Home Care Connect grows business

WINTER PARK, Fla. - Home Care Connect has added a national account manager to its team, with the workers' compensation market growing seeing a rise in more severe injuries.

Those injuries are more likely to require DME, says Anita Jovic.

“We're not seeing as many slips and falls,” said Jovic, vice president of operations for Home Care Connect. “Instead, they may get their hand caught in a conveyor belt or a faulty piece of equipment falls on them.”

The company, which manages home health, DME, home modification, O&P and supplies for workers' compensation patients and payers, contracts with more than 19,000 HME providers.

The more severe workers' comp injuries include burns, amputations, traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries, says Jovic. Home Care Connect works with providers to make sure equipment is in place when the patient is discharged.

“Home Care Connect likes to think outside the box to ensure that our injured workers get the necessary DME items to be safely discharged home,” she said. “At times, we have had service providers dispense these items at the hospital, rehab, physician's office and home health agencies just to name a few.”

Simple items may be drop-shipped to the patient. For a specialized item like a custom scooter, an ATP (see related story, page xx), will perform a patient assessment. The insurance adjuster makes the final decision on the equipment, but with the prescription and medical documentation, the injured worker gets what they need, says Jovic.

“Our focus is to get the patient back to some kind of independence—back to work or functioning in society,” she said. “Some may never go back to work.”