Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Monday, September 16 – Wednesday, September 18, 2024 | Charlotte, NC

DecisionHealth’s Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference will be held September 16-18, 2024, at the Sheraton Charlotte Hotel, in Charlotte, NC.

Calling all home health quality managers and clinical supervisors – this is your event! Learn how to positively impact your home health agency’s quality outcomes and ensure documentation compliance and proper payments.

This is your chance to attend the most in-depth, comprehensive training aimed at providing you with the tools, resources and guidance you need to tackle the documentation and quality challenges your agency faces on a daily basis. This conference will feature compelling, real-life examples of how home health agencies have improved their patient care and quality outcomes while also boosting productivity and maintaining compliance.

• Top medical review denials & tips to keep your payments
• Quickly implement key OASIS & Coding guidance changes
• Workshop delving into key pieces of home health documentation compliance including OASIS & coding, POC and visit notes
• Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) best practices to achieve bonuses
• QAPI programs that result in HHCoP compliance and HHVBP success
• Deep dive into OASIS functional items to ensure accurate payment and positive patient outcomes
• Improve your patient satisfaction and star ratings scores
• Machine-learning methods that will results in improved hospitalization rates
• Advanced care planning leads to value-based success, lower acute care hospitalizations, and improved patient and family satisfaction
• Using data to rally clinicians and drive quality efforts
• And Much More!

Plus: Network with your colleagues, earn BMSC and Nursing CEs, and take back tools, tips and training to share with other clinicians at your agency!

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Preconference: Documentation Compliance Drives Clinical and Financial Success

Monday, September 16, 2024

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
REGISTRATION & CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Top Medical Review Denials Exposed & Tips to Keep Your Money
Brian Lebanion, MBA, CPC, RNC, HCS-O, HCS-D
Dive into the most common traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage medical review denials related to face-to-face encounters, medical necessity, homebound and more, and test your knowledge by rating whether real-life documentation examples would pass medical review. Plus, get tips for crafting the appropriate response to requests for more information and understand the intricacies of the appeals process to prevent having payments held up in denials.

Tool: Face-to-Face Best Practices & Examples; Audit Best Practice Worksheet; and Do's and Don'ts of Documentation

9:15 a.m. – 9:35 a.m.
NETWORKING & REFRESHMENT BREAK

9:35 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.
Stay on Ahead of OASIS & Coding Guidance Changes
Robbi Funderburk James, BSN, RN, HCS-O, HCS-D, HCS-H
Understand the latest OASIS-E and ICD-10 coding guidance changes and prioritize their impact to focus training and quality reviews. Get a rundown of the 2024 CMS quarterly OASIS Q&As, Coding Clinic guidance changes, recommendations from the ICD-10 C&M Committee, and FY2025 code and guidance changes. You'll also walk through scenarios that illustrate correct implementation of new codes and guidelines and reveal the consequences of noncompliance.

Tool: Quick Reference to FY2025 ICD-10 Coding Changes Frequently Encountered in Home Health and Hospice; Quick Reference to 2024 OASIS Q&As and OASIS Changes for 2025; GG0130 and GG0170 Decision Tree

Workshop: Align Documentation for Quality & Compliance

Use real patient scenarios to delve into the key pieces of home health documentation compliance including OASIS & coding, POC and visit notes. Armed with this information, QA staff, coding & OASIS reviewers and compliance officers will reduce survey citation risks, achieve success with medical review audits, improve quality patient care and secure accurate payments from payors.

11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Compose a Complete Comprehensive Assessment, Achieve OASIS & Coding Accuracy
Apryl Swafford RN, BSN, COS-C, HCS-D, HCS-H, HCS-O
In this workshop session, you'll:

• Review key areas of OASIS & coding that impact PDGM points, HHVBP, Star Ratings and CoP compliance
• Discover how to avoid common mistakes with OASIS accuracy
• Understand how to use referral documents before, during and after the comprehensive assessment
• Reconcile assessment details with referral info to determine the focus of care, correct coding and face-to-face documentation
• Follow a compliant query process (How to query clinicians and providers and track/analyze query data)
• Explain how narrative documentation can support OASIS scoring as well as skilled need and homebound status

Tools: Referral/intake form, OASIS QA Review Tool, Face-to-face QA Tool

12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.
NETWORKING LUNCH—Provided

1:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Unlock the Power of the Plan Of Care (POC) to Achieve Outcomes & Compliance
Ashley Benson, RN, COQS, CHHCM, HCS-D, LSSGB
In this workshop session, you'll:

• Review POC requirements and impact of noncompliance on surveys and medical review.
• Understand POC locator items and transfer of info from OASIS to POC.
• Develop patient-specific interventions and goals based on focus of care/primary diagnosis, comorbidities, process measures, best practices, outcomes and patient/caregiver input.
• Write SMART goals for better outcomes and survey success.
• Highlight key points in POC reviews, including support for diagnoses not on the face to face, connection of interventions and diagnoses and defensible diagnosis code sequencing.
• Look at examples of how popular EMR systems use locator items to ensure compliance with CoP requirements.

Tool: POC Guide; Sample Goals and Interventions for Common Conditions

2:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
NETWORKING & REFRESHMENT BREAK

2:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Clinical Visit Notes: Paint a Picture of the Patient That Supports Home Care
Ashley Benson, RN, COQS, CHHCM, HCS-D, LSSGB
In this workshop session, you'll:

• Look at fundamentals of clinical note requirements for nursing and therapy.
• Advance the way you review orders, notes and additional supporting documents.
• Analyze how focus of care and comorbidities guide assessment, care and documentation.
• Paint a picture of the patient to support homebound status, skilled need, and medical necessity.
• Improve collaboration and care coordination with patients, caregivers, providers, and team members.
• Understand the “Why,” boosting clinician buy-in to improve efficiency and drive patient results.

Tool: Visit Note QA Review Tool

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Agenda

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
REGISTRATION & CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Achieve the Winning Edge with Home Health Value-Based Purchasing
Melinda Gaboury, COS-C
Key measures under Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) are already changing. Even agencies that adapted quickly to net payment increases under HHVBP could be left struggling with new measures. This session will outline the new metrics that will directly impact your payment rate beginning Jan. 1, 2025, including the addition of Discharge Function Score, Discharged to Community PAC and Home Health within Stay Potentially Preventable Hospitalization measures. Learn how to focus quality improvement efforts on the measures that will drive up your Total Performance Score and improve your payment rate.

Tool: Crosswalk of 2025 HHVBP Changes

9:15 a.m. – 9:35 a.m.
NETWORKING & REFRESHMENT BREAK

9:35 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.
QAPI Programs that Yield HHCoP Compliance & HHVBP Success
Christina Crumbley, RN, MSN
Learn how to create a comprehensive QAPI program that will not only fulfill the requirements of the Medicare Conditions of Participation but will also set your agency up for success under HHVBP. Learn how to review CASPER and HHVBP reports, identify which measures would be the quickest to target to improve overall scores, and develop and maintain dynamic QAPI action plans that will engage all staff towards increasing HHVBP scores and 5- Star Ratings.

Tool: Medical record auditing tool

11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Deep Dive into GG Items, Ensure Accurate Payment & Positive Outcome Scores
Kelly Kavanaugh, RN, HCS-D, HCS-O, HCS-H, BCHH-C
CMS will be removing separate measures looking at self-care and mobility from HHVBP calculations come Jan. 1, and will replace them with a single Discharge Function Score (DC Function) based on GG item responses. Make these items a focus of training now that they’re more closely tied to payments and quality outcomes. Learn how the GG items differ from the M1800 (functional) items, key considerations for answering the OASIS GG items, and how the GG items will be used in HHVBP scoring in 2025.

Tool: Assessment strategies for GG items

12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.
NETWORKING LUNCH—Provided

1:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Shine a Light on Patient Satisfaction and Watch Your Star Ratings Soar
Ashlee Oliver, RN, MSN, COC-C, BCHHC
Learn how to access star ratings results and dig into the underlying data to craft targeted improvement plans that will boost agency results on patient satisfaction surveys. You’ll get easily implemented tips for in-service programs to educate clinicians on the HHCAHPS process. Additionally, you’ll receive proven tools and quality assurance practices that can identify weaknesses in OASIS assessments that negatively impact your scores.

