Health Systems Forge Partnerships to Bring Hospital-Level Care to the Home

As hospitals and health systems continue to adjust their care delivery models to reach more patients at home, many are forging partnerships to help meet increased patient demand for these services.

The latest example: Memorial Hermann Health System recently began working with Contessa, a home recovery care service company, to deliver acute care, rehabilitation and palliative care to the health system’s patients.

Offering at-home care options will give Memorial Hermann patients greater convenience. Once eligible patients are approved for the program, patients will be admitted into the at-home care model directly from the emergency department without ever being admitted as an inpatient. Using a mix of in-person and virtual care, the service deploys remote-monitoring devices to bring acute, rehabilitative and palliative care options to the patient’s home.

Palliative care at home provides added support to seriously ill patients, their families and caregivers. Patients receive coordinated care through in-home or virtual visits from the Memorial Hermann care team, 24-hour services such as physical, emotional and spiritual support, in-depth discussions about their conditions and treatment plans as well as social services.

Contessa says its hospital care-at-home model has reduced readmission rates by 44%, decreased hospital length of stay by 35% and has a patient satisfaction rate of more than 90%.

Penn State Health System last November announced a partnership with Highmark Health and Contessa to create an at-home acute care program. Treating various chronic conditions, the program is designed to improve outcomes while reducing costs.

Also in November, UCI Health entered into a partnership with DispatchHealth to provide at-home care to its Southern California patients. UCI Health uses DispatchHealth’s platform to coordinate and deliver care in patients’ homes. The service treats simple and complex illnesses as well as minor injuries.

DispatchHeath also partners with other health systems including Texas Health Resources, and payers including Humana and Regence Blue Shield.