LHC #127 - Growing Your Home Health Business 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Growing Your Home Health Business While Implementing the NEW PPSHow to Focus Your Sales and Marketing During PPS StartupJanuary 9, 2008~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~In this issue...-- How are You Doing with the NEW PPS?-- Sales and Marketing Strategies for PPS Performance-- Educating Your Sales and Marketing Team on the NEW PPS-- Power Home Health Referrals-- About the Author-- Permission to ReproduceHappy New Year!
...and welcome to 2008's first issue of Stephen Tweed's Leading Home Care Report. This special report is for CEOs and senior executives of America's leading home health care companies. This report is published every other Wednesday by Leading Home Care ... a Tweed Jeffries company for our clients, friends, and advocates who want to grow their home health businesses.
How are You Doing with the NEW PPS?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The first week of the 2008 PPS revisions seem to be going smoothly. Is this a "Y-2-K" non-event, or is this the calm before the storm?In our conversations with home health care executives around the country, we think it's one of two cases:
1. Home health teams have done their homework and are really ready for the transition.
2. Some home health agency executives have not put in the time and effort and are totally unprepared.
I suspect there are some in the middle. Where are you?
Since our focus at Leading Home Care is to work with home health agencies that want to grow their businesses and with executives who want to get ready for the future, our focus is on how you can grow your business during this transition in PPS.
There are two basic answers.
One is to train and prepare your home health team for the changes that are taking place, and provide education and training for your supervisors and clinicians. The other is to make sure that your sales and marketing team understands the changes and their implications for them. Then make sure they keep focused on those referral sources and those diagnoses that will help you generate the most revenue per episode of care.
Sales and Marketing Strategies for PPS Performance~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~To keep your sales and marketing team focused on PPS performance, there are two things you need to do. First, you need to provide education and training on the differences between the old and the revised PPS. Help your team members grasp the concept of the four part equation that will determine how much you're paid for an episode of care.That means helping your sales representatives understand how the number of therapy visits affects reimbursement, and how specific diagnoses affect reimbursement. Then it means translating that into an action plan that defines which patients, which diagnoses, and therefore which referral sources have the greatest potential to bring in high revenue per episode.
It's important to be clear that we are not talking about "cherry picking" the system. We're not saying only go after and take cases with high reimbursement.
We are saying that, "Before you can do good, you must do well." The reason we focus on growing your business profitably, it is our fundamental belief that strong, growing, financially sound home health agencies do a better job of serving their patients and their communities than weak, stagnant, money losing agencies.
Here are four things you can do to help your sales and marketing team be more productive under the new PPS system:
- Provide in-depth education for your marketers and sales reps on the fundamentals of the revised PPS system.
- Help them understand which patients and diagnoses receive higher reimbursement per episode.
- Help them understand which of your current referral sources and prospects give you those patients.
- Give your team feedback every month on your total PPS performance.
This means not only letting your marketing team know how many referrals and admissions they are bringing in, but what's the average revenue per episode. Remember my saying, "What gets measured gets managed, what gets rewarded gets repeated."
We can help you provide that education and training for your sales and marketing team. First, we'll be kicking off a three-part audio teleseminar series on January 17th. Judy McGuire, Michael Giudicissi, and I will give you the details of what you need to know to grow your business profitably under PPS.
Second, I'll be speaking at the Power Home Health Referrals conference on Tuesday, February 12, 2008 in Las Vegas. Immediately following Dr. Tray Dunaway's opening keynote address, I'll be giving your people "Innovative Sales And Marketing Strategies for Top PPS Performance."
I'll also be doing a breakout session on "Tools and Techniques to Recruit and Select High Performance Sales Professionals." One of the biggest challenges we see facing Marketing Directors and Sales Managers in home health care is recruiting and selecting sales professionals who can get proven results.
Educating Your Sales and Marketing Team on the NEW PPS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Join the Team from Leading Home Care
. . . for a three part audio teleseminar series on Sales and Marketing Strategies for PPS Performance beginning on Thursday, January 17, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. and then running every three weeks for three sessions. Stephen Tweed, Judy McGuire, and Michael Giudicissi will lead you through an in-depth discussion of the changes in PPS, the information your sales reps will need to be winners in the marketplace, and how you can measure your sales and marketing performance under the new PPS.
- Thursday, January 17, 2008 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern - How PPS Impacts Sales and Marketing
- Thursday, February 7, 2008 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern - Sales Team Strategies for PPS
- Thursday, February 28, 2008 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern - Measuring and Managing Sales Success
Now's a good time to register if you still have some money in your 2007 Sales Budget that you need to use before the end of the year. "Use it or lose it" is how the saying goes. For the very reasonable price of $499.00 per calling location, you can receive this value-packed audio learning program for all of your sales and marketing representatives. You will also want to invite members of your management team. The more people in your agency who understand these principles, the better your bottom line performance will be.
Just click on the link below. Enter the contact information and your credit card. We'll send you a telephone number and log in information a few days before the teleseminar, along with a link to download the handout materials.
It's a simple, easy, effective way to help your sales and marketing team members get the information they need to bring in more referrals that turn into admissions with higher revenue per episode.
Power Home Health Referrals~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The leading conference on marketing and business development in home health care is the Power Home Health Referrals conference presented by Home Health Line and Decision Health. I've been working with the folks from Home Health Line for over 20 years and I've spoken at this conference numerous times.There is no better place to get the knowledge you need to get more referrals that turn into admissions. As you know, Dr. M. Tray Dunaway, our colleague and faculty member in the Certified Home Care Sales Professional program will be the opening keynote speaker. Dr. Dunaway is a magical presenter who inspires audiences while giving practical, take home information about how to sell your services to physicians.
I'll be following Dr. Dunaway, and then we have a terrific line up of industry professionals who will share their insights and expertise. You don't want to miss Power Home Health Referrals 2008, February 11-13 at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.
See you there!
About the Author~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Stephen Tweed, CSP, is Chairman and CEO of Leading Home Care ... a Tweed Jeffries company. For nearly 25 years he has been a recognized leader in strategy and leadership development for home care companies and associations. He is the author or co-author of five books, four of which were written specifically for the home care industry. He has served on the boards of directors of three not-for-profit home care agencies, and has served as interim President & CEO of a $25 million home care company.
Stephen is a past-President of the National Speakers Association, a 3500 member international society of experts who speak professionally. He is also the father of a 37 year-old son who is physically disabled and uses the services of home care on a daily basis.
Permission to Reproduce~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Permission is granted to healthcare publications, associations and companies to reproduce this article in your publication, or to distribute copies to your leaders, on the condition that you reproduce the credits and contact information as follows: "Reprinted with permission from Stephen Tweed's Leading Home Care Report. Copyright 2006 Stephen C. Tweed. To receive a FREE subscription to this newsletter, log on to www.leadinghomecare.com."
Contact Leading Home Care~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~email: stephen@leadinghomecare.comphone: 1-866-209-5101~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~