Tool: SOC/ROC - Discharge Comparison Checklist

2:30 p.m. – 2:50 p.m.
NETWORKING & REFRESHMENT BREAK

2:50 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Develop Tactics for Improved Dyspnea and Decrease Hospitalizations
Jennifer Cullen, MSN, RN, COS-C
St. Luke’s Home Health improved its dyspnea score to 86% from 83%, decreased its emergent care and hospitalization visits and optimized the scope of all disciplines to ensure quality care even during nursing staff vacancies. Get details on the agency’s discipline-neutral education aimed at accurate respiratory assessments and OASIS data, coupled with multidisciplinary instruction in equipment, treatments, and non-pharmacological interventions. Plus, discover how visual and written patient-teaching materials promote health equity for diverse patients and empower patient self-management of the pulmonary disease processes.

Tool: How to Build a Successful Multidisciplinary Performance Improvement Project

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Leverage Machine-Learning Methods to Cut Hospitalization Rates, Boost Star Ratings
Megan Willardsen, RN, BSN, COS-C, CCS-HH and Joel Bearss, RN
The home health industry is beginning to use new machine-learning algorithms to receive real-time alerts to track patient hospitalization rates, visit utilization, hospital admissions, discharges and more. Learn how The LTM Group reduced its hospitalization rate by more than 50% in less than one year and improved its Star Rating to 5 stars. Join agency reps as they walk through how they employed a mix of innovative software and traditional training such as case conferencing, hosting small group educational sessions to promote a comfortable learning environment and recognizing their staff’s hard work and achievements to improve in this area.

Tool: Case conferencing template

9:15 a.m. – 9:35 a.m.
NETWORKING & REFRESHMENT BREAK

9:35 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.
Transforming the Value-Driven Journey: Advanced Care Planning for Home Health
Cindy Campbell, BSN, RN, MHA Healthcare Informatics
Home health agencies that have incorporated advanced care planning into their processes are achieving value-based success, lowering acute care hospitalizations, and improving patient and family satisfaction. This session will provide advance care planning conversation skills and discuss how these conversations and prognostic tools will help patients and families navigate complex illnesses. Hear leaders’ direct experiences in building care planning into the case conference processes and focusing education to build an efficient transition of care between home health, advanced illness management, palliative care and hospice.

Tool: Having the Conversation: Building a Framework for Advanced Care Planning

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Use Data to Rally Clinicians Around Quality Efforts
Catherine Harris, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, Home Health Director
Improve frontline engagement in your QAPI program. Find out how one agency empowered clinicians to boost 5-star ratings to 3.5 from 2.5 stars and boost risk-adjusted clinical outcomes to 85.1% from an average of 75.6% in two years. Learn how to share daily quality metrics with clinicians to improve care and engage remote staff. Get guidance on educating clinicians about case management and the financial implications of quality outcomes.

Tools: Quality Cards and Report Card (plug and play with iQIES data comparing local orgs)

