Healthcare will be one of the defining issues of this century. One thing is clear; the era of cheap healthcare services is over. What we all do next will determine how well we meet the needs of the population in the next 50 years and beyond.

The need for healthcare services is soaring like never before. As populations grow and scientific advances in the field of medicine result in longer life, the ability to manage escalating costs becomes critical. Coupled with the need to maintain a high level of quality, the impetus to identify the means to deliver sustainable healthcare programmes in the country is driving all sectors towards a more creative approach.

We can wait until a crisis forces us to do something. Or we can commit to working together and start by asking the tough questions: What can we do to help meet the healthcare needs of the people in the most cost-efficient manner? How do we manage costs and still deliver the very highest level of quality? How do we measure and maintain standards? How do we accelerate the efforts to take these services across the country? How do we get people to challenge conventional thinking and accept that new times require new solutions? What do we do to deliver more in an environment where resources are already stretched?

At Nurses At Home, we believe that innovation and collaboration are the cornerstones on which to build a better tomorrow in the world of healthcare. We cannot do this alone. Corporations, Hospitals, Doctors and the Government must be part of the solution. We call upon insurance company and hospital administrators, politicians and policy makers and each one of you to be a part of reshaping the next era of healthcare.

Insurance firms

Escalating healthcare and incident costs have resulted in regular increases in premiums required of policy holders everywhere. Each increase however, is not necessarily matched by an enhancement in the quality of the benefit. Nurses At Home provides home care as an alternative to in-hospital treatment once the patient is past the acute care stage and is deemed to be ready for discharge by the physician. The service is meant to be both a means to enhance patients' rate of recuperation and comfort over the rehabilitative process as well as to serve as a proactive means to lower per incident claims for insurance firms. It is our intention to make this service feasible without any additional premiums and to ultimately participate in facilitating savings for the policy holder.

To discuss possibilities with Nurses At Home, please e-mail simonlim@nursesathome.com.my or call (603) 5621 1382.

Private Hospitals

Home Nursing can be an extension of your product offering and a means to strengthen the hospital's outreach into patients' homes.

It has been reported that patients tend to prefer convalescing at home where possible as it is less intimidating than the hospital environment. The rate of recovery is also enhanced.

Research and experience show that in-patient income for hospitals are highest over the first 2 – 3 days. Making Home Nursing services available to your patients and participating in early discharge planning (with no compromise in the standard of care for patients); thereby reducing LOS (length of stay) will result in maximum returns on investment and no loss of Pharmacy sales.

A survey revealed that some hospitals have Admissions closed 3-4 times a month on average. Increasing patient throughput will reduce demand for hospital beds and free up beds for patients that truly require full acute services. At the same time, Doctors will not have to delay surgery for those needing immediate care.

Home Nursing is also a means to mitigate the need for additional bed counts. Your balance sheets may not have to bear the burden of the high cost of building additional capacity. Price increases, one of the methods that is commonly used to pay down costs of construction can be delayed.

The shortage in Nurses is a common problem. Home Nursing is a means to free up Nursing capacity within the hospital allowing for redeployment where necessary. The problem of stressed nurses due to overwork is also managed down.

To discuss possibilities with Nurses At Home, please e-mail simonlim@nursesathome.com.my or call (603) 5621 1382.



Pharmeceutical equipment and Nutrition Companies

Recently discharged patients (and the people who care for them) who still require step-down care can very often benefit from professional guidance at home on how to handle equipment such as Ryles tubes and how to administer nutritional supplements. It is in the interest of the firms that provide these products to ensure that their customers are well trained in use-at-home techniques. We are also in a position to fill prescriptions for both pharmaceutical and nutritional products, always in accordance to the prescribing doctor's instructions.

Property Developers

There has been increased interest in property developments which offer creative solutions to present day requirements. Malaysia's aging population presents a compelling argument for the need for Retirement Villages or Housing developments that incorporate facilities for step-down care. Nurses At Home has the expertise to provide consultation services for the design and running of such facilities.

To discuss possibilities with Nurses At Home, please e-mail simonlim@nursesathome.com.my or call (603) 5621 1382.