Systematic Review of Rural and Urban Differences in Care Provided by Home Health Agencies in the United States

Insights into the profile, professional setting, and needs of in-home physiotherapists in Switzerland: a national online survey

BACKGROUND

The aging of the population and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases result in a growing number of people living with functional disabilities. Swiss public health policy and population preferences lead to an increase in the number of people staying at home rather than in institutions in Switzerland. As a result, the demand for home care services is growing and physiotherapists play a key role. In the absence of available data, this study aims to provide an overview of the profile, patients, collaborations, job satisfaction, and professional needs of in-home physiotherapists in Switzerland.

METHODS

A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in Switzerland from December 1, 2023 to March 17, 2024. Physiotherapists practising in-home physiotherapy were eligible to participate in the survey. Swiss physiotherapy associations disseminated the survey link electronically to their members. Data were collected anonymously online using REDCap software and analysed with RStudio. A subgroup analysis was conducted between French- and German-speaking parts of Switzerland.

RESULTS

A total of 439 questionnaires were analysed. Participants demonstrated a high level of professional experience, with an average of 23.5 years in the profession and 17.2% of participants exclusively practiced in-home physiotherapy. Geriatrics, orthopaedics and musculoskeletal, and neurology were the primary domains treated, with a notable patient demographic aged 80 and over. Participants most frequently collaborated with physicians, nurses, and occupational therapists. Poor ergonomics was the most prevalent encountered difficulty by participants. Overall job satisfaction was high. Participants expressed a desire to have a facilitated access to patient medical information and to improve interprofessional collaboration, and argued in favour of tariff adjustments.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlights several aspects of in-home physiotherapy in Switzerland. Although physiotherapists reported a high level of overall job satisfaction, access to patients' medical information, interprofessional collaboration and ergonomics should be enhanced. Future research should assess interprofessional collaboration effectiveness, explore patient needs, and study digitalisation's impact on this practice.

Disparities in Timely Receipt of Home Healthcare: Neighborhood Disadvantage and Delayed Start-of-Care Visits in New York City

BACKGROUND

Research has shown that delayed receipt of home healthcare (HHC) is linked to negative patients' outcomes such as hospitalizations, emergency department visits, and death. Studies have looked at factors contributing to delays including high-unemployment areas and racial/ethnic backgrounds of patients. However, no previous study had examined how the deliverance of timely care differs among levels of neighborhood disadvantage within an urban city. The objective of this study was to assess if there were associations between neighborhood disadvantage and delayed start-of-care (SOC) HHC visits.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective observational study on newly admitted HHC patients after a hospital discharge during the years 2021 and 2022. The total sample included 73,536 HHC episodes of care. We used log-binomial regressions to examine the association between a delayed SOC HHC visit, defined as a first HHC visit occurring after 48 h of hospital discharge, and neighborhood disadvantage, adjusting for patients' age, race, sex, and clinical status.

RESULTS

Close to one-third (23,712; 32.3%) of HHC episodes experienced a delayed SOC HHC visit. As the level of neighborhood disadvantage increased, so did the risk of experiencing delayed care. After adjusting for covariates, patients living in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods (level 5) had a 13% (RR 1.13; 95% CI 1.10-1.17) higher risk of experiencing delayed care when compared to those in the least disadvantaged neighborhoods (level 1). As the level of neighborhood disadvantage increased, so did the proportion of minority patients.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings underscore the disparities in receipt of timely HHC among differing levels of neighborhood disadvantage. As HHC is presented as a safer and more comfortable alternative to institutional post-acute care, ensuring the availability and equitable care is essential for maintaining high-quality care especially for already marginalized populations.

