Starting a Home Health Care Business

Introduction

Starting a home health care business seems beneficial from the perspective of the provision of extra income for the family. However, its success depends on a careful analysis of circumstances and, more specifically, pros and cons. This initiative is to be conducted on the basis of both the experience of my mother and the official statistics. Meanwhile, the main orientation will be on the instability of the environment, which can be seen from global emergencies, such as COVID-19 (Sohrabi et al., 2020). Therefore, the success of the proposed project is greatly conditional upon the careful evaluation of various factors, which determine its feasibility.

Analysis of Statistics

The official statistical data published by the National Center for Health Statistics reflect the pros and cons of the project. First, the provision of care for older people, who are the principal clients, can be complicated by the need for a wider variety of services compared to other patients (Harris-Kojetin et al., 2013). Second, high turnover rates can prevent from guaranteeing long-term interventions (Harris-Kojetin et al., 2013). Meanwhile, the positive factors are stable demand for services combined with the lack of offers (see Figure 1). Hence, the mentioned challenges can be eventually eliminated when relying on the market dynamics.

A Business Plan: Marketing

The first aspect after examining the environment is the creation of a business plan. As follows from the experience of bigger companies, such as WeCare, it is primarily focused on the marketing strategy (Kidambi, 2017). First, it is critical to effectively present services to potential clients, thereby gaining their trust (Kidambi, 2017). Second, it is critical to use appropriate technology for operating and analyzing feedback (Kidambi, 2017). Third, communication channels and locations for advertising are to be regularly reviewed and modified when needed (Kidambi, 2017). In this way, the awareness of people regarding the offer is the key to the start-up’s success.

A Business Plan: Resources

Strategic choices can be effective only if there are enough resources for their implementation. The latter is related to the initial funding, employees, equipment, and a strong management team (Schroeder, 2018). It is clear that the financial aspect should be addressed to move on to other needs. According to the data from Home Care, Meeting You There, it includes monthly and annual expenses, certification, and service lines (Schroeder, 2018). In addition, as follows from my mother’s personal experience, stable revenue is critical for maintaining the operations. Therefore, funding is the guarantee of the business’ profitability in the long run.

A Business Plan: Employment

The human factor plays a significant role in the outcomes of the company’s activity. From this point of view, hiring employees determines not only the efficiency of principal operations and the quality of provided services but also defines the prices for potential customers (Kidambi, 2017). Hence, it is necessary to pay particular attention to this task as it affects revenue and client satisfaction. Moreover, the prospective providers of care include registered nurses, speech, occupational, and physical therapists, and social workers with varying wages (see Figure 2). It means that the development of a pay scheme is needed for establishing the proper functioning of the business.

A Business Plan: Managing the Business

In addition to the above factors, proper management is vital for establishing control over the company’s activity. It implies the presence of three crucial tasks: preventing harm deriving from improper conduct, detecting problems in operations, and making corrections as per the revealed issues (Schroeder, 2018). In this way, the necessity of addressing these aspects of the business positively correlates with proper management. In turn, the set-up, which is a limited liability company, corresponds to these goals since it implies the shared responsibility of all employees and managers (Schroeder, 2018). Thus, it guarantees greater control over the principal activity of participants.

A Business Plan: Workplace Culture

Finally, workplace culture should be efficiently introduced at all levels. This need is conditional upon the importance of effective communication between employees and managers (Schroeder, 2018). In other words, the success of the project depends on its participants’ ability to coordinate actions, which is emphasized by a significant share of facilities of this type (see Figure 3). For this, employers and caregivers should cooperate in organizing tasks and responsibilities. For example, the perceived accountability for absenteeism can be developed through a clear division of duties. Employee turnover, which is a potential challenge, as it was mentioned above, can be addressed by promoting loyalty. In turn, the need for micromanaging can be eliminated by empowering caregivers and engaging them in the decision-making process.

Conclusion

To summarize, the analysis demonstrates that equal attention should be paid to all of the above areas of the matter to bring revenue in the future. The combined data received from the official sources and personal experience show that providing a wide range of services to the growing numbers of patients will be efficient when addressing turnover rates. Marketing should incorporate the presentation of services and the development of communication channels while adopting technology. In turn, finances, which are principal resources, are complemented by people and equipment, whereas management is based on shared responsibility. In the end, creating workplace culture is suggested for promoting loyalty, bringing clarity, and empowering staff.

References

Harris-Kojetin, L., Sengupta, M., Park-Lee, E., & Valverde, R. (2013). Long-term care services in the United States: 2013 overview. Vital and Health Statistics, 3(37). Web.

Kidambi, S. (2017). WeCare home healthcare support services business plan [Doctoral dissertation]. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.

Schroeder, C. (2018). Home Care, Meeting You There, LLC: A home health agency business plan [Doctoral dissertation]. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.

Sohrabi, C., Alsafi, Z., O’Neill, N., Khan, M., Kerwan, A., Al-Jabir, A., Iosifidis, C., & Agha, R. (2020). World Health Organization declares global emergency: A review of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). International Journal of Surgery, 76, 71-76. Web.