Tag: chronic care management

We invite you to join SuperCare Health team members from across the country as we honor National Patient Recognition Week from February 1-7, 2024. During this important awareness week and all year long, SuperCare Health remains committed to increasing access to care and providing the highest quality programs and products to patients with conditions including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis, neuromuscular disorders, asthma, sleep apnea, and more. Increasing access to care is particularly important in light of recent studies focused on the patient experience. In 2021, The Health Information National Trends Survey found that only 52.8 percent of adults felt their healthcare providers involved them in decisions about their healthcare as much as they wanted. Additionally, the study reported that fewer than 27% of adults believed their healthcare provider helped them understand their diagnoses and prescriptions. SuperCare Health is on the frontlines battling these statistics through comprehensive programs that better connect patients and their providers while helping patients follow their prescribed care plans. As we continue the celebration of National Patient Recognition Week, let’s hear from SuperCare Health’s leading Respiratory Therapists about how patients have shaped their careers and lives. 

“Giving a patient their quality of life back is life-changing. When someone has difficulty breathing, it affects everything they do in their everyday life. To hear that a mom was finally able to go to her son’s baseball game, a spouse went to the grocery store, or a grandparent was finally able to join a family vacation. It all makes everything so worth it. It’s truly rewarding to hear how we have touched the lives of our patients in big and small ways. Our team of respiratory therapists works together to give our patients hope, and we are so proud to see them succeed and do the things they so badly want to do. Our patients continue to inspire us every day!”

Lorie Dickey, CRP (Certified Respiratory Therapist),  RCP (Respiratory Care Practitioner)

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“Patients are the heart and soul of what we do. When they need our services most, it can be a difficult time in their lives. Our job is to treat each patient with respect and dignity while providing care that will improve their quality of life. It isn’t always easy, but when I am a part of this process, it allows me to see how great service can truly uplift a person’s life. I am honored to be a part of my patients’ lives, and I know how much it means to them when we make their care a priority.”

Josh Wilhelm, RAE (Respiratory Account Executive)

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“Working with patients for more than 30 years has given me the unique opportunity to support people from all backgrounds and walks of life with a variety of health conditions. Each unique patient has a different need, whether it be educating them on their disease process, teaching them how to use their medical equipment, or just being there to hear their frustrations. Throughout the years, I have enjoyed helping my patients adjust to their new challenges so that they can get back to their quality of life. There are many patients I have met throughout the years who have inspired me, even with the simplest of gestures, like meeting their four-legged companions or sharing a cup of soup. I will never forget them.”

Robert Perea, CRP (Certified Respiratory Therapist)

About SuperCare Health

SuperCare Health is a comprehensive, high-touch, high-tech, post-acute healthcare organization that manages patients with chronic conditions and provides a broad range of therapies, including ventilation, oxygen, CPAP/BiPAP, medication optimization, nebulizers and nebulized medications, airway clearance and mobilization, enteral supplies, and more. Utilizing cutting-edge technologies combined with quality clinical services, SuperCare Health’s services, programs, and products support cost savings, improved patient outcomes, and streamlined care coordination. 

Nicole Rodriguez

Director of Respiratory Care

Nicole Rodriguez brings two decades of experience to her role as a Respiratory Therapist at SuperCare Health. She oversees clinical protocols, tech-driven population health programs, and patient engagement initiatives. Nicole is dedicated to empowering patients through compassionate education and support.

When managing chronic respiratory conditions in the home setting, patient adherence is one of the most significant hurdles for healthcare providers. Patient independence, support system, and daily routines all play a role in a unique and occasionally tumultuous journey that, when left unchecked, can lead to unfavorable outcomes. For healthcare providers, the importance of this endeavor is evident: patient adherence is the gateway to improved health, reduced admissions, and more favorable cost-related outcomes. While these reasons carry importance within the healthcare system, they alone rarely prove sufficient to drive adherence from the patient’s point of view properly.   In reality, it’s not our “why” that matters most, but the patients.

Motivational Therapy is one of the tools we can use to help bridge the gap between our clinical expectations and the patient’s reality. Motivational therapy is a patient-centered approach that helps individuals identify and explore their intrinsic motivations, set achievable goals, and develop the resilience and self-efficacy needed to make positive changes in their lives. In the words of motivational therapist Stephen Rollnick, “It’s not about telling patients what to do; it’s about helping them find their own reasons to change.” 

Implementing a motivational approach with patients at home boosts outcomes and fosters a vital bond between the patient and their homecare team. At SuperCare Health, our Respiratory Therapists are trained to help establish and shape the landscape of each patient’s motivational journey.  This process helps to engrain trust and support throughout the various stages of the patient’s disease progression and overall care plan.

Here are a few strategies that you can use to help your clinicians enhance their motivational skills:

• Training and Education: Provide comprehensive training on motivational interviewing techniques and motivational therapy.
• Role Modeling:  Consider peer-to-peer mentoring programs to facilitate knowledge sharing and skill development. Conduct case reviews to identify what works and needs improvement in patient motivation techniques.
• Goal moderation: Teach clinicians to break larger goals into smaller, manageable steps, making progress more tangible and motivating.
• Strength-Based Approaches: Guide clinicians in identifying and building upon the strengths and resources that patients already possess.  Help them frame discussions to highlight patients’ past successes and capabilities.

By implementing these and many more strategies, you can help clinicians develop and refine their motivational skills, ultimately leading to better patient engagement, adherence, and outcomes in the healthcare setting.

Managing chronic respiratory conditions at home can be challenging due to patient adherence issues. Motivational therapy, a patient-centered approach, can help bridge the gap between clinical expectations and patient reality. SuperCare Health offers trained Respiratory Therapists to support patients on their motivational journey, fostering trust and support. To enhance clinicians’ motivational skills, consider providing training, peer mentoring, goal moderation, and strength-based approaches.

If you need support in managing chronic respiratory conditions at home, don’t hesitate to reach out to SuperCare Health. Our Respiratory Therapists are here to help you on your unique motivational journey, ensuring better patient engagement and improved healthcare outcomes.