Rehabilitation Needs Across Heterogenous Brazilian Regions: Secondary Analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study

Aim: This study aimed to determine the evolving rehabilitation needs in Brazil, considering five main impairment categories for nationwide health-service planning, stratified per age groups, as well as Brazilian regions with inequitable development. Methods: Secondary analysis of the Global Burden of Disease study (1990-2019), using Years Lived with Disability (YLD) rates for all ages and age-standardized metrics. The set of health conditions amenable to rehabilitation were selected and organized based on the five impairment types, derived from Brazil's public-based Care Network for People with Disabilities. Results: A Brazil-wide 24% growth (1990-2019) in overall rehabilitation needs per capita (i.e., YLD rates per 100,000 population) was observed, in addition to a 6% negative growth for age-standardized YLD rates. "Physical" impairments accounted for 77% of the Brazilian rehabilitation needs in 2019; 69% of these impairments come from musculoskeletal conditions. Rehabilitation needs growth was also observed across the five Brazilian regions, ranging from 16% to 25%. Conclusions: Rehabilitation needs are growing across Brazil and its regions as a result of population ageing and epidemiological transition. Brazilian regions with lower income and lower population density (e.g., with more rural or remote populations) also experienced growth in rehabilitation needs, even though these regions are often underserved by rehabilitation professionals.

Barriers and Facilitators of Home Programmes in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Systematic Review and a Metasynthesis

INTRODUCTION

One of the treatments with the greater scientific support for children with cerebral palsy (CP) are home programmes (HP). However, its implementation may be complex in some cases. A systematic review was conducted to explore the existing literature on the following question: What are the barriers and facilitators to implementing HP for children with CP?

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The articles were extracted from the Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, ERIC, PubMed and CINAHL databases.

INCLUSION CRITERIA

articles based on therapies conducted at home, for children with CP aged 0-8 years and their families, published in English and Spanish.

EXCLUSION CRITERIA

reviews, studies of cases and controls and one-case studies. The risk of bias was assessed through Cochrane tools Risk of Bias (RoB) I, RoB 2 and RoB E.

RESULTS

Twenty-one articles were selected from a total of 1.336, with 523 families and professionals. A qualitative research was carried out through content analysis using inductive coding and subsequent analytical categorization within an interpretative paradigm. Six themes were obtained: participation, personal cost and social support, family impact, training, professional role and efficacy. The quantitative results were analysed descriptively. They address HP research in a superficial manner.

CONCLUSIONS

Barriers: lack of time or availability to attend to the children one by one, poor economic and social support networks and sensitive emotional situation. Facilitators: training, adapted treatment objectives, activities within the daily routine and fluid family-professional communication.

LIMITATION

Only one article could be found that analysed family variables, considering the possible confounding variables. There is no funding source for this review. Registered in PROSPERO with code number: CRD42023477735.

Skilled home healthcare utilization and outcomes for older adults with dementia: A scoping review

OBJECTIVES

This study aims to summarize the existing research literature examining Medicare-skilled home health (HH) utilization and clinical outcomes for persons with dementia (PwD). We sought to answer the following questions: (1) How is dementia defined and classified in the HH literature? (2) What associations have been observed between dementia status and patterns of HH utilization? (3) What associations have been observed between dementia status and HH outcomes?

METHODS

Using Arksey and O'Malley's framework for scoping reviews, we searched PubMed, Google Scholar, and select relevant journals for quantitative studies conducted in the United States between 2000 and 2023 examining Medicare HH use and outcomes for PwD. We describe and compare approaches to classify dementia, identify findings related to HH utilization and outcomes supported by the preponderance of evidence, and comment on existing gaps and areas of ambiguity in the literature.

RESULTS

Thirty-two articles met the inclusion criteria. Most used claims-based data to classify dementia, leveraged national data, and were limited to traditional Medicare beneficiaries. Studies found meaningful differences in HH utilization by dementia status; most notably, PwD were more likely to access HH without a preceding hospitalization, had longer lengths of stay, and incurred higher HH costs. Literature relating to clinical outcomes was more difficult to interpret, due to significant variation in study objectives, samples, and outcome measures which prompted more nuanced and even contradictory conclusions. There is a dearth of research identifying how specific HH care pathways (e.g., service types, visit frequency) impact outcomes for this patient population.

CONCLUSIONS

This review supports the understanding that PwD are a unique subpopulation of HH patients who require special attention in policy development and evaluation. Critical research is needed to examine clinical outcomes in PwD further to inform practice and improve care quality.

Exploring Place of Death among Individuals with Huntington's Disease in the United States

OBJECTIVES

To describe trends and identify factors associated with place of death among individuals with Huntington's disease (HD).

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort of deceased individuals with HD from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

A total of 13,350 individuals with HD who died in the United States between 2009 and 2019.

