Participants Find Real Value in Learning and Networking during HCCI Workshops
As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, in December, HCCI held an Essential Elements of Home-Based Primary Care workshop in Orlando, and followed that up the next week by offering Advanced Applications of Home-Based Primary Care at HCCI’s headquarters in Schaumburg, Illinois.
Melissa Singleton, HCCI’s Chief Learning Officer, was pleased the organization was able to use face-to-face instruction again. “It was truly energizing to be back with in-person training,” Singleton said. “And it was especially inspiring to see our faculty members again being able to share their knowledge and encouragement with medical professionals eager to learn more about the value of home-centered care and key strategies for being successful.”
Conference participants agreed.
Sheila Magoon, MD, Executive Director of the South Texas Physician Alliance, acknowledged that the providers in her organization do almost no house calls, though she sees big potential for their patients and practices. Magoon said she hopes that having attended the Essential Elements workshop will begin the process of encouraging them to do more. “I came to learn,” she said during a nonclinical track of the conference examining how to develop a house call practice.
Magoon, whose physicians provide care to a largely Hispanic population in a mostly rural area north of Brownsville, Texas, said she was glad HCCI returned to face-to-face conferences after COVID-19 shut down such gatherings. “In-person is better for me,” she said. “It’s my learning style. It’s too easy to be distracted during online meetings, because there are too many things on my desk.”
Nicole Eversley-Hall, NP-C, N-Hall Medical Services LLC in Tamarac, FL, said, “The conference was a great asset to my practice as it gave me deeper insight on how to position myself to market to larger practices as well as how to communicate the value of house calls.”
The workshop attracted relatively new clinicians as well as veterans.
Sharon Stoddart, FNP-BC, said she was “very, very new” to the idea of house calls, and that’s why she attended. The longtime nurse and newly graduated nurse practitioner is working with Ada Tapper, DNP, APRN, Owner of ACT Health Solutions, Valrico FL. “The HCCI workshop was amazing,” Stoddart said, adding that she’s certain the future of HBPC is “going to be big.” (Learn more about Tapper and her practice in this HCCI Blog article.)
Emphasizing the importance of both the instruction and networking, LaLanya Robertson, Director of Operations/Owner of Florida Mobile Physicians, said, “My experience was positive, and the discussion and teachings were very informative. It’s nice being part of a group of providers and professionals that have a passion for the house calls mission.”
Margherita Labson, BSN, MS, Principal, MCLabson Consultation and Education LLC, and an HCCI board member, also attended, and shared her perspective: “As an HCCI board member, it was extraordinary to see first-hand how the expert faculty guided this large group through the content, punctuating each teachable moment with examples of practical application. The participants then collaborated with the faculty to probe deeper, solve for challenges and discover new ways to succeed. Overall, I watched as the participants entered as strangers, found a common spirit, and left as friends and colleagues who committed to continuing to partner.”
The Orlando workshop featured Paul Chiang, MD, HCCI’s Senior Medical and Practice Advisor; Ina Li, MD, Clinical Director of Continuum of Care and Home Based Services at Delaware-based ChristianaCare; Brianna Plencner, CPC, CPMA, HCCI’s Senior Consultant and Manager of Practice Development; Amanda Tufano, MHA, CMPE, CPPM, CEO of Minneapolis-based Genevive; and Megan Verdoni, PA-C, MPAS, EM-CAQ, Senior Associate Clinical Education Director at Florida State University’s College of Medicine, School of Physician Assistant Practice.
The session also included a special panel discussion involving several HCCI Florida Home-Centered Care Champions, a group of providers, including Hall, Tapper and Robertson, who have enhanced their house call practices following a series of specialized HCCI training and growth opportunities. (The Champions initiative soon will expand to Illinois; click here to learn more about becoming a participating practice.)
Participants in the follow-up workshop, Advanced Applications of Home-Based Primary Care, in Schaumburg, IL, also found real value in attending:
Odessa Hoinkis, MD, Bergen Geriatric Care, said, “HCCI provided my practice with information that has empowered me and my team to become more efficient in bringing much needed care to the homes of our patients.” (Learn more about Hoinkis and her practice in this HCCI Blog article.)
Ami Goodnough, DNP. CRNP, ACHPN, Alegis Care, said, “It was refreshing and invigorating to gather with other colleagues in the home-based care arena. The faculty was open, eager to share their experiences, and vulnerable. HCCI created a rich workshop that was incredibly relevant and helpful.”
Bridget Wiacek, APN-CNP, Home Care Physicians, said, “As primary care in the home and aging population continues to grow, it will become even more important to utilize our tools to help bring patient-centered care to those patients in the comfort of their home Thank you HCCI for such a wonderful workshop!”
Several of the Advanced Applications participants also graciously took the time to share their inspiring stories as part of our “I ❤️ House Calls” campaign.
The faculty presenting during the Schaumburg workshop included the aforementioned Chiang, Plencner, Tufano, and Michael J. Kingan, DNP, APRN-BC, CWOCN, Geriatric Nurse Practitioner, Johns Hopkins Home Care Group. In addition, HCCI founder and executive chairman Dr. Thomas Cornwell, also Senior Medical Director at Village Medical at Home of VillageMD, supported the workshop.
Both workshops are part of HCCI’s comprehensive education curriculum, which offers basic and advanced programs, online courses, practicums, and customized options.