- Home
- » e-Newsletters
Know How to Document Missed Visits
Homecare Insider, July 5, 2010
The documentation of missed visits is one of those perplexing issues that homecare providers confront. Look at these sample questions.
What is the necessary paperwork to complete if the nurse omits a visit because the patient has a physician's appointment on the same day?
How do we document that the patient canceled a visit by a home health aide?
Let’s quickly review the facts about missed visits.
- A missed visit modifies the frequency of visits the physician ordered. If the agency can reschedule the visit during the same week, thereby maintaining the physician-ordered frequency of visits, there is no missed visit.
- There is no requirement that the agency must obtain a physician’s order to cover the missed visit.
- The agency must notify the physician about the missed visit. Reason: The Conditions of Participation require staff to notify the physician about changes that suggest a need to modify the plan of care.
- The agency decides how it wants to document missed visits.
An agency can choose to use a missed visit report. Advantages: The report includes prompts to ensure complete and concise documentation of information. The agency can fax the report to the physician’s office or use it as the basis for reporting information during a telephone call.
However, there are options to using a report. The simplest: Document all pertinent details in a communication or visit note, including:
- the patient’s name
- the date and type of visit
- a reason why the visit was missed
- impact of the missed visit upon the patient or how the patient’s needs were met (A missed visit should not put the patient in jeopardy.)
- physician notification (date, time, physician name, method of notification, staff member)
- signature of staff member reporting the information.
File documentation about the missed visit in the patient’s clinical record.
Every month, Homecare DIRECTION provides guidance about the delivery and documentation of homecare services. Learn more about this newsletter at — http://www.beaconhealth.org/cgi-bin/ccp51/cp-app.cgi?pg=prod&ref=33-550-00.
Most Popular
- Articles
-
- Practice the six rights of medication administration
- Note similarities and differences between HCPCS, CPT® codes
- Code diagnoses and outpatient treatment for PTSD
- Don’t forget the three checks in medication administration
- OB services: Coding inside and outside of the package
- What to include on the incident report
- Differentiate between types of wound debridement
- Q&A: Primary, principal, and secondary diagnoses
- Know guidelines and subtle differences in code descriptions for laceration repairs
- Nursing responsibilities for managing pain
- E-mailed
-
- Understand how to report services during the global period for minor surgeries
- Reimbursement for Facility and Professional Services in a Provider-Based Department by Gina M. Reese, Esq., RN
- Q&A: Querying for acute confusion
- Not Just for Nurses. This Tool Evaluates the Healthcare Team?s Work Environment
- JCAHO revises medication labeling expectations
- How inpatient-only procedures apply to CAHs
- HIPAA Q&A: Does HIPAA address "return to work notes"?
- Follow these guidelines when developing a PACU policy and procedure
- Explore cardiorenal syndrome query opportunities
- Documentation: Legal risks for nurse managers
- Searched
