Peninsula Home Care Recognizes Delmarva Physicians for Leadership and Teamwork
in Advance of National Doctors’ Day, March 30th
National Doctors’ Day (Thursday, March 30) is dedicated to celebrating the contributions of physicians who serve the country by caring for its citizens, and the doctors of Delmarva will not be forgotten … not if Peninsula Home Care has anything to say about it.
“Doctors are the lynchpins of medical care,” said Therese Ganster, Peninsula Home Care Community Liaison. “We have so many tremendous doctors in this region – I’ve never worked in a community where the doctors are as involved in every aspect of care as they are here. It helps to make providing care for patients across Delmarva a true team situation, and acknowledging them on a special day is a great way to recognize their contributions.”
Peninsula Home Care recognizes the importance of each partnership it shares with local physicians to better serve patients. The teams of nurses and therapists in the Wicomico, Worcester, Somerset and Sussex County regions actively share medical information, educational materials and resources with the physicians involved in the plan of care for each patient.
Dr. Joe Kim, a family physician, the president of medical staff at Nanticoke Memorial Hospital and the medical director for Peninsula Home Care at Nanticoke, has been in practice for eight years. Kim sees the benefit of working with an entire team of healthcare professionals and including the patient and caregiver in the plan of care.
“I like taking care of people and I am a huge advocate of home health care,” said Dr. Kim. When home care nurses and therapists educate the patient and caregivers on the condition, plan of care and how to better manage their illness at home, it allows for a much smoother recovery period.”
Kim noted that the home care staff serve as “eyes and ears” for doctors in the home.
“If a nurse recognizes duplications in medications the patient is taking at home, they will immediately call my office so we can take care of it. The level of education and monitoring they do in the home translates into better outcomes for the patient which is what we all strive for,” Kim added.
Peninsula Home Care works closely with doctors to develop services and resources that provide support to patients and information to their primary caregivers. Recently, Peninsula developed a “Risk Assessment for Hospitalization and Referral to Home Care” check list for doctors to use when assessing a patient and prescribing home care. Ganster noted that the check list includes the criteria for being eligible for home care, the definition of “homebound,” homebound qualifiers and a scoring system for a patient’s risk of hospitalization.
“Our goal is the same as the doctor’s: get the patient well and keep him well. That is why teamwork and tools are so important, and it is why days like National Doctors’ Day are so significant; they remind us to appreciate the people who are on the medical front lines – in this case the doctors,” Ganster added.
History of National Doctors’ Day
The first Doctors’ Day observance was March 30, 1933 in Winder, Georgia. Eudora Brown Almond, wife of Dr. Charles B. Almond, decided to set aside a day to honor physicians, and the first observance included the mailing greeting cards and placing flowers on graves of deceased doctors. On March 30, 1958, a Resolution Commemorating Doctors’ Day was adopted by the United States House of Representatives. In 1990, legislation was introduced in the House and Senate to establish a national Doctors’ Day. Following overwhelming approval by the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, on October 30, 1990, President George Bush signed S.J. RES. #366 (which became Public Law 101-473) designating March 30th as “National Doctors’ Day.”
About Peninsula Home Care
Peninsula Home Care provides health care services, resources and “real world” therapy in the home. The home health staff provides and coordinates a plan of care and/or therapy that a patient’s doctor orders to help maintain the patient’s physical, mental and social well-being. Services include nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech language pathology and access to medical social workers and home health aides.
Peninsula Home Care ensures that all patients are involved in their plan of care and strives to give them every opportunity to maintain their independence in the home. The agency has recently surpassed serving 30,000 patients and has been named to the “Home Health Care Elite” for the third time in four years. The Home Health Care Elite, awarded by OCS Home Care, recognizes the top 25-percent of home health agencies based on performance measures in quality outcomes, quality improvement and financial performance. For more information visit www.peninsulahomecare.com.
