ReACH National Demonstration Collaborative: early results of implementation.

The Reducing Acute Care Hospitalization (ReACH) National Demonstration Collaborative is a two-year multi-wave initiative using a "virtual" Collaborative Learning Model to reduce acute care hospitalization rates among home care patients. ReACH aims to reduce hospitalization to 23%, as recommended by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in its 8th Scope of Work for Quality Improvement Organizations. This article reports on the early implementation experience of a sample of 17 of 65 home health agencies participating in Wave I of ReACH. It examines agency challenges in implementing a structured practice