Health equity is achieved when everyone can attain their full potential for health and well-being. It’s a hot topic among home health agencies, and important to serving a changing population. But if you ask 25 people in home health what they think the needs of individuals with intellectual/development disabilities (IDD) are, there is a good chance of receiving 25 different answers.
Ask the agency owners, and they might say funding and easier insurance pathways are the biggest need. Then ask the nurse and you might hear that staffing shortages are the greatest burden. Have a sit-down with clients and family and they could argue that compassionate nursing care is forefront. On and on it goes, all the way to owners and government regulators.
In our work with home health employers at Nurse Recruitment Experts, we have found that better people equals better care. And that trickles down to all areas. Staff stay longer. They know how to help. And individuals within their care and their families receive better information. In short, a skilled nursing workforce affects every tier of the home health sector, but particularly for the outcomes of people with IDD.
So, here’s why we think nurse training might help to solve many of the “greatest needs” of IDD individuals in home health.
How can specialized training help the needs of individuals with developmental disabilities in home health?
Quality of care
Specialized training equips nurses with the skills that lead to high-quality, compassionate care for the unique needs of IDD individuals. Suppose a nurse, with only hospital experience among non-IDD populations, begins working in home health. Will she understand the dangers of diagnostic overshadowing? Specialized training would help with that. Will she be aware of her own bias and avoid ableism? What about cognitive accessibility barriers: challenges in communicating symptoms or understanding medical information?
Will she be able to develop working relationships with involved family members and help them on their journey? Specialized training has it covered. One more question: Will the nurse understand insurance requirements and government guidelines? Once again, specialized training should answer that.
Recognizing nuances
It is vital to ask these questions because it points out the great divide between IDD care in home health and other types of nursing environments, and the need for training that brings the greatest success. If the home health sector developed comprehensive and engaging training modules that focused on the specific medical and emotional needs of IDD patients, it could lead to exemplary nursing and better health outcomes for clients.
Retention
Creative training can also give the caregivers “skin in the game,” so to speak, because if they are invested they will stay longer. Ongoing education gives nurses a sense of pride in their work and commitment to the IDD field so long as training can be interesting, and convenient or training that will add letters to their name tag. Think about the sports teams and the amount of conditioning that goes on. By the time the game arrives, those players are ready to put it all into practice. That’s the same human mindset anywhere we go; If it costs something then its value has increased.
The importance of educating nurses affects the nurse, then the patient, then onto the family, which, in turn, reaches management and the owners. When skilled nursing improves, compassion and understanding are given toward each other; guidelines and regulations are understood and more closely followed; and excellence in the nursing staff grows and it eventually reaches every level in the whole industry. Delivering the training is as important as the training content itself and bringing it into the 21st century will be a game-changer.
Making training engaging
Creative and innovative education is a wide-open door, and with technology, it could reach a standard not seen before. Virtual reality technology could be utilized to make learning a fun experience that will add anticipation to the education. Hands-on gaming-type simulations would be another tech-type training model that would engage the nurse more closely and even improve knowledge retention for them.
Online interactive learning should be considered in a busy nurse’s life, such as online education to CNAs. Yes, training is a big answer to so many challenges in the IDD home health industry, but new and quality methods could change the face of the learning aspect into an exciting and memorable accomplishment — one that will not only change how they perform their work, but how they feel about their work.
Finally, provide ongoing education opportunities and workshops to keep nurses updated on best practices, new research, and evolving care techniques for individuals with developmental disabilities. Utilize simulation labs and hands-on training sessions to give nurses real-life practice in handling various scenarios they may encounter, too.
Specialized training = An investment in health equity
So let’s take a new look at floor-level IDD care in home health nursing education and see if we can affect behaviors that go all the way to Washington. Someone said that the greatest need at any given moment, is the need that’s not being met. So preparation through education could be the first step to excellent care and solving the IDD’s “greatest need” within home health — whatever that may be.
Adam Chambers is the president of Nurse Recruitment Experts (NRX). Since 2019, NRX has sourced and hired 10,000s of RNs, LPNs and CNAs for health systems across the United States and Canada. Chambers has sat on the Social Media Committee of the National Association of Healthcare Recruiters and the Healthcare Council of the American Staffing Association, and currently is a member of ASA’s Direct Hire Council.
Tammy Chisgar is an LPN based in Murfreesboro, TN. She also has an extensive writing background, penning a popular monthly devotional. Chisgar works with Nurse Recruitment Experts on research and marketing strategy projects.
