title: Consider long-term care as service alternative.
abstract: The increasing demand for elderly care services, pressures on inpatient average length of stay and payment levels, and potential financial rewards from providing additional services, makes long-term care look attractive to hospitals. Long-term care, however, is not for every hospital. Before deciding to establish long-term care services, management should examine how the service fits within the hospital's strategic plan. The action plan below provides guidance in evaluating a decision to use hospital facilities for long-term care. Examine how long-term care services fit within the hospital's strategic plan. Study area demographics and competitors to assess the need and supply of long-term care services. Survey the medical staff, consumers and payers to determine attitudes, perceptions and interests regarding long-term care services. Develop a facility plan that identifies areas of excess capacity that can be most easily converted into long-term care with minimal effects on hospital operations. Prepare a financial feasibility analysis of the contribution margin and return on investment attributable to long-term care services. Include an impact analysis on hospital operations. Establish a management task force to develop a detailed implementation plan including assigned individual responsibilities and related timetable. Develop an effective marketing plan designed to generate increased patient market share.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001508:Bed Conversion / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003657:Decision Making; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006275:Health Facility Planning / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006739:Hospital Administration / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006754:Hospital Restructuring / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013781:Texas