Referral, Eligibility Screening and Admission
Sets out how the Agency receives and screens referrals, the time frames it has set for starting care, how a physician recommends admission and how eligibility is decided, what happens at the admission visit, how the current patient list is kept, and the special steps for children, facility residents and patients near the edge of the service area.
About this policy
- Policy number
- TX-HSP-ADM-01
- Version
- 1.0
- Main rule
- 42 CFR §418.25
- Library
- Texas hospice · 59 policies
- Category
- Hospice care
- Sections
- 24
In short
- Write every referral on the referral record, with the date and time you got it.
- Call back within 4 hours in office hours. Urgent referrals get a nurse visit the same day.
- Only the medical director or physician designee recommends admission, after asking the patient’s own doctor for input.
- The nurse does the initial assessment within 48 hours after the patient elects hospice, or sooner if asked.
- At the admission visit, give rights, advance directive notice, agreement and election papers before giving care.
- Never turn a referral away because of race, religion, disability, age or how the patient pays.
What's inside
24 sections. The full text comes with the One-time Policy Pack.
- Terms of Reference
- 1. Purpose
- 2. Scope
- 3. Definitions
- 4. Policy Statement (42 CFR §418.25; 26 TAC §558.294)
- 5. Receiving a Referral
- 6. Time Frames for Initiating Care (26 TAC §558.294)
- 7. Eligibility Screening
- 8. Physician Recommendation for Admission
- 9. The Admission Visit
- 10. When the Agency Does Not Admit
- 11. Pre-Election Evaluation and Counseling
- 12. Special Situations
- 12.1 Pediatric patients
- 12.2 Residents of nursing facilities and other facilities
- 12.3 Patients outside, or leaving, the service area
- 13. Current Patient List (26 TAC §558.293)
- 14. Responsibilities
- 15. Records and Compliance Monitoring
- 16. Staff Training
- 17. References
- 18. Related Policies and Forms
- 19. Approval
- 20. Revision History
An inspector may ask
- What are your written time frames for initiating care, and show me that you met them for this patient.
- Who recommended admission of this patient, and where is the attending physician’s input recorded?
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