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Home Care NetWorkA clinical NetWork made up of members who care for patients
in the home or who have special
I am honored to steer the Home Care NetWork for the next 2 years, and I will say outright that, with the opportunities and needs facing our NetWork constituents, we must accomplish some difficult tasks. We should try to be especially vigilant at this time due to the federal recognition of deficiencies and a growing mandate to provide health-care provisions to everyone in spite of diminishing resources and reimbursement. I propose a potentially demanding agenda to lead ourselves to be inspired and let the College know that home care is a vital concern that will certainly expand in an exponential fashion. The foundation laid from past leaders is coming to fruition, with projects centered on the Home Ventilation Resource Center, but we have several next steps. Our next foci include the following projects: Disaster Relief for the Home Care Patient, Follow-up Management of Noninvasive Ventilation (NIV) in Patients With Neuromuscular Disease, and, I hope, Use of Diaphragmatic Pacing in Patients With Diaphragm Failure, as well as expanding the use of telemedicine. The number of patients facing urgent difficulty in the event of a natural disaster who require near total dependency on NIV is rising. Patients who are highly dependent on NIV are usually ignored but have an increasing need to be addressed. This parallels our interest in maintaining good follow-up for our patients who require long-term NIV. We are working with government agencies to repair this defect. The new technology in diaphragmatic pacing offers many other opportunities for patients with advanced respiratory care needs. I also feel very strongly about the importance of continuing to involve members who work in industry settings in the leadership and activities of the NetWork. I will be working with ACCP leadership to facilitate this involvement. The Home Care NetWork wants industry members to continue to feel that their opinions are valued. What can you do to get involved in this provocative and rewarding Network and contribute to the efforts of the ACCP? Our steering committee members are asking for your help and looking for ways to get you involved. Let’s do this: If you have an idea, you wish to participate in one of our projects, or you just want to propose a new project, contact us. All of our steering committee members are happy to discuss the goals of the NetWork, and, if you are interested, you are in on our game. You can participate by attending our next NetWork meeting during the annual CHEST meeting. Sincerely, Peter C. Gay, MD, FCCP |
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