METHODS

We analyzed place of death, categorized as long-term care (LTC) facility, home, hospital, hospice facility, and other locations. Trends in the places of death from 2009 to 2019 were assessed using linear regression models. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to identify sociodemographic factors associated with place of death.

RESULTS

From 2009 to 2019, the greatest proportion of deaths occurred in LTC facilities (48.4%). There was a significantly decreasing trend in the proportion of deaths occurring in LTC facilities (53.5%-43.9%, P < .001). A greater proportion of deaths in rural areas occurred in LTC facilities compared with all other locations (P < .001 for all comparisons). In the multivariate model, aged younger than 44 years, Black race, Hispanic ethnicity, some college education or greater, and being married were associated with significantly lower odds of dying in a LTC facility compared with home.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Despite a decreasing trend, LTC facilities remain a cornerstone of support for individuals with HD, particularly in rural areas. These results suggest multiple avenues for research to improve accessibility and quality of care for individuals with late stages of HD. Future studies are needed to further understand the impact of rurality and lack of support in the home on the accessibility and quality of LTC and hospice care for individuals with HD. These results may also help inform interventions focused on training and staff education within LTC and hospice facilities to better manage HD progression and symptoms.

Impact of social determinants of health on rehabilitation service use and outcomes in adults in the USA: a scoping review protocol

INTRODUCTION

Many Americans fail to receive equitable access to or positive outcomes from rehabilitation services. These disparities result from broader societal inequities that disproportionately affect certain groups of people due to non-medical factors such as race, gender, education and living status. This scoping review aims to describe research papers that examine social determinants of health (SDOH) that underlie disparities in access to, use of, or outcomes related to rehabilitation (in occupational therapy, physical therapy, recreational therapy, rehabilitation medicine/physiatry and speech-language pathology) among adults in the USA. Identifying SDOH-related factors that drive inequities in rehabilitation will inform the development of potential solutions to improve access, professional education and patient outcomes.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

The Joanna Briggs Institute methodological framework will be used to conduct this scoping review. To meet the inclusion criteria, articles will need to be published in English since 2013, be classified as full-length original research, include at least 100 sampled adults, be conducted in the USA or its territories, and investigate SDOH-related disparities in rehabilitation. Search terms will include SDOH, rehabilitation and disparities. Five databases (Embase, PubMed, Scopus, Sociological Abstracts and Web of Science: Core Collection) will be searched for articles published in English between 2013 and 2023. Records from these databases as well as reference lists of included papers and review papers will be screened for eligibility. Two people will independently review each record during title and abstract screening and full-text screening, and three people will independently extract data. Screening and data extraction processes will be piloted. The results will be presented in tables, graphs and narrative summaries.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

Findings will be disseminated through scientific conferences, professional networks, stakeholder meetings, invited workshops and webinars, email listservs of professional associations, academic social media and in a peer-reviewed journal. Ethics approval is not required as the review will only include previously published data.

A comparative study of home healthcare quality in urban and rural home health agencies throughout the USA (2010-22)

Urban-rural disparities in medical care, including in home healthcare, persist globally. With aging populations and medical advancements, demand for home health services rises, warranting investigation into home healthcare disparities. Our study aimed to (i) investigate the impact of rurality on home healthcare quality, and (ii) assess the temporal disparities and the changes in disparities in home healthcare quality between urban and rural home health agencies (HHAs), incorporating an analysis of geospatial distribution to visualize the underlying patterns. This study analyzed data from HHAs listed on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services website, covering the period from 2010 to 2022. Data were classified into urban and rural categories for each HHA. We employed panel data analysis to examine the impact of rurality on home healthcare quality, specifically focusing on hospital admission and emergency room (ER) visit rates. Disparities between urban and rural HHAs were assessed using the Wilcoxon test, with results visualized through line and dot plots and heat maps to illustrate trends and differences comprehensively. Rurality is demonstrated as the most significant variable in hospital admission and ER visit rates in the panel data analysis. Urban HHAs consistently exhibit significantly lower hospital admission rates and ER visit rates compared to rural HHAs from 2010 to 2022. Longitudinally, the gap in hospital admission rates between urban and rural HHAs is shrinking, while there is an increasing gap in ER visit rates. In 2022, HHAs in Mountain areas, which are characterized by a higher proportion of rural regions, exhibited higher hospital admission and ER visit rates than other areas. This study underscores the persistent urban-rural disparities in home healthcare quality. The analysis emphasizes the ongoing need for targeted interventions to address disparities in home healthcare delivery and ensure equitable access to quality care across urban and rural regions. Our findings have the potential to inform policy and practice, promoting equity and efficiency in the long-term care system, for better health outcomes throughout the USA.

