Table 7. Distribution of Visits Within Episodes, by Discipline and Measure of Utilization: Medicare Home Health Care Utilization, 1992.
| Measure of Utilization | Visits by Discipline | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||||
| Total All Disciplines | Skilled Nursing | Home Health Aide | Physical Therapy | OT, ST, MSS | |
| All Episodes | |||||
| Mean Visits During First 120 Days | 32.6 | 15.9 | 11.5 | 3.9 | 1.3 |
| Percent of All Visits in Period | — | 48.8 | 35.3 | 12.0 | 3.9 |
| Mean Visits After First 120 Days | 17.8 | 7.1 | 9.7 | 0.7 | .3 |
| Percent of All Visits in Period | — | 39.9 | 54.5 | 3.9 | 1.7 |
| Mean Visits, Entire Episode | 50.4 | 23.0 | 21.2 | 4.6 | 1.6 |
| Percent of All Visits in Episode | — | 45.6 | 42.1 | 9.1 | 3.2 |
| Episodes 120 Days or Fewer | |||||
| Mean Visits Per Episode | 22.9 | 11.6 | 6.8 | 3.5 | 1.0 |
| Percent of All Visits in Episode | — | 50.7 | 29.7 | 15.3 | 4.4 |
| Episodes Exceeding 120 Days | |||||
| Mean Visits During First 120 Days | 60.4 | 28.3 | 24.8 | 5.2 | 2.1 |
| Percent of All Visits in Period | — | 46.9 | 41.1 | 8.6 | 3.5 |
| Mean Visits After First 120 Days | 68.6 | 27.4 | 37.3 | 2.7 | 1.2 |
| Percent of All Visits in Period | — | 39.9 | 54.4 | 3.9 | 1.7 |
| Mean Visits, Entire Episode | 129.0 | 55.7 | 62.1 | 7.9 | 3.3 |
| Percent of All Visits in Episode | — | 43.2 | 48.1 | 6.1 | 2.6 |
NOTES: Occupational therapy (OT), speech therapy (ST), and medical social services (MSS) have been combined.
SOURCE: Medicare home health agency claims for all episodes beginning in 1992 for a 5-percent sample of beneficiaries extracted from the Health Care Financing Administration's Standard Analytic File system.