Year: 2014

ViaQuest will leverage its comprehensive and integrated health services to forge post-acute care partnerships with a broad range of medical providers and healthcare facilities, providing patients and their families with more locally based options to meet their individual continuum of care needs. 

DUBLIN, OHIO, April 10, 2014 – ViaQuest, Inc., a leading regional health services provider, announced today that it has acquired the Indiana operations of TriStar Home Health and Hospice, a division of Trilogy Health Services, LLC, of Louisville, Ky. Terms were not disclosed.

The acquisition, effective immediately, includes TriStar operations known as Vibrant Home Health Care, serving 22 Indiana counties from locations in Evansville, Huntingburg and Terre Haute; Care One Homecare Services, serving 11 central Indiana counties from its Muncie office; and Serenity Hospice, serving 25 counties from branches in Lafayette, Fowler and Terre Haute. The 180 people employed by Vibrant, Care One and Serenity now are employees of ViaQuest.

ViaQuest will leverage its home health and hospice expertise to forge post-acute care partnerships with senior living communities, assisted living and other long-term healthcare facilities, physicians, hospitals and health systems, as well as with families and caregivers in Indiana.  

“Through our comprehensive, integrated and multidisciplinary health services, we can provide more locally based options and individual solutions to meet the continuum of care needs of patients and their families,” said Rich Johnson, CEO and founder of ViaQuest. “We’re looking forward to building upon the solid foundation established by Vibrant, Care One and Serenity to provide increased opportunities for independence within an atmosphere of compassionate care.”

Trilogy Health, the leading provider of senior living and long-term healthcare services in the Midwest, is focusing on its core business and will continue to operate its senior living facilities in Indiana, among other states. Trilogy plans to further expand its senior living footprint.

According to Randall Bufford, president and CEO of Trilogy, “Over the last several months, Trilogy’s Board of Directors has evaluated the portfolio of company assets to determine if they are appropriately aligned with long-term strategic initiatives. Because of this review, the board decided to pursue the sale of our home care and hospice operations to better correlate assets with long-term goals and objectives. We appreciate the support and service that the Vibrant, Care One and Serenity staff have provided to our residents and to our Trilogy team.”

ViaQuest, founded in 1999 as a provider of health, residential and employment services for individuals with disabilities, has in the past eight years expanded into home health and hospice through new ventures and acquisitions. ViaQuest Home Health and Hospice serves western Pennsylvania and major metropolitan areas in Ohio.

“This acquisition positions us not only to become a primary home health and hospice provider in the Hoosier State,” Johnson said, “but also to expand the delivery of what is becoming an increasingly important post-acute care model for individuals in this era of health reform.”

Each of the Indiana companies will operate as subsidiaries of ViaQuest Home Health and Hospice, which has a history of developing innovative and creative solutions to improve lives.  Last month, ViaQuest launched Ohio’s first hospice-based pain management program, which relies on a simple genetic test to help determine which pain medications and dosages are best suited for individual patients, and the state’s first hospice specifically focused on the special needs of individuals with developmental disabilities.

About ViaQuest

ViaQuest is a healthcare company that believes strongly in choice for its employees and the people it serves. Its areas of expertise include home health and hospice, mental and behavioral health, and developmental disabilities. ViaQuest offers quality, highly personalized, specialized and cost-effective care, empowering individuals to function independently and live their best possible lives. Through a wide range of innovative services referred to as ViaQuest’s Circle of Care, a skilled, dedicated staff ensures that the people served are active participants in their own care. The company is based in Dublin, Ohio. For more information, call ViaQuest at 800-645-3267 or visit www.ViaquestInc.com.

About Trilogy Health Services

Trilogy communities offer a full range of personalized senior living services, from independent and assisted living, to skilled nursing and rehabilitative services in 80 senior living communities throughout Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan and Illinois. Trilogy’s senior living services are delivered by staff specially trained to honor and enhance the lives of our residents through compassion and commitment to exceeding customer expectations. For more information about Trilogy Health Services, visit www.trilogyhs.com.

We would like to congratulate Becky Lucht and Kendra Smith for their recent graduation from the Dublin Chamber of Commerce 2014 Leadership Academy!

The Dublin Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the graduation of its 2014 Leadership Academy class. The Leadership Academy, the Chamber’s young professionals’ leadership development program, works to empower young citizens to become active in their communities and leaders in their professional careers. The six-session program focuses on topics such as motivational empowerment, leadership skills, networking, entrepreneurial pursuits and career management.

