Business Briefs: AMN Acquires The First String Healthcare, PHI Names New Director of Federal Affairs

AMN Healthcare Acquires The First String Healthcare

AMN Healthcare Services, a health care workforce solutions and staffing services company, announced Sept. 15 that it completed its acquisition of The First String Healthcare, a provider of interim staffing and permanent placement of nurse leaders and executives.

The acquisition involves cash payments of $6.5 million and an earn-out opportunity of as much as $4 million based on future performance metrics.

“The First String Healthcare acquisition enhances our capabilities to provide interim and permanent nursing leadership, which is in very high demand as our clients continue changing their care delivery models to improve patient outcomes,” AMN Healthcare President and CEO Susan Salka said in a prepared statement.

Sagepoint Senior Living Services Acquires Circle of Care

Sagepoint Senior Living Services, a nonprofit in Southern Maryland that provides a continuum of senior living services, announced that it recently completed the acquisition of Circle of Care, a home care assistance company that operates in the Maryland counties of Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s and is based in Prince Frederick.

Sagepoint said the addition of home care services will complement its current offerings of assisted living, adult day services, longterm care, rehabilitation and memory care.

“We believe there is significant benefit to enabling older adults to age in place,” Bill Holman, president and CEO of Sagepoint, said in a press release. “By offering home care services, we are now able to assist the senior population who wishes to remain at home. The acquisition of Circle of Care will enable us to better serve the needs of seniors and their families throughout Southern Maryland and we are excited about the new opportunities this will create to support our mission.”

Gem City Homecare Expanding Ohio Headquarters to Build National Billing Office For Parent Company

Gem City Homecare owner and founder Cindy Heit-Welch said the company is expanding its headquarters in Centerville, Ohio, as it builds out a new national billing office for Evolution Health, its parent company.

Gem City, a home health agency, signed a 7-year renewal of its longtime lease for 20,000 square feet of space for its own headquarters and is taking an additional 7,000 square feet for the new billing office.

Gem City plans to invest several hundred thousand dollars to build out the space, with contractor Design Homes investing more. The new building is expected to open in mid-November and create approximately 18 jobs, the company stated.

Evolution Health has about 25 home health care companies in Indiana, Ohio, Nevada, Texas, Wisconsin and other areas. Gem City Homecare, which serves roughly 10,000 people, is the third largest home health agency in the region. The company has 475 local employees and is one of the largest employers in the Dayton, Ohio, area.

“Home care is growing, and becoming more technology driven,” Heit-Welch said in a statement. “All of those things allow us to expand and acquire others. We’ve definitely got an appetite for further acquisitions.”

Gem City was sold to Envision Health in 2012 and remains under its local management team.

PHI Names Daniel Rutherford Wilson as New Director of Federal Affairs

Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute (PHI), a national nonprofit organization that works to transform disability and eldercare services, named Daniel Rutherford Wilson as its director of federal affairs, effective Sept. 21.

Wilson, who previously served as the national and federal programs director at Compassion & Choices, will be based out of PHI’s office in Washington, D.C. Wilson was also the executive director of policy and program development at the National Caucus and Center on Black Aged for 10 years, where he worked on federal issues for low-income, black older adults. Wilson is a co-chair of the 2016 Aging in America Conference, sponsored by the American Society on Aging.

“He arrives at a pivotal time when members of Congress and other federal officials are grappling with ensuring that our long-term care system has the necessary workforce to support millions of older adults and people with disabilities,” said Robert Espinoza, PHI vice president of policy.

Hospice of San Angelo and Baptist Retirement Community Announce New Partnership

San Angelo, Texas-based Hospice of San Angelo (HOSA), a nonprofit that serves people with life-limiting illnesses, and Baptist Retirement Community, which offers independent living, skilled or long-term nursing, memory care, personal assistance services, assisted living, outpatient therapy and more, announced a new partnership.

“Baptist Retirement Community is extending its continuum of senior options to include assisted living and memory care assisted living,” Quinda Feil-Duncan, executive director of Baptist Retirement Community, said in a statement.

Hospice of San Angelo is anticipated to serve the retirement community through shared resources, personnel, educational opportunities and more. HOSA also provides hospital-trained nurses, a chaplain, CNAs, bereavement counselors and social workers for the patients and families.

“We provide a residential continuum of care, and this alignment will allow us to completely focus on enhancing other areas of senior care within the community such as independent living, assisted living, Green House Homes, skilled nursing, memory care and outpatient therapy in a spiritually enhanced atmosphere,” Feil-Duncan said.

A new part of Baptist Retirement Community consisting of two 14-suite houses for memory care and assisted living is scheduled to open this fall.

Kinnser Software Signs Senior Helpers

Kinnser Software, a home health care software maker based in Austin, Texas, announced Sept. 23 that it signed Senior Helpers, a home health care caregiver provider, as its newest customer.

Consequently, all Senior Helpers franchises will use Kinnser’s web-based software for home care agencies, Kinnser ADL, to improve client service, streamline scheduling and enhance communication between clients, caregivers and families. Senior Helpers currently has more than 250 franchised businesses operating across the U.S.

Kinnser Software serves over 3,600 home health agencies, hospices, therapy companies and private duty home care providers across the U.S. In the past 12 months, over 21 million home care and hospice visits were scheduled using Kinnser solutions.

“We want our company and our franchise owners to have a performance-oriented software solution,” Senior Helpers President Craig Leonard said. “Kinnser will provide our franchisees with an abundance of tools that will enable them to compete and grow in an increasingly challenging market.”

Written by Mary Kate Nelson