Current state of home health in children with medical complexity.

BACKGROUND: Home health services are a right for children in the US, but higher survival rates of extremely preterm infants have led to an increase in children with medical complexity (CMC) and therefore an increased demand for home health services. Unfortunately, an adequately trained and compensated workforce to support medially complex children at home does not exist.

METHODS: After identifying the existing research, common themes were identified. This article was written to give an overview of these themes and highlight specific supporting data.

RESULTS: A lack of resources in the home health arena and the financial barriers that accompany them, as well as the clear impact this issue has on the health and well-being of families and caregivers, were frequently present in the literature.

CONCLUSIONS: Reasonable next steps for research and advocacy include a focus on recruitment and retention of home health nurses, as well as training specific to the level of skill required to adequately care for CMC. Further research is needed, as in our search we found several unexplored, unassessed avenues that could help health care professionals understand the problem more fully. These steps are necessary if we want CMC to live the healthiest life available to them.