Identifying the process and agency characteristics associated with poor utilization outcomes in home healthcare

This study identified the process and agency characteristics associated with poor utilization outcomes - higher percentages of patients (i) admitted to an acute care organization and (ii) visited an emergency room (ER) unplanned without hospitalization - for home health agencies (HHAs) in the United States. We conducted a secondary analysis of data about HHAs' various characteristics, process adherence levels, and utilization outcomes collected from disparate public repositories for 2010-2022. We developed descriptive tree-based models using HHAs' hospital admission or ER visit percentages as response variables. Across the board, hospital admission percentages have steadily improved while ER percentages deteriorated for an extended period. Recently, checking for fall risks and depression was associated with improved outcomes for urban agencies. In general, rural HHAs had worse utilization outcomes than urban HHAs. Targeted investments and improvement initiatives can help rural HHAs close the urban-rural gap in the future.

Patient experiences in primary care do not differ according to rurality: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Living in rural areas is a major contributor of health inequity. Tackling health inequity is important for primary care physicians. Therefore, it is important to compare the quality of primary care between rural and urban areas. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the association between rurality and patient experience (PX) in Japan using validated measures.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted using online surveys. Participants were selected using a stratified random sample based on sex and age. The Japanese version of the Person-Centered Primary Care Measure (PCPCM) was used as an indicator of PX. We used the Rurality Index for Japan (RIJ) to measure rurality. Furthermore, we used multivariate linear regression analysis to examine the relationship between the RIJ and PCPCM after adjusting for confounders.

RESULTS

Of the 1112 eligible participants, 800 responded to the survey (response rate:71.9%). The mean PCPCM scores were 2.46 (standard deviation: 0.73) and median RIJ was 15 (interquartile range: 6-33). The crude and adjusted coefficients of rurality were - 0.02 (- 0.006-0.001, p = 0.114) and - 0.02 (- 0.005-0.001), respectively, demonstrating that rurality was not significantly associated with the total PCPCM score. Subgroup analyses were similar to the main analyses.

CONCLUSION

We found that PX in primary care did not differ by rurality in the general Japanese population.

Association of Depression, Comorbidities, and Sociodemographic Factors among Home Healthcare Recipients

OBJECTIVES

More than 15 million individuals receive home health care (HHC) for chronic conditions, which allows them to maintain a level of independence and self-sufficiency. Although poor mental health can negatively impact health outcomes, little research has been done on the mental health of these individuals.

METHODS

Utilizing National Health Interview Survey years 2019-2022, we ran a cross-sectional analysis to determine rates of depression among individuals who indicated that they utilized HHC services, based on their sociodemographic statuses and diagnosis, as well as their rate of depression by condition whether they utilized HHC services.

RESULTS

HHC recipients were significantly more likely to be depressed if they reported being female, age 55-64, low income, low educational attainment, American Indian/Alaskan Native, Hispanic, or lived in a rural area. HHC recipients were more likely to be depressed than their non-HHC recipient counterparts.

CONCLUSIONS

These results underscore the need for integrated mental health care in home health. Further, the financial burden of HHC, which may have an additional impact on stress, emphasizes the need for expanded accessibility of these services.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

General practitioners and home health professionals should inquire about mental health concerns of these care recipients, and treat or refer accordingly.

Differences in Home Health Services and Outcomes Between Traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage

Importance

Private Medicare Advantage (MA) plans recently surpassed traditional Medicare (TM) in enrollment. However, MA plans are facing scrutiny for burdensome prior authorization and potential rationing of care, including home health. MA beneficiaries are less likely to receive home health, but recent evidence on differences in service intensity and outcomes among home health patients is lacking.

