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Referral Intake and Patient Acceptance

Sets out how the Agency receives and records referrals, decides whether it can accept a patient on the basis of a reasonable expectation that the patient’s medical, nursing and social needs can be met adequately in the patient’s place of residence, applies the same acceptance criteria consistently to every referral, logs every referral not accepted with the reason, respects the patient’s free choice of provider, and keeps its public information about services accurate.

Preview: full text with a package
About this policy
Policy number
PA-HH-ADM-01
Version
1.0
Main rule
28 Pa. Code §601.31(a)
Library
Pennsylvania home health · 56 policies
Category
Service delivery
Sections
18

In short

  • Pass every referral straight to intake; intake records the date and time it was received on Form PA-HH-ADM-01-A.
  • Only the supervising nurse or alternate decides whether we accept a patient, using the same criteria for everyone.
  • We accept a patient only if we can reasonably expect to meet their medical, nursing and social needs at home.
  • Every referral we do not accept is logged with the reason, and the referral source is told the same business day.
  • Respect the patient’s choice of agency; never offer anything for a referral.

What's inside

18 sections. The full text comes with the One-time Policy Pack.

Full text with a package
  • Terms of Reference
  • 1. Purpose
  • 2. Scope
  • 3. Definitions
  • 4. Policy Statement (28 Pa. Code §601.31(a))
  • 5. Receiving a Referral
  • 6. The Acceptance Decision
  • 7. Evaluation Visit for Medical Assistance Recipients
  • 8. Referrals Not Accepted
  • 9. Freedom of Choice
  • 10. Annual Review and Public Information
  • 11. Responsibilities
  • 12. Records and Compliance Monitoring
  • 13. Staff Training
  • 14. References
  • 15. Related Policies and Forms
  • 16. Approval
  • 17. Revision History

An inspector may ask

  • Walk me through what happens when a hospital calls with a referral.
  • How do you decide whether you have the staff to take a new patient? Who makes the decision?

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