A hospital may give you several home health agency names and ask you to choose. That choice can feel impossible when the patient is tired and discharge is moving quickly.
Use these ten questions to narrow the list. Print this page and take it to the hospital—any good agency should answer every one of them without hesitating.
1. Does the agency serve the home address?
Ask about the exact address, not just the nearest city. OHH publishes all 48 counties in its service area and maintains a real Columbia office.
2. Can it provide the ordered service?
Confirm the agency offers the specific discipline ordered: Skilled Nursing, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, Medical Social Work, or Home Health Aides.
3. Does it accept the coverage?
Ask about Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, or private pay and whether any network or authorization rule applies. A clear answer now can prevent confusion later.
4. How quickly can care begin?
Ask what happens after the referral and how soon the first visit comes. At OHH, care is usually started within 48 hours, or as ordered by your physician.
5. What are the agency’s current CMS ratings?
Every Medicare-certified agency has a public record on Medicare Care Compare. Ask for it—or look it up yourself. OHH publishes its 4-star CMS patient survey rating, 86% rating of 9 or 10, and 80% recommendation measure with a direct verification link.
6. What experience fits this recovery?
For a joint replacement, fracture, or spine procedure, ask who focuses on orthopedic recovery. OHH is Missouri’s only orthopedic-focused home health agency and offers The Home Stretch program.
7. How easy is it to reach a real person?
Look for a published local phone, fax, office address, hours, and response promise. OHH’s office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 5:00pm, and we’ll call you back the next business day.
8. How are clinical questions handled after office hours?
Ask any agency you are comparing who answers when the office is closed and what a family should do about an after-hours clinical concern.
9. Who will come to the home?
Ask how the agency licenses, screens, and supervises its clinicians, and how you will know who is arriving at the door.
10. How will the doctor stay informed?
Home health care follows a physician’s order, so ask how and how often the agency reports progress back to the ordering doctor.
Check public evidence too. Medicare Care Compare lets you verify certification and patient-experience information for every agency on your list.
Patients have the right to choose among agencies that can accept the referral. Ask questions until the choice feels clear.