The Chamber’s Leadership Academy is an essential resource for young professionals looking to distinguish themselves from their peers. To submit an application for the class of 2015, please call the Dublin Chamber of Commerce at 614-889-2001.

Thank you to the City of Dublin’s Economic Development Department for its generous support of The Leadership Academy and to the Muirfield Village Golf Club for hosting the sessions.

About the Dublin Chamber of Commerce

The Dublin Chamber of Commerce is the largest suburban chamber of commerce in Ohio and represents nearly 1,500 area business representatives.  As the active voice of the business and professional community, the Chamber works to promote business, assist community development and advance human resources.  For more information, or to become a Chamber member, please call the Chamber at 614-889-2001 or visit www.DublinChamber.org.

ViaQuest is launching the first and only personalized medicine program for hospice in Ohio. Our personalized medicine services are available March 1, 2014, in 22 Ohio counties.

•  Northeast: Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, Stark and Summit

•  Central: Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Madison, Pickaway and Union

•  Southwest: Butler, Clark, Greene, Hamilton, Miami , Montgomery and Warren

What is personalized medicine?

Personalized medicine is the practice of using genetic profiles of individuals, along with data such as physical and environmental characteristics, to more accurately prevent, diagnose or treat disease. Personalized medicine enables providers to tailor treatment plans to the individual, increasing the likelihood of effective outcomes. More hospitals and health systems are moving to personalized medicine. ViaQuest is a leader in bringing this approach to hospice.

Our goal is to transform the way medicine is delivered. We are committed to finding creative and innovative solutions to improve the quality of life of patients, enabling them to function as independently as possible in their communities and homes. Our mission is to set the standard for quality through personalized, specialized, cost-effective health care. 

ViaQuest will focus on pain management to have the greatest, immediate impact on quality of life. Our focus initially will be on pain management, as it is universal in end-of-life stages. The progression of disease makes it difficult to manage pain. Genetics also is estimated to account for 20 to 95 percent of the variability of drug effects. Prescribing pain medication becomes guesswork, where dosages might be increased or a mixture might be used. While this might mitigate pain, it can alter the level of consciousness and create side effects. This can lead to increased fall risks and nausea and diminished quality of life.

Our focus will improve quality of life, creating an emotional lift for individuals and their families. We view our program as a gift to all those we serve. People will receive the lowest dose possible to keep them alert and engaged. This will be a welcome emotional and mental lift for individuals and their families.

Hospitals can benefit from our initiative because it can help to reduce readmissions and positively impact mortality rates. Many times, people who are good candidates for hospice are readmitted to hospitals throughout the progression of their disease. ViaQuest provides hospitals with a viable and effective option to refer or transfer patients who not only desire a holistic approach, but also are in need of pain management.

How it will work. The testing and evaluation process is known as pharmacogenetics, the study of how genes affect the human response to drugs. With a simple, noninvasive swab of a patient’s mouth, the metabolism and ability to process medications will be assessed to determine the safety and efficacy of pain medications. 

ViaQuest is the exclusive Ohio partner with PGXL Laboratories in providing the personalized medicine program.  The Louisville, Ky., company, an internationally recognized pioneer, will conduct testing on behalf of ViaQuest patients. PGXL is the first lab in the country to be certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to conduct pharmacogenetics testing.

ViaQuest is launching the first and only specialty hospice program for people with developmental disabilities as an enhanced service to our traditional hospice.  The new program is available March 2014 in 22 Ohio counties.  Our goal is to continue to expand hospice for developmental disabilities throughout the state.  Counties where services now are available:

•  Northeast – Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, Stark and Summit

•  Central – Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Madison, Pickaway and Union

•  Southwest – Butler, Clark, Greene, Hamilton, Miami, Montgomery and Warren

We’re uniquely positioned to serve individuals with developmental disabilities, making us the provider of choice.  People with developmental disabilities and their families have special needs.  they have the right to the same hospice care as any other.  We are the only provider with the experience, expertise and services to deliver compassionate, professional and skilled care to the developmentally disabled individual.  As a leading provider of developmental disabilities and hospice programs, we have the training, insights, continuum of care model and quality certification to be the single, primary resource during these difficult times.

