Many people believe if they are admitted to the hospital for severe shortness of breath, they will automatically be able to qualify to receive oxygen at home when they are discharged. This is not always the case however.
If you are a #Medicare patient for example, your oxygen saturation must be 88% or lower to qualify. In addition, the company supplying your oxygen will also want to see your #oximetry measurement at rest, with activity (such as walking a few feet) and immediately after activity.
Then there is the question of diagnosis. #Shortness of breath is not a diagnosis but rather the symptom of a problem such as #COPD, #Asthma, #Emphysema, and the like.
The prescription for #oxygen then should have a diagnosis, oximetry measurement at rest, with activity and recovery, the liter flow needed, specify a portable tank for pt to use on the way home, and the home set up. Don't forget to specify the duration of the oxygen therapy. Most doctors will write 99 yrs or lifetime.
Be aware that private insurance companies will in nearly all cases require the same protocols as Medicare. Check your DME supplier and your hospital policy to make sure you are within guidelines.
I'm a travel nurse and this is part of what I do to effect a safe discharge.
If you are a #Medicare patient for example, your oxygen saturation must be 88% or lower to qualify. In addition, the company supplying your oxygen will also want to see your #oximetry measurement at rest, with activity (such as walking a few feet) and immediately after activity.
Then there is the question of diagnosis. #Shortness of breath is not a diagnosis but rather the symptom of a problem such as #COPD, #Asthma, #Emphysema, and the like.
The prescription for #oxygen then should have a diagnosis, oximetry measurement at rest, with activity and recovery, the liter flow needed, specify a portable tank for pt to use on the way home, and the home set up. Don't forget to specify the duration of the oxygen therapy. Most doctors will write 99 yrs or lifetime.
Be aware that private insurance companies will in nearly all cases require the same protocols as Medicare. Check your DME supplier and your hospital policy to make sure you are within guidelines.
I'm a travel nurse and this is part of what I do to effect a safe discharge.
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