12:00 p.m. Conference Concludes

— Agenda subject to change —

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Speakers

	Joel Bears is a registered nurse and the Director of Quality and Compliance at The LTM Group, a prominent provider of home health care services. Having joined the organization in 2010 as a dedicated field nurse, Joel's passion for enhancing healthcare standards led him to transition into quality management in 2015. In his current role, he plays a pivotal part in guiding the implementation and evaluation of quality improvement initiatives, ensuring that The LTM Group consistently delivers exceptional care. Joel's expertise extends to meticulous compliance with regulatory standards, underscoring his commitment to maintaining the highest levels of quality and safety in the provision of home health care services.
	Ashley Benson, RN, COQS, CHHCM, HCS-D, LSSGB, is a home health and hospice consultant who began her career as field nurse, quickly working up to supervisor and regional and director roles. In these roles she gained valuable insight into the clinical and operational challenges that home health and hospice agencies face. She has extensive knowledge in OASIS, coding, regulatory compliance, and QAPI activities and spends part of her free time researching industry changes and studying best practices so she can empower others with knowledge. She is passionate about all things home health including compliance and process development and improvement. Her military background taught her about the importance of serving others, working hard and following the rules. Ashley currently serves on AHCC's HCS-D Committee and Documentation Integrity Committee.
	Cindy Campbell, BSN, RN, is a nationally recognized thought-leader and management consultant to the continuum of healthcare at home. Cindy holds a Master of Health Administration with specialty in Healthcare Informatics, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and is a Certified Clinical Specialist in Home Health. She brings deep experience leading multi-service line healthcare at home and almost 20 years with Fazzi Associates, now proud to be a fully integrated member of the WellSky family of companies. Cindy and her team help agencies leverage strategic thought and operational efficiency into organizational, work-process and clinical model design for Home Health, Hospice, Palliative Care and Private Duty organizations throughout the United States. Cindy has served as a Board Member of the National Association for Homecare & Hospice, Chair of the Pediatric Homecare & Hospice Association of America, and member of the Executive Committee of the American Telemedicine Association's Homecare and Remote Monitoring Special Interest Group. A passionate advocate for innovation on behalf of patients and industry, Cindy is committed to driving methodology to best serve the needs of advancing healthcare at home.
	Christina Crumbley, RN, MSN, is Chief Executive Officer of Tidal Healthcare Consulting, LLC. Christina has over 30 years of broad-based experience in home health operations, quality assurance/performance improvement, clinical management, finance, and business development, with 26 of those years spent in leadership positions. Through Tidal Healthcare Consulting, LLC, she provides consulting services that include operation and clinical management for home health services, ICD-10 coding, OASIS (Outcome and Assessment Information Set) review, and educational services. As a contract surveyor for the Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC), she travels nationwide to conduct surveys for home health and private duty agencies. She currently serves as the Associate Director on the Home Care Association of Florida Board of Directors as well as a member of the BMSC Exam committee.
	Jennifer Elaine Cullen, MSN, RN, COS-C, has 30 years of home health experience in a variety of roles. She has maintained her Certificate for OASIS Specialist – Clinical (COS-C) since 2017 and completed her master's in nursing administration in 2022. As the Quality and Utilization Review Manager for St. Luke's University Health Network VNA, she leads innovative multidisciplinary strategies to improve patient outcomes and experience. She champions the home health community and advocates for patients wherever they may call home.
	Catherine Harris, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, is the Home Health Director at UVA Continuum Home Health and Home Infusion. Catherine has over 10 years of experience in home health and home infusion, specializing in interdisciplinary leadership, policy, compliance, quality, revenue cycle, and integrating technology in the home environment. As a leader at an academic home health agency, she works to engage frontline clinicians in contributing to the knowledge base for home care and advocating for the health of our workforce and our communities.
	Robbi Funderburk James, BSN, RN, HCS-O, HCS-D, HCS-H, is a Registered Nurse who joined Healthcare Provider Solutions, Inc., as the Director of Coding and OASIS Review, in March 2022. Robbi and her team provide support and solutions to home health and hospice agencies across the country to achieve coding and OASIS accuracy and compliance. Throughout her nursing career, she has worked in various capacities within the home health, hospice, and private duty industries. Now she puts that experience into practice by assisting home care and hospice agencies with providing quality care, meeting regulatory guidelines, achieving OASIS & coding accuracy, and improving outcomes including Value Based Purchasing and Star Ratings. She has educated agencies on requirements for coding, OASIS and PDGM, and her vast clinical experience inspires her to continually provide the highest level of service.
	Melinda A. Gaboury, COS-C, has been in home care for more than 30 years. She routinely conducts Home Care and Hospice Reimbursement Workshops and speaks at state association meetings throughout the country. Melinda has profound experience in Medicare PDGM, billing, collections, case-mix calculations, chart reviews and due diligence. UPIC, RA, ADR & TPE appeals with all Medicare MACs have become the forefront of Melinda's current impact on the industry. She is currently Chair of the NAHC/HHFMA Advisory Board and Work Group, Treasurer on the Home Care Association of Florida Board of Directors, and a member of the Tennessee Association for Home Care Board of Directors. Melinda is also the author of DecisionHealth's Home Health OASIS Guide to OASIS-E and Home Health Billing Answers.
	Kelly Kavanaugh, RN, HCS-D, HCS-O, HCS-H, BCHH-C, has worked in the home health and hospice industry for 36 years. Starting her career at a small local agency doing scheduling and typing plans of care, Kavanaugh then became an RN in 1991, followed by a field clinician and case manager. Working her way up through the ranks doing QA and education, Kavanaugh became the director of nursing and then an administrator. It was once she became a small agency owner, however, that she truly got a real taste of what it's like to be deeply in the trenches of it all and what it's like to be truly bombarded by regulations. Kavanaugh became coding and OASIS certified in 2007 and found her true calling and passion in helping the home health and hospice industry.
	Brian Lebanion, MBA, CPC, RNC, HCS-O, HCS-D, has more than 25 years of experience in health care and provides consulting services for all aspects of home health care and hospice, including operations, reimbursement, and education. He specializes in comprehensive consulting services offering home health survey/licensure coaching, clinical review and training, financial and revenue cycle management, third-party audit response, and quality assurance/performance improvement training. His clients range from business startups to large corporations, private sector, and nonprofits. Brian enjoys positioning clients to make successful financial, clinical, and operational decisions that have a lasting, positive impact on businesses and the patients they serve.
	Ashlee Oliver, RN, MSN, COC-C, BCHHC, is the owner of JWO Home Health Consultants. She launched her business in 2020 after working as a quality assurance manager and nursing director for a large home health care organization. She has a passion for helping agencies improve their documentation and quality assurance processes. Since its inception, JWO has expanded to assist over 50 agencies nationwide with OASIS coding and review, routine skilled documentation review, QAPI programs, mock surveys, clinician onboarding and training, live and asynchronous educational sessions, and more.
	Apryl Swafford, RN, BSN, COS-C, HCS-D, HCS-H, HCS-O, currently serves as QA manager for SimiTree, sits on several AHCC/BMSC boards, and has more than 25 years of experience in home health. She has held various roles from case manager, clinical manager, and leader of a cardiopulmonary specialty program. As QA manager for SimiTree, Apryl monitors the overall quality of coding, OASIS, and plan of care reviews completed by both full-time and contract auditors. She works with QA specialists and training departments to identify educational topics and to address any trending QA review issues. Apryl also assists with onboarding new auditors as needed and assists team managers with completing coding and OASIS reviews when volumes increase.
	Megan Willardsen, RN, BSN, COS-C, CCS-HH, has over a decade of experience in home health care, currently serving as the Quality and Compliance Director at The LTM Group. Megan's journey began as a field clinician, progressing through roles like clinical manager and administrator, providing her with a comprehensive understanding of the industry. She has been instrumental in the successful implementation of new software, enhancing operational efficiency. Megan holds the Certified OASIS Specialist-Clinical (COS-C) designation and actively participated in company events such as the Home Care Summit, where she enriched sessions with her valuable insights.