Our program is innovative because we take a holistic approach.  Often times, caregivers and families of people with developmental disabilities do not realize they have options to keep their loved ones at home.  The family support network can extend to those who share the group home.  We enable individuals to live each day to the fullest by focusing on comfort care, pain management, relief of distressing symptoms and emotional and spiritual support.  We connect individuals to the resources they need to remain in the home with quality and dignity.  We offer respite for caregivers and bereavement and anticipatory grief counseling, extending services to those in the group home.  It is a holistic approach to support everyone through this challenging journey.

We’ve created this program as part of our continuum of care.  At ViaQuest, our breadth and depth of services are unmatched, from physician and licensed nursing to mental health, chaplain and social worker support.  We assemble an interdisciplinary team to develop a personalized plan for the individual with developmental disabilities and his or her family.

We guide people through the eligibility and financial process. We make the process as seamless as possible so the individual and those who are part of his or her support network can focus on what is most important – living each day to the fullest. Many people do not realize that hospice often is covered by Medicare and Medicaid as an add-on service, meaning it does not impact current benefits.

We provide hospice in a range of settings.  We help the individual to remain in his or her place of choice, whether it is a private home, group home, nursing home, assisted living facility or other setting.

We empower guardians, families and caregivers to make informed decisions. It can be difficult to make a hospice decision when the individual is unable to provide informed consent. Caretakers and guardians might feel overwhelmed. We arm them with the best and latest information to help them determine whether hospice is a viable, beneficial and desirable option.

 

The Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) and the Office of Procurement from Community Rehabilitation Providers (OPCRP) has awarded The ViaQuest Foundation with two multi-year state contracts.

“We are connecting the resources of our community rehabilitation program with the needs of Government to provide employment opportunities for Persons with Disabilities!” said Patrick Soller, Executive Director of The ViaQuest Foundation.

The ViaQuest Foundation has been a qualified non-profit agency with the State of Ohio since 2010. In addition, we were also certified as a Community Rehabilitation Program (CRP). An obligation for Ohio’s state and local government entities to procure supplies and services from Community Rehabilitation Programs (CRPs) was created in 1976 by the Ohio Legislature.

The purpose of this obligation is to provide Ohio citizens with work-limiting disabilities gainful employment experiences or training opportunities while simultaneously providing benefits to the many levels of government within the state. The program is administered by the Office of Procurement from Community Rehabilitation Programs (OPCRP), General Services Division, Ohio Department of Administrative Services (ODAS). Purchasing from a CRP is mandatory if the buyer is covered by the Law and the desired product or service already appears on or is deemed suitable for addition to the “Procurement List”.

Advantages of Using the Program

•  CRPs benefit by the increased employment and training opportunities available to the persons with disabilities they serve.
•  Government customers benefit from the simplicity of the purchasing process and high-quality products and services.
•  Ohioans with disabilities benefit by increased purchasing power and independence.
•  All of Ohio benefits from the increased employment of Ohioans with disabilities which in turn increases tax collections and reduces entitlement liabilities of state and local governments.

The ViaQuest Foundation has two general distribution contracts. This first is for Commercial Moving. We partnered with Planes Moving and Storage to provide training to our staff and clients with disabilities. This training has been developed into an 8 week program at the ViaQuest Day Services locations to ensure we have a skilled workforce in every region we serve. Planes also provides the resources to ensure that the right moving equipment, packing boxes, and trucks are available to handle moves up to 60,000 square feet of office space. To date, The ViaQuest Foundation has done commercial moving for Butler County Board of DD, Ohio Department of Aging, Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio Department of Health, the Ohio Highway Patrol, Ohio Public Defenders Office, Ohio Bureau of Investigation, and others.

The ViaQuest Foundations other distribution contract is for kit fulfillment. We provide CPR Training supplies, First Aid Kits, and mobile Nursing Clinical Trunk bins. CPR training is a critical component to any organizations emergency preparedness. In addition, we can provide a variety of first aid kits and customized trunk bins for mobile nursing or first responder’s needs.

If you would like more information about the ViaQuest Foundation’s CPR/First Aid Kits, or Commercial Moving; our contact information is below:

Derek Kinzer, Client Advocate: Derek.Kinzer@ViaQuestInc.com, 614-374-0288
The ViaQuest Foundation: www.ViaQuestFoundation.org

CRP Contracts: Commercial Moving Services, GDC801
CPR/First Aid Kits, GDC997

The ViaQuest Foundation recently received a grant from the Union County Board of Developmental Disabilities (UCBDD) to help fund an innovative client advocacy program.  The UCBDD believes that meaningful outcomes are experienced by people with disabilities when they have a voice about what happens in their life.  The purpose of this grant is to create opportunities or experiences that will enable individuals to obtain and apply the skills needed to successfully advocate for themselves.

