With the 21st Century Cures Act, implementing an electronic visit verification (EVV) system for home care is no longer a choice. Apart from meeting critical compliance requirements, EVV has a multitude of benefits for your employees and caregivers.
Selecting the appropriate caregiver app for your healthcare agency can be challenging. It involves familiarizing your workers with the system and integrating old data along with some investment to set it up. However, there are various long-term benefits of EVV compliance.
The majority of states have opted for the adoption of an open EVV model, such as the Provider Choice Model or Open Vendor Model. These models grant Provider Agencies the freedom to select their preferred technology solution for EVV implementation. As a result, organizations operating in states like New York must familiarize themselves with the various EVV systems available to them.
When choosing the right EVV, the most crucial factor may be its ability to integrate with your existing system, such as your payroll software. One notable benefit of Electronic Visit Verification is its ability to mitigate fraud and abuse, thereby ensuring quality assurance and promoting compliance.
Overall, the best EVV system for home care should be one that offers a holistic and precise care solution, bringing advantages to both care providers and recipients. In this blog post, we will walk you through the major benefits your agency will enjoy upon implementing EVV.
Benefits Caregivers Receive from Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) Implementation
Here are a few benefits your agency will enjoy upon EVV implementation-
- Improved accountability: With the EVV apps installed in your caregivers’ phones, they will be aware that their departure and arrival times are being monitored. With allGeo, caregivers can manage all their visit related operations via app, from automatic clock in clock out to sharing the visit report.
Each visit’s start and end time is electronically validated in the system through a code or e-signature from the recipient, minimizing the risk of fraud. EVV plays a crucial role in validating timesheets, tracking locations, and verifying the services provided.
Furthermore, EVV systems generate a comprehensive record of the care delivered, enabling the resolution of any client or family concerns and complaints. - Combats fraudulent visit reports: If your agency still uses manual methods to collect homecare visit reports, the chances are that you are missing data which can result in inaccuracies. Consequently, the system becomes vulnerable to fraudulent claims, and clients registered for home care services can suffer neglect if caregiver visits are not verified.
For instance, a caregiver may inflate work hours to receive higher pay, despite not spending the required time with the home care patient.
By implementing an electronic verification for every visit, the system safeguards against abuse as caregivers are obligated to provide precise documentation of in-home visits. With allGeo, your field workers can do this by capturing field data notes, tasks performed, signatures, or pictures. You can also have custom forms to generate state compliance reports. - Caregiver security: Caregivers may have to go to remote or isolated areas for service. In such a case, ensuring the safety of caregivers is of utmost importance. Implementing a lone worker safety workflow that establishes communication and provides mechanisms for caregivers to seek assistance when necessary can provide reassurance.
To keep them connected at all times, allGeo mobile application provides the capability to manually activate a safety alarm if needed. Smart safety workflows can be implemented to conduct periodic safety checks for any potential threat.Additionally, it is possible to establish a custom multi-level threat escalation channel, including the option to directly dial the local 911 emergency services if the situation requires immediate assistance.
- Easier communication: Caregiver apps can send reminders via text message, custom voice call (IVR), or app notification for tasks such as checking patients’ vitals, clocking in/out, making task selections, or addressing missed visits.
For instance, consider a scenario where a caregiver is assigned to regularly record a patient’s vital signs but forgets to do so. With the automated reminder system in place, the caregiver receives a timely text message, voice call, or app notification reminding them to perform this critical task.
It is a possibility that not all caregivers have a smartphone. Hence, most EVV software offers geotagged text messages or IVR phone calls on feature phones to record visits, time, and attendance.
Conclusion
Adapting EVV is a strategically important decision for any healthcare business. You can make state compliance work in your favor by using an EVV software that has additional features to benefit your business.
It is crucial to recognize that the caregiver apps serve as tools to protect both the caregivers and your agency’s reputation, ensure that clients receive the quality care they deserve, and guarantee that work hours are accurately recorded and paid for.