There are systemic challenges that face not only resupply businesses, but healthcare as a whole. We all know care systems are fragmented, with various providers often working in silos. This is inefficient and can cause delays getting patients the supplies they need. What’s more, each provider may have their own protocols, treatment goals and communication systems. This is difficult, if not impossible, for patients to manage. For example, if a nutritionist tells a patient to lower red meat consumption, but the physical therapist says they need red meat to build muscle, the patient will be at a loss to know the best way forward.

Sharing information can be another hurdle. EHR systems work differently and describe and use data in different ways, making it difficult to share key patient information that can impact treatment. If the physical therapist we mentioned above is unaware of the patient’s dietary changes, it can result in misalignment of care, which ultimately affects treatment outcomes. EHRs that support interoperability are a key factor that can streamline how different providers share the latest patient information.

When patients need supplies for more than one health condition, they often need to work with different HMEs due to specialization: some organizations specialize in sleep treatment, some in diabetic treatments and so on. And even those HMEs that are full service often have different departments handling different therapies. In these cases, the patient ends up having to make sure they have everything they need at the right time. This can be logistically complicated for the patients, and may put treatment effectiveness at risk.

The complexity of the resupply business also adds challenges. There’s a lot of documentation required in resupply in general. But when you talk about multitherapy and consider the life cycle of a patient with several diagnoses, the documentation multiplies. Part of the reason is that patients with more than one diagnosis often have different doctors—for example, they see a cardiologist for a heart condition and their general practitioner for sleep apnea, both specialized doctors that handle different therapies. What this means, depending on the insurance, is that the HME may need to handle double the prescriptions, double the  signatures, double the documentation and billing information.

Another trend I’ve recently heard of is referral sources wanting an HME to manage therapies for which they may not have expertise—for example, a referral source for CPAP patients may also want the HME to manage patients on ventilators. The referral source may even make this requirement part of the contract, meaning that if the HME won’t or can’t provide the additional resupply support, they could lose a source of income. Meeting those demands could mean that the HME incurs the extra cost to bring in a specialist to identify what’s needed for each patient, how to bill for services and how to manage ongoing care.

Multitherapy resupply is here to stay, so it pays to understand why it’s important and where the challenges are. But don’t get overwhelmed or discouraged! In an upcoming blog, I’ll explain strategies using new tools and technology to help streamline management of your multitherapy patients.