Home Health & Hospice Week

Mary Schantz of the Missouri Alliance for Home Care told the National Association for Home Care & Hospice that four HHAs in Joplin have been completely destroyed and a private duty home care provider has been severely damaged, according to NAHC's member newsletter.

And "a number of hospice programs in Joplin [Missouri] have been severely affected and hospice staff in the region are continuing to search for patients and families that have been displaced or are missing," reports the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization on its website. At press time, the death toll following the E-5 tornado that hit the town May 22 was at 124.

Oxford HealthCare and Hospice, whose Joplin office was destroyed by the tornado, sent an emergency response team to the area to address the needs of more than 100 homebound and hospice patients, reports the Springfield, Mo. News-Leader. "The devastation and breakdown in communications has displaced many homebound and hospice patients, especially in the residential areas hit by the tornado," Oxford spokesperson Julie Burnell told the newspaper. "We are working hard to account for each of our patients, and to ensure their safety and well-being. Many are in need of medications and specialty care." Oxford set up a temporary headquarters at a local church and brought additional supplies and nursing staff from the Springfield area to serve patients, according to the News-Leader.

Karen Thomas of Oxford informed NAHC   that the agency lost its main office. "We had a disaster plan prepared, but our command center in the plan was also destroyed," she told the trade group. "Thanks to a dedicated staff, we found a new center and were up and operational by 8 a.m. Monday morning," she continued. "By [Tuesday] afternoon, we had found 1,600 employees and clients. Unbelievably, all survived."

Amedisys Inc., which has a Joplin office, has a website and a toll free number dedicated to gathering its patients' and employees' emergency contact information in order to address their needs. The site is www.amedisys911.com.

Access Home Health, an LHC Group agency, had its main office in Joplin destroyed, LHC told NAHC.

National HealthCare Corp., a long-term  care chain that also provides home care and hospice services, evacuated the residents at its Joplin facility. "The tornado that came through Joplin hit the center hard, but fortunately no residents or staff were injured," the Murfreesboro, Tenn.-based chain says about its Joplin HealthCare Center facility on its website. "We have moved the residents to our other Joplin center while we assess damage."

Joplin's Freeman Health System, with HHA Freeman Home Care Services, activated its disaster plan, it notes on its website. The health system also is coordinating relief efforts for its own employees. 

Other localities are also having to put their disaster plans in place due to weather events ranging from tornadoes to flooding. For example, Louisiana is experiencing severe flooding, notes the Home Care Association of Louisiana.

Patients in affected areas may be reluctant to evacuate, HCLA notes. Agencies can emphasize that the patients may not be able to receive home care services in evacuated areas. In a call with state officials, "it was suggested any assistance [from the National Guard] in evacuating someone would very likely be offered, but assistance for what should be routine home health visits would not be high on the priority list for someone who chooses not to evacuate," the trade group points out.

While getting visiting home health personnel into affected areas may be an issue, some agencies are providing staff with placards to hang from the rearview mirrors, letters on company stationary identifying them as a home care nurse, and assuring nurses have name badges, HCLA says.