Durango Health Network Expands Home Care Services

Mercy Regional Health Network in Durango has expanded its home care services, adding staff and expanding service capacity to meet growing demand from elderly and homebound patients across southwest Colorado's aging population.

Home care services director Adriana Solis says the expansion responds directly to demographic trends in the region, where the share of residents over 65 has grown significantly faster than the overall population, increasing demand for home-based healthcare services that allow elderly patients to remain in their homes rather than requiring facility-based care. "More of our patients want to age in place if they possibly can," Solis said. "Our job is making sure that's a safe, medically supported option, not just a hopeful wish."

Expanding Both Clinical and Support Services

The expanded home care program includes additional home health nursing visits for patients managing chronic conditions, along with expanded physical and occupational therapy services delivered directly in patients' homes rather than requiring facility-based appointments. Solis says this home-based approach has been particularly valuable for patients with mobility limitations for whom traveling to a clinic represents a significant burden.

The network has also expanded care coordination services, helping home care patients and their families navigate the broader healthcare system, including coordinating with specialists and managing medication regimens that can become complex for elderly patients managing multiple chronic conditions simultaneously.

Addressing Rural Home Care Workforce Challenges

Expanding home care services in a rural area presents particular workforce challenges, since home health workers must travel significant distances between patient visits in a way that urban home care providers don't typically face, according to Solis. The network has adjusted staff scheduling and compensation models to account for this travel time, recognizing that rural home care requires different operational planning than urban home care models.

Network officials say they're monitoring demand closely and evaluating further expansion, citing continued demographic trends toward an aging regional population that they expect will continue driving demand for home-based healthcare services well beyond the current expansion's added capacity.