Toad Shares "Gather Your Own Straw" Story

Strange Tony,

First Senior Regional Executive Vice President Toad visited our hospice and gave a six month update on Kindred at Home's "Gather Your Own Straw" program.

FSREVP Toad offered, "I am proud to announce an innovation recently pioneered at your hospice.  Branch Manager Asperger took the bold initiative and reduced headcount by combining disciplines."

Our only longtime employee left shook their head.  They'd seen the cycle of staff reductions for corporate profits and knew the negative impact past moves had on patient care.

Toad noticed the nonverbal, made a mental note to find out that employee's name.  He would suggest they be eliminated as soon as BM Asperger could make something up with the coaching of Kindred at Home's human abuse department.

"Moving on."  Toad continued.  "Your local leader not only combined disciplines, BM Asperger did it in a manner befitting the Pharaoh of the Bible.  She gave the work to the lowest paid, least qualified people and did so with zero training.  Sure, more qualified people were available but their hourly rates are far higher.  Had the work been given to the higher paid, qualified staff then less straw would have to be gathered."

The longtime employee raised their hand.  "Aren't we supposed to hire qualified people to do hospice?"

Toad replied, "We hire company people, those willing to utilize their background, skills and experience to achieve our objectives.  It matters not if they have done hospice before."

The employee said, "OK, but the situation you are praising is one where we've lost ground, customer service wise."

Toad cut in, "Hospice can be trained and that is the point of BM Asperger's "Gather Your Own Straw" innovation.   The lowest paid, least qualified people had to train themselves in their new discipline.  They had to gather their own straw to learn their new responsibilities."

The longtime employee said,  "At one point in my career leaders would've been embarrassed to state that we hire unqualified people and don't train them."

Toad smiled, knowing this employee would be the next to experience job consolidation.  "This innovation saves the company money and gets me closer to my big payday, when Humana buys the rest of our company.  That's all that matters.  In the meantime I want to hear more straw stories from your hospice."

Branch Manager Asperger stood and applauded.  She had another Bottega Veneta purse she wanted to buy.

How far has the managerial bar fallen?  Precipitously in a mere 23 months.

Anonymous

Kindred Got One Mention in Humana Earnings Call

Strange Tony,

Humana CEO Bruce Broussard mentioned Kindred at Home one time in the Q1 earnings call with Wall Street analysts.  He said:

"Kindred has been adversely impacted by the virus, in particular, as new home health admissions slowed dramatically." 

He did mention the home several times during the call and offered this:

I also would say home is continuing to be an area where we're seeing a lot more interest in and the ability to provide more acute services. Those services that are primary care services that would normally be in an office setting, even getting to having a hospital in the home area, even a step [Phonetic] in the home.  

Broussard said Humana would apply analytics to determine these areas.  Analytics brought our hospice a computer system that rips off staff for hours worked and miles driven.  

During a time when people are perishing Humana's executives made not one mention of hospice.

Anonymous