal and state level.”
Proudly offering this program in six of our ten states, we encourage you to learn how you can become a paid caregiver for your loved one today.
How You Can Help
To continue helping our medically complex and fragile communities nationwide legislatively, we urge you to become an Advocate through Team Select’s advocacy campaign, The Unforgotten Families.
If you haven’t already, you can also follow along on our social media pages and see how Team Select continues to change the home care landscape – and keep an eye out for any legislative updates!
