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Updated 8/10/15 11:31am | In this article, Alert1 interviews a hero who is dedicated to the aging in place movement. We want to share the news about everyday champions in our nation that fight the good fight.
Andre Best is the founder of Best Home Care, a Minnesota-based home health care agency. Andre and his team provide non-medical personnel and homemaking services to seniors. The dedicated Personal Care Assistants (PCA) of Best Home Care work hard to help seniors stay in their own homes. Services range from day-to-day activities or non-medical related tasks. Alert1 selected Mr. Best as an Aging in Place Champion because of his success in helping seniors and his innovative methods for home care.
We sat down with Andre and discussed how Best Home Care can fit into your aging in place plan. See what he had to say.
Our Interview With Andre Best
1. In your own words, why does the world need Best Home Care?
There is a need for integrity and efficiency in the home health care industry. We are committed to doing what is right in terms of how we run our business to how we treat our clients and employees. Best home care also has a very efficient model for delivering services that has grown out of my manufacturing experience. I don't believe anyone else is using technology as effectively as we are to make our operations more efficient while meeting compliance.
2. What is the key to success for new PCAs on your team?
Ask questions! If a new PCA doesn't know how to do something properly, whether it be how to document their services or deliver them, they should ask. Sometimes, when you are working outside of a business office, it can be isolating. They need to remember that there is a whole team dedicated to supporting the work they are doing. We can provide technical support and training to be the best they can be.
3. Who is your ideal client? Describe the best clients of PCA services.
Our ideal client is someone who has their own senior caregiver in mind or already working with them, someone who is looking for a well-managed agency partner that can make receiving services easy and convenient.
4. Who is Andre Best? Why have you devoted yourself to Best Home Care?
I am a businessman and I thrive off of making things more efficient. At Best Home Care I get to help people every day and get challenged to make our operations more efficient.
5. How does being an attorney influence you as a home healthcare leader? How does your perspective as a home health leader influence your perspective as an attorney?
There is a great deal of law involved in running a business. That is especially true for a home care business. The laws are rapidly changing and sometimes it is difficult for agencies to interpret what they are supposed to do to meet compliance. Being an attorney influences me as a healthcare leader in that it makes it much easier to feel confident that we are meeting compliance. I am more conscious of what the law requires and we are doing that. Being a healthcare leader influences me as an attorney in that it helps me see just how important our work is. I get to see numerous agencies not following the rules and I get to see how the clients and employees suffer from this problem. It helps me want to make our services better.
6. What are you most proud of having accomplished at Best Home Care?
I am most proud of the way we have been able to use technology in our operations.
7. Now, you're also known as a big proponent of "paperless." Why the push for paperless PCA? Why do you care?
Because of my manufacturing experience I highly value efficiency and continuous improvement. Paperless is more efficient for business and provides more security in that our data is backed up and protected.
8. What is the future of the home health industry? What tailwinds do you feel? What headwinds are there?
Growth. More technology. More social. Maybe cameras or motion sensors in homes to observe at-risk individuals.
9. What else do you want people reading this to know about you, Best Home Care, or the home health industry?
I recently launched an app that will allow home care workers to complete, sign and submit their timesheets electronically to the agency. It is more environmentally friendly than paper timesheets and it is a cost savings and convenience for employees who were facing their timesheets.
About the Author
Andre Best is the founder of Best Home Care, LLC. Best Home Care provides in-home healthcare to people of all ages in Minnesota. Best holds a bachelor’s of science from the University of St. Thomas and a Juris Doctorate from William Mitchell College of Law.