Objective

To examine differences in home health service intensity and patient outcomes between MA and TM.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2019 to December 2022 in 102 home health locations in 19 states and included 178 195 TM and 107 102 MA patients 65 years or older with 2 or fewer 60-day home health episodes. It included a secondary analysis of standardized assessment and visit data. Inverse probability of treatment weighting regression compared service intensity and patient outcomes between MA and TM episodes, accounting for differences in demographic characteristics, medical complexity, functional and cognitive impairments, social environment, caregiver support, and local community factors. Models included office location, year, and reimbursement policy fixed effects. Data were analyzed between September 2023 and July 2024.

Exposure

TM vs MA plan.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Home health length of stay and number of visits from nursing, physical, occupational, and speech therapy, social work, and home health aides. Patient outcomes included improvement in self-care and mobility function, discharge to the community, and transfer to an inpatient facility during home health.

Results

Of 285 297 total patients, 180 283 (63.2%) were female; 586 (0.2%) were American Indian/Alaska Native, 8957 (3.1%) Asian, 28 694 (10.1%) Black, 7406 (2.6%) Hispanic, 1959 (0.7%) Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, 237 017 (83.1%) non-Hispanic White, and 678 (0.2%) multiracial individuals. MA patients had shorter home health length of stay by 1.62 days (95% CI, -1.82 to 1.42) and received fewer visits from all disciplines except social work. There were no differences in inpatient transfers. MA patients had 3% and 4% lower adjusted odds of improving in mobility and self-care, respectively (mobility odds ratio [OR], 0.97; 95% CI, 0.94-0.99; self-care OR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.92-0.99). MA patients were 5% more likely to discharge to the community compared with TM (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.01-1.08).

Conclusions and Relevance

The results of this cross-sectional study suggest that MA patients receive shorter and less intensive home health care vs TM patients with similar needs. Differences may be due to the administrative burden and cost-limiting incentives of MA plans. MA patients experienced slightly worse functional outcomes but were more likely to discharge to the community, which may have negative implications for MA patients, including reduced functional independence or increased caregiver burden.

Examining the role of race and quality of home health agencies in delayed initiation of home health services for individuals with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD)

INTRODUCTION

We examined differences in the timeliness of the initiation of home health care by race and the quality of home health agencies (HHA) among patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD).

METHODS

Medicare claims and home health assessment data were used for the study cohort: individuals aged ≥65 years with ADRD, and discharged from the hospital. Home health latency was defined as patients receiving home health care after 2 days following hospital discharge.

RESULTS

Of 251,887 patients with ADRD, 57% received home health within 2 days following hospital discharge. Black patients were significantly more likely to experience home health latency (odds ratio [OR] = 1.15, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.11-1.19) compared to White patients. Home health latency was significantly higher for Black patients in low-rating HHA (OR = 1.29, 95% CI = 1.22-1.37) compared to White patients in high-rating HHA.

DISCUSSION

Black patients are more likely to experience a delay in home health care initiation than White patients.

Nursing Home-Sensitive Hospitalizations and the Relevance of Telemedicine: A Scoping Review

The aging of society is increasing the number of hospitalizations of nursing home residents. Telemedicine might help reduce the frequency of these potentially risk-associated hospitalizations. This scoping review looked for evidence of a change in the rate of hospitalization and, if mentioned, any cost savings and/or staff acceptance of the use of telemedicine in a nursing home setting. To identify available evidence, the electronic databases PubMed, Livivo, EBSCO and JSTOR were searched (without time or regional constraints) for comparative primary research studies on this topic in peer-reviewed journals. A total of 1127 articles were retrieved and 923 titles and abstracts were screened, with 16 studies published between 2001 and 2022 being included. Telemedicine consultation reduced the hospitalization of nursing home residents in 14/16 and care costs in 8/11 articles. Staff satisfaction was mentioned positively in five studies. Most studies used telemedicine involving medical diagnostic technologies (10), (electronic) health records (9), specialists (9) and specialized nursing staff (11). Few studies had a higher level of evidence: only one randomized clinical trial was included. There is the need for high credibility studies, using guidelines on protocol and reporting, to better understand the hindering and facilitating factors of telemedicine provision in the healthcare of nursing home residents.