Schedule and Session Descriptions

2018 Medical Respite Training Symposium

Archived Session Materials

Welcome and Medical Respite Lay of the Land

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In our opening session, leaders in the national medical respite care movement will welcome you to Phoenix (home of the respite exemplar Circle the City), describe the work of the Respite Care Providers’ Network, and offer a lay of the land for medical respite on a national scale. We will discuss how this Training Symposium fits into the national context and why we need to work together to continue this momentum.

Speakers: Brandon Clark, MBA, Chief Executive Officer, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ; Rhonda Hauff, Chief Operating Officer, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Yakima, WA; Julia Dobbins, MSW, Project Manager, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Nashville, TN


Maximizing Council Resources to Support your Medical Respite Program

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In 2011, the Steering Committee of the Respite Care Providers’ Network (RCPN) addressed the need to establish standards for medical respite care in order to improve quality and consistency across a range of programs and to improve opportunities for research and federal funding for medical respite care. A Task Force of medical respite care experts was charged with developing standards that (1) align with other health industry standards related to patient care, (2) reflect the needs of the patients being served in the medical respite setting, (3) promote quality care and improved health, and (4) are achievable for a range of medical respite programs with varying degrees of resources. This plenary session will provide an overview of the standards for medical respite care, the accompanying standards companion and organizational self-assessment, the medical respite online toolkit, and other Council resources created to help support the development of medical respite care nationwide.

Speakers: Julia Dobbins, MSW, Project Manager, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Nashville, TN


Fundamental Issues for Establishing a Medical Respite Program

View slides from this presentation (PDF). Additional materials include Glossary of Legal Terms (PDF).

This session will discuss some of the administrative issues involved in planning and implementation to embark on a medical respite program. Presenters will highlight operational, administrative, and legal considerations for structuring a medical respite program.

Speakers: Alice Moughamian, RN, CNS, Program Director/Nurse Manager, Medical Respite and Sobering Center, San Francisco, CA; Rhonda Hauff, Chief Operating Officer, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Yakima, WA ; Henry Fader, Attorney, Pepper Hamilton LLC, Philadelphia, PA


Why Would We Pay You to Do That? Demonstrating the Value of Medical Respite Care

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The vast majority of both existing and emerging medical respite programs lack of an established framework for traditional healthcare reimbursement. As a result, respite advocates must become experts at defining and demonstrating value-centric outcomes that compel funders to invest in their programs. This session will examine the medical respite model’s alignment with the broader industry’s goals of healthcare transformation, provide an overview of information to help advocates build a compelling case to serve the homeless population, and survey metrics and associated data sources that measure both the cost and quality impact of medical respite.

Speakers: Brandon Clark, MBA, Chief Executive Officer, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ


Clinical Pearls for Success in Medical Respite

View slides from this presentation (PDF). Additional materials include Scenarios and Best Practices (PDF).

Medical respite programs have varied models of clinical care, and the appropriateness of patients for admission often depends on clinical staffing and hours of operation. This 90-minute interactive presentation will focus on staffing models and admission criteria within medical respite. We’ll review best practices for specific clinical scenarios as well as particular clinical challenges. There will be ample time for discussion and questions to review specific scenarios.

Speakers: Kim Despres, DHA, RN, RN Program Director, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ; David Munson, MD, Medical Director of Respite Programs, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, Boston, MA


A Values-Based Approach to Recruiting, Training, and Retaining Medical Respite Staff

View slides from this presentation (PDF). A Values-Based Approach to Recruiting, Training, and Retaining Medical Respite Staff; Ascending to Health Respite Care; Values-Based Approach (Boulevard of Chicago). Additional materials include Appreciation Hearts, Culture of Patient Safety, Employee Engagement, Friday Email, Rounding, Stoplight Report (PDF).

This interactive workshop will address challenges in hiring and training staff, health care and social care misconceptions that newly hired staff sometimes have to un-learn, and the “not so secret” to recruiting and retaining the right staff for your medical respite program. Presenters will share their experiences and expertise in managing staff in three different medical respite programs across the country. This workshop will include time for questions and discussions.

