Therapists have had to prove their mettle in three-plus years under the Patient Driven Payment Model.
Still, many insiders liken the experience more to an “evolution” than “revolution.” Rather than disrupting therapy, the launch of the model in 2019 led to improvements.
“Since the implementation of PDPM, the long-term care industry has seen extraordinary challenges as we faced major reimbursement and regulatory changes in the midst of the global COVID-19 crisis,” says J. Lynn Bauknight, PT, MSPT, CWS, RAC-CT, RAC-CTA, corporate director of client success for Reliant Rehabilitation.
As Reliant pros pointed out in a recent McKnight’s webinar, a premium is placed on achieving high-quality outcomes as efficiently as possible — all while facing reimbursement cuts for therapy assistants and greater transparency in billing practices.
Under such stress, skilled therapists have expanded their roles as practitioners and patient advocates, Bauknight observes.
John Heller, CEO of HealthPRO Heritage, says he relies on the same approaches that have guided his company from day one: to focus on “patient needs and achieving the highest level of functional improvement.”
“As such, the amount of therapy delivered must not be based on the particular incentives of the system, but rather on what the physician orders and the patient requires,“ he says. “Placing our therapy teams in the driver’s seat and promoting clinical autonomy to provide the right care, at the right time, in the right place, has always proven to produce optimal outcomes.”
Heller notes that the company did not feel pressured to make broad changes despite PDPM’s shifting emphasis from therapy to other provisions of care.
“We closely monitored our outcomes paired against our steadfast clinical delivery and saw enhanced outcomes in the new payment system and throughout COVID,” he says.
“With rising patient acuities and a healthcare system continuing to evolve into a patient-centric, value-based system, it is more vital than ever to ensure quality care delivery is at the center of the patient experience. Rehab clinicians, alongside the interdisciplinary care team, are vital in that.”
