The same but different: three insider's views of hospital-based, hospital affiliated, and freestanding agencies.

When it comes to Medicare-certified home care agencies, regardless of where they are located, their size, auspice, range of services, tax status, etc., so much is the same. Same Medicare rules and regulations! Same episodic payer system! Same OASIS-C assessment tool, Home Health Compare public reports, and new CAHPS (Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) survey! Similar clinical and operational skill sets required in employees! Same overall challenges and rewards of taking care to patients' homes! Yes, so much is the same--yet so much is different.