Speakers: Pamela Kerr, MSW, Program Director, The Boulevard, Chicago, IL; Melissa Brown, LICSW, Manager, Edward Thomas House, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, WA; Greg Morris, PA-C, Executive Director, Ascending to Health Respite Care, Colorado Springs, CO


Collecting, Tracking, and Reporting Data for Medical Respite: Tricks of the Trade

In this interactive workshop, we will explore opportunities for collecting, tracking, and reporting data that is relevant to your program and important for your stakeholders. Topics covered include understanding and managing stakeholder expectations, determining which outcomes to report, designing and using data collection and tracking tools, using HMIS data, data reporting, and more!

Speakers: Donna Biederman, DrPH, MN, RN, Associate Professor, Duke University School of Nursing, Durham NC; Preston Witt, BA, Chief Services Officer, Harmony House, Houston, TX


Utilizing Harm Reduction in Addressing Substance Use in the Respite Setting

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This workshop will focus on addressing issues around substance use in the Medical Respite setting.  Attendees will learn practical application of harm reduction into their everyday practice.  The workshop will be part presentation and part facilitated discussion, creative application of the framework, and problem-solving for individual programs.

Speakers: David Munson, MD, Medical Director of Respite Programs, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, Boston, MA, Alice Moughamian, RN, CNS, Program Director/Nurse Manager, Medical Respite and Sobering Center, San Francisco, CA


State of Affairs: A Health Policy Update

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It’s a busy time in health care policy! Start the day with an overview of the issues that are directly impacting health, housing, and other aspects of the HCH Community. Leave with an understanding of how administrative, financial, and clinical operations may be impacted by recent and proposed changes. Time will be reserved for discussion and Q&A.

Speakers: Barbara DiPietro, PhD, Sr. Director of Policy, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Baltimore, MD


Building a Sustainable Program: Funding Approaches to Start and Grow Medical Respite Care

View slides from this presentation (PDF). Additional materials include Hospital Community Benefit Policy Brief and Respite Financing Policy Brief (PDF).

Financing your program in a sustainable way is key to programmatic success and is often dependent on a variety of factors. This workshop will provide an overview of the most common ways to fund medical respite, an orientation to health care financing terminology, and feature executive leaders from two well-established respite programs who will discuss how their funding approaches have evolved over time. Time will be reserved for group discussion and Q&A. Participants will leave with practical advice for how to start or grow a program.

Speakers: Rhonda Hauff, Chief Operating Officer, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Yakima, WA; Brandon Clark, MBA, Chief Executive Officer, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ; Barbara DiPietro, PhD, Sr. Director of Policy, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Baltimore, MD 


From Recuperation to Life-Long Leadership: Consumer Governance in Medical Respite

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Authentic consumer engagement takes client partnership to the organizational level, inviting clients to help shape program services and supports through governance. Including consumers in high-level decision-making not only fulfills organizational values, but works well to better identify the needs of the community and develop effective solutions. Medical Respite programs provide unique care in unique settings, which creates specific challenges to consumer engagement. This workshop will discuss successful strategies for building consumer leadership and governance at Medical Respite programs, including practical implementation steps, lessons from the Health Care for the Homeless community, and examples from existing respite programs.

Speakers: Greg Morris, PA-C, Executive Director, Ascending to Health Respite Care, Colorado Springs, CO; Chauna Brocht, LCSW-C, Director of Supportive Service, Health Care for the Homeless, Baltimore, MD


End-of-Life/Palliative Care: Models and Challenges in a Medical Respite Setting

View slides from this presentation (PDF). Additional materials include End of Life Care Guidelines and Healing Hands End of Life Care (PDF).

This workshop will focus on different models regarding palliative/end-of-life issues within medical respite programs. There will be PowerPoint presentations explaining different models of care nationwide within examples of staffing, collaborations, and partnerships that make it successful. The presentation will be followed by a question and answer period to spark discussion and complex case studies, which in turn will help attendees develop solutions and confidence to address a difficult topic.

