HCCIntelligence™ Webinar Recording: COVID-19 Updates: Advance Care Planning, Self-Care/Team-Care and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Telehealth Changes

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The "COVID-19 Updates" webinar held on April 15th, 2020 by HCCIntelligence, in collaboration with the American Academy of Home Care Medicine, focused on key topics relevant to home care medicine during the pandemic, including effective advance care planning (ACP) through telehealth, self-care for providers and teams, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) telehealth policy changes.<br /><br />Presenters, including experts from Johns Hopkins and Northwestern Medicine, discussed how to initiate and sustain important ACP conversations with patients via telehealth. Key strategies provided include building rapport quickly, addressing technological barriers, and managing clinical encounters effectively. Emphasis was placed on understanding patients' goals of care and coordinating these efforts with family members.<br /><br />The webinar highlighted the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare providers using the Bridges Transition Model, which describes the stages of endings, neutral zones, and new beginnings. It advised leaders to support their teams through constant change by maintaining open communication, setting clear priorities, encouraging creativity, and acknowledging their emotional responses.<br /><br />The session also covered updates from CMS, including new flexibilities that allow for billing of home visits conducted via telehealth retroactively from March 1, 2020. Detailed billing practices for ACP were shared, emphasizing the importance of documentation and patient consent. Additionally, the webinar discussed the use of communication-technology based services like virtual check-ins and e-visits, which are now billable even for new patients during the public health emergency.<br /><br />The technical and operational challenges of implementing telehealth were addressed, with suggestions such as screening patients for telehealth readiness and utilizing technology platforms like Doximity and Zoom.<br /><br />Finally, resources and additional support were discussed, aiming to help healthcare providers manage their practices more efficiently during the pandemic, including upcoming webinars and membership opportunities with the American Academy of Home Care Medicine.

Keywords

COVID-19

webinar

home care medicine

telehealth

advance care planning

CMS policy changes

psychological impact

billing practices

virtual check-ins

telehealth readiness