 “We took a look at what ViaQuest was doing as a whole for client advocacy.  We looked at our Quality of Life Survey, Consumer Complaint tracking program, and our newly created Client Advocate position.  We knew we had some really innovative ideas that would benefit the board in developing best practices.  Ultimately our team, realized that we could bundle our proposal with the new iPad roll-out for mobile administration!” said Patrick Soller, Executive Director.

As a large provider, ViaQuest has the unique advantage of using our resources to deliver results statewide.  In addition, we are able to provide individual counties with benchmarking data and best practices.  Partnership with the county boards and providers is becoming more and more critical as expectations change for residential, day, clinical, and employment services providers.

ViaQuest will implement the use of the Software Support Specialist and mobile personal digital tablets to deliver disability rights training, quality of life survey, and consumer complaint/concern tracking that will improve self-advocacy.  We have been using paper-based reporting for many years.  This program will allow our direct care staff to access and enter client information onsite and in the home in real-time more efficiently.  This will allow the staff to provide more hands-on time for self-advocacy and management can review data 24/7 to improve our quality of care.

The three main benefits of the program are:

1. Improving Accuracy:  Copying, missed entries, and misinformation are common issues with paper forms. Even when the paper forms are accurate, retrieving the information is difficult.
2. Reducing Risk:  Virtually every survey involves an intense examination of supportive documentation.
3. Improving Quality of Life and Complaint Resolution:  Direct Care Staff can transmit concerns and issues directly to the Client Advocate for resolution in real time.  The Client Advocate can trend, compare, and analyze collected data to proactively monitor for changes in conditions.

 

It is expected that ViaQuest will employ a full time trainer to assure that proper training of the technology is provided and that ongoing support is available during implementation of the hardware and software.  The trainer will be a certified trainer as defined by the software product company.

Components of the implementation include policy development to address work flow, hardware and software training, hardware and software deployment, dual paper and paperless systems, full implementation, and on-going training supports designed for orientation and annual training expectations.

As part of the grant funding, we expect the following outcomes and measurements:

Customer Satisfaction – The Software Support Specialist will be a resource for clients to become familiar with the technology and transmit survey results and complaints in real-time.  Benchmark data will be captured in the Quality of Life Survey analysis to determine the level of customer satisfaction.  The UCBDD data will also be compared to statewide data collected by ViaQuest in order to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities.

Acquisition and Demonstration of Skills – The use of the mobile tablets will allow clients the ability to demonstrate their self-advocacy skills through an electronic medium in addition to using face-to-face communication.  Quality of Life Survey allows direct care staff to have a framework to focus on teaching the acquisition and demonstration of self-advocacy skills for our clients.  The survey ensures that every client is given the time to share their ideas in an appropriate manner and gain confidence in their ability.  In addition, through ViaQuest’s process improvement program and our Client Advocate, they will be able to see that their requests will be acted upon.

Service Provision – The technology will increase ViaQuest’s ability to respond to requests for new services or change in services.  By having a Software Support Specialist to train direct care staff, ViaQuest can ensure that the technology will be properly used to facilitate improvement plans.

This grant opportunity is a shining example of continuous improvement and innovation.  Union County Board of Developmental Disabilities may have been the first to partner with VQF, but they most likely will not be the last.  VQF has two statewide Community Rehabilitation Program (CRP) contracts; one for CPR/First Aid Kits and one for Commercial Moving Services.  Both of these contracts have created employment opportunities.  Work is already underway to service Cuyahoga County’s moving needs.

If you would like more information about the ViaQuest Foundation’s work in Client Advocacy, CPR/First Aid Kits, or Commercial Moving; our contact information is below:

Patrick Soller, Executive Director, Pat.Soller@ViaQuestInc.com, 614-339-0847

Derek Kinzer, Client Advocate, Derek.Kinzer@ViaQuestInc.com, 614-374-0288

The ViaQuest Foundation, www.ViaQuestFoundation.org

CRP Contracts:

Commercial Moving Services, GDC801

CPR/First Aid Kits, GDC997