How to Start a Home Healthcare Company
Caring for the elderly and the terminally ill is a task many family members are just not equipped to deal with. It's often a full-time job that requires complete dedication. It's painful to watch a family member deteriorate. As the proprietor of a home healthcare company, you can help relieve some of the pain and burden it takes to look after these individuals.
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Things You'll Need
- Home Health Agency Operation License
- Certification as Professional in Healthcare
Instructions
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How to Start a Home Healthcare Company
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Apply for the required licenses. US News and World Report writer Matthew Bandyk says, "A hurdle in starting a home healthcare business is the licensing process. Regulations vary by state, but you will usually need to apply with the state to become certified." Not only is licensing required by state agencies, but your clients and their family members are going to expect it as well.
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Determine what services you will offer. This can include short-term scheduled visits to assist patients with taking their medication or long-term care for those patients who either have no family or the family requests full-time care. Twenty-four hour coverage requires that you have enough staff to rotate shifts, as well as additional staff members to help with other patients.
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Make arrangements with drug companies to have necessary medications on hand. Most patients will already have their prescriptions filled by pharmacies they've used for years. But if you can offer pharmacy services with discount prices, it will make your business more competitive.
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Find Qualified Home Care Specialists. You can contact staffing agencies that specialize in nursing and home healthcare. This will save you the cost of performing background checks and the time to schedule interviews.
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Work with insurance companies. There may come a time when a decision lands you in court. Your clients can be accused of anything from theft of household items to negligence. Make sure you have insurance to help re-coupe the losses and attorneys to get you out of a tight jam.
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Contact hospitals and hospices. Send announcements and marketing material to other entities in the industry to make them aware of your presence. They will be able to refer future business. Hospitals and hospices benefit by having alternative options available to their patients, especially in situations where a hospital is running out of beds for the patients they already have.
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Seek venture capital funding or apply for grants from local, state and government institutions. Start-up funding will be your biggest expense. Financially, you should be prepared to cover overhead for at least the first year. Put a business plan together to show angel investors for start-up capital. Go to your local library and get the assistance of a librarian to help you find grants that you may qualify for. Grant money doesn't have to be paid back as long as you use it for its intended use.
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Tips & Warnings
Be careful about any drugs you or your staff administer to a patient without doctor approval. Even aspirin should be approved by a doctor before one of your staff members gives it to a patient.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit time for a short break image by Keith Frith from Fotolia.com