Speakers: Kim Despres, DHA, RN, RN Program Director, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ; Brooks Ann McKinney, MSW, Director of Vulnerable Populations, Mission Health System, Asheville, NC; Melissa Brown, LICSW, Manager, Edward Thomas House, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, WA; Melissa Sandoval, MD, Medical Director, Circle the City, Phoenix, AZ


Approaching Hospitals for Collaboration and Funding Purposes

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This workshop will focus on ways to approach hospitals in your community to build relationships, coordinate care, and/or discuss funding opportunities. The presentation will include a PowerPoint presentation explaining these different topics and a discussion based off the different scenarios or questions, depending on the participants in the room. The presentation will also feature ideas on how to gather data from your own medical respite program to share with hospitals and an explanation of a hospital/MCO/ACO’s perspective when looking at funding programs.

Speakers: Brooks Ann McKinney, MSW, Director of Vulnerable Populations, Mission Health System, Asheville, NC


Risky Business: Safety and Security in Medical Respite Programs

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Safety can be a very subjective condition. Presenters will share a risk analysis tool developed to evaluate safety and security needs for patients and staff and share their experiences of using trauma-informed care approaches in dealing with potentially dangerous situations. Participants will have opportunities to share their own experiences and consider new approaches and procedures in dealing with security issues.

Speakers: Alice Moughamian, RN, CNS, Program Director/Nurse Manager, Medical Respite and Sobering Center, San Francisco, CA; Rhonda Hauff, Chief Operating Officer, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Yakima, WA


Managing Cognitive Disorders in Medical Respite Programs

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There is a high prevalence of cognitive disorders in respite programs. New respite staff might not be familiar with how to work with patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries, cognitive impairment or dementia and might especially struggle to understand how these conditions are influenced by acute medical illnesses or substance use disorder. In this workshop, we will discuss the prevalence of these types of disorders in respite programs, review tools used to screen for such disorders and suggest how they can be best managed within a medical respite program. We’ll specifically discuss how to create a “dementia friendly” environment and how to link clients to ongoing treatment after discharge. The workshop will also include hearing from a former respite client who entered a cognitive rehabilitation program after respite.

Speakers: Chauna Brocht, LCSW-C, Director of Supportive Service, Health Care for the Homeless, Baltimore, MD; Joseph Funn, Consumer Leader, Health Care for the Homeless, Baltimore, MD; David Munson, MD, Medical Director of Respite Programs, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, Boston, MA


Just Do It: Starting Small in Medical Respite

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Three models for medical respite care will be presented: scattered sites, apartment-style, and shelter-based programs.  Each presenter will give a brief overview of their program, what services they provide, and how their program has evolved. We will then have an open discussion regarding specific considerations, including getting started, funding, services and staffing, and outcomes. There will be ample time for attendees to engage with the panelists. We welcome your questions.

Speakers: Rhonda Hauff, Chief Operating Officer, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Yakima, WA; Randy Pinnelli, PA, Program Director, Care Link – Health Care for the Homeless, Stockton, CA; Donna Biederman, DrPH, MN, RN, Associate Professor, Duke University School of Nursing, Durham, NC


Medical Respite and Housing: Housing Strategies at Discharge

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This workshop will focus on ways that medical respite programs can collaborate with organizations to place patients into stable housing at discharge. The presentation will highlight two different models nationally that partnered with housing agencies to work towards stabilization for patients after discharge from their medical respite stay, as well as a discussion based on different scenarios or questions from the participants in the room and their communities. The discussion will also include ideas on how to approach housing agencies or other organizations to build a relationship and possibly secure housing vouchers for your patients.

Speakers: Brooks Ann McKinney, MSW, Director of Vulnerable Populations, Mission Health System, Asheville, NC; Preston Witt, BA, Chief Services Officer, Harmony House, Houston, TX


Self-Care Is Quality Care

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As health care for the homeless professionals, we are at risk of experiencing issues that mirror those of the traumatized individuals we serve. Research demonstrates the dangerous impact on physical and emotional health when exposure to trauma is combined with a stressful work environment.  Knowledge is the best defense against burn-out, vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue. This workshop goes farther than other self-care workshops by addressing the critical elements of health to enhance productivity and quality of work. Utilizing research in neurobiology, psychology, and business, this training provides skills for those working in the community to be more effective and efficient at work, allowing for the highest level of services possible.

Speakers: Matt Bennett, MBA, MA, Trainer, Bennett Innovation Group, Denver, CO

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