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Location

Sheraton Charlotte Hotel
555 South McDowell Street, South Tower
Charlotte, NC 28204

• Room rate: $199.00/night plus taxes and fees
• Hotel cut-off date: Friday, August 23, 2024.
• Reservation Center: 877-822-3224 and reference the DecisionHealth conference
• Hotel room reservation website: https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?id=1700507361700&key=GRP&app=resvlink/
• Parking: Standard self-parking rates are currently $25.00 per car per day. Valet parking is available for $35.00 per day. Overnight rates are $25.00 per car per night for self-parking, and $35.00 per car per night for valet parking. Parking is not validated by DecisionHealth; prices are subject to change.

HCPro LLC/DecisionHealth has no affiliation with any third-party companies or travel assistance providers. Rooms should be booked directly with the event hotel using the official information provided on the website and in the brochure.

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Pricing

Main Conference – Tuesday, September 17 – Wednesday, September 18, 2024

• Retail price: $1,199.00
• Early bird price: $1,099.00 — Early Bird expires Tuesday, July 16, 2024
• PreCon+Main Con (Kit): $1,399.00
• PreCon+Main Con (Kit) Early bird price: $1,299.00 — Early Bird expires Tuesday, July 16, 2024

Preconference — Monday, September 16, 2024

• Retail price: $499.00

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Continuing Education

Pre-Conference

ANCC
HCPro is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This educational activity for 6.25 nursing contact hours is provided by HCPro. 

BMSC
This program is preapproved by the Board of Medical Specialty Coding & Compliance (BMSC) for the following CEU(s).

Preconference:

• HCS-C: 6
• HCS-O: 2
• HCS-D: 2

Main Conference

ANCC
HCPro is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This educational activity for 9.75 nursing contact hours is provided by HCPro.

BMSC
This program is preapproved by the Board of Medical Specialty Coding & Compliance (BMSC) for the following CEU(s).

Main Conference:

• HCS-C: 10
• HCS-O: 5

Home Health Quality Outcomes & Documentation Conference

Testimonials

Kelly Kavanaugh

Join Speaker Kelly Kavanaugh For A Deep Dive Into GG Items.

Ashley Benson

Workshop With Speaker Ashley Benson To Unlock The Power Of POC, And How To Perfect Clinical Visit Notes.

Melinda Gaboury

Join Speaker Melinda Gaboury And Get The Winning Edge With HHVBP.