3 benefits of providing wound care onsite for CAHs

Critical access hospitals (CAHs) face unique challenges when providing patient care, one being location. Patients are often spread out across the area, traveling far distances for appointments. CAHs aim to keep patients local, but the rise in mobile and telehealth services may create a gap in the market: patients are staying local, but they are not going to their local CAH to receive that care. On the other hand, when rural hospitals already bear the weight of staffing issues or are forced to share resources across various departments, why should CAHs add a service line that could also be provided in the convenience of a patient’s home?

Wound care is a critical yet overlooked specialty for rural hospitals. Rural communities face disproportionately higher rates of two of the three key risk factors for chronic wounds: diabetes and obesity. For CAHs without an advanced wound care program, the responsibility to treat non-healing wounds could fall on many departments, from podiatry or physical therapy to emergency medicine, becoming a more maintenance-related service than a defined service line. In rural communities, mobile wound care companies promise to increase access, but this article will explore the top three benefits of providing this necessary care to patients onsite. 

1. Easy access to other hospital-based services

If wound care is offered onsite through an advanced wound care program, treating providers have easy access to the hospital’s other departments to supplement and optimize care. When a patient’s treatment plan requires lab work, x-ray, or MRI, they can be sent to the hospital’s own laboratory services while already at the facility. If the wound is infected and the patient needs immediate attention, they can be directed to the emergency room or admitted as an inpatient. Mobile wound care services are unable to offer the patient an entire network of care like a hospital can. If outside services are required, a patient must manage their own appointments; mobile care cannot provide the continuity of care to support a complete in-home treatment plan. 

For the patient, receiving hospital-based services means faster, more accurate care. The patient receives the exact care required to continue their healing at the moment they need it. There are no delays in care delivery, and the need to make another appointment or coordinate transportation to receive care is eliminated.

For a CAH, this offers an increase in demand and volume of ancillary services. Treating providers will utilize the services the hospital provides, encouraging referrals within the network and reducing patient migration. Overall, this can help boost revenue for the hospital. 

2. Clinically proven, financially vetted advanced product formulary

Implementing an advanced wound care program onsite allows the hospital and its patients access to the best products and treatments available with the proper clinical and financial oversight. For wound care, this might be specialized dressings, pressure-relieving devices, or cellular, acellular, and matrix-like products (skin substitutes). Without onsite wound care, hospital providers caring for patients with wounds usually do not have the resources to provide effective treatment. While mobile or standalone wound centers may offer similar treatment options, there may be little or undisclosed clinical and financial oversight when utilizing the products or treatments. Keeping care onsite allows the hospital direct input into their patients’ plans of care.

For a patient, this means faster healing times. Using proven products and treatments offers them longer-lasting results once their wound is healed, along with lower rates of recurrence. Through clinical and financial vetting, the patient is also provided cost transparency and can be assured that the resources available through the hospital are as safe, properly used, effective, and cost efficient as possible. 

For a CAH, access to an advanced product formulary optimizes healing. This means patients with wounds are often kept out of the emergency room or are less likely to be admitted as an inpatient, reducing overcrowding and increasing capacity. Clinically and financially vetted treatment options can also optimize revenue, ensuring the program’s offerings are beneficial not only to the patient and their wallet but also to the hospital’s bottom line. Advanced products and treatments may appear more costly than basic ones, but investing in these resources saves money by using less in the long run.

3. History of care in the community

Whether the hospital has been around for nine years or 99, a CAH already has an established history of care in the community. If a patient needs care, it is likely that the first place they will look is their local hospital. In rural health, it is no secret that trust and loyalty are important components in a patient’s health care journey. Finding a provider they know and trust can make a major difference in compliance and appointment attendance. This contrasts with offsite services that must build their reputation from the ground up and work harder to prove their worth to patients. 

For a patient, going to a trusted health care provider like their local CAH for wound care helps them heal by increasing their likelihood of following their care plan and decreasing their likelihood of missed appointments. 

For a CAH, adding an onsite wound care program not only boosts the facility’s reputation but also creates more rapport for the CAH. This positions the hospital as a destination provider of care in the community and surrounding areas. This also helps maximize marketing efforts and save costs by capitalizing on what the hospital is already doing to increase awareness. Overall, this attracts new patients while also encouraging current patients to stay local.

Onsite wound care is a win-win for patients and CAHs  

Having an advanced wound care service line onsite benefits patients and rural hospitals alike. With the ability to keep patients local, attract new patients, improve healing rates, boost patient satisfaction, and drive revenue, it is certainly worth the time, resources, and staffing required to bring care inside the hospital’s walls. Embracing the in-person care model in a world of quick and convenient fixes pays off in the long run, and for that your rural community will thank you.

NRHA adapted the above piece from RestorixHealth, a trusted NRHA partner, for publication within the Association’s Rural Health Voices blog.
 

With nearly 20 years of experience in the wound care industry and 10 years at RestorixHealth, Nathan Shivers serves as vice president of critical access development where he is responsible for establishing and nurturing rural health client relationships and ensuring a smooth transition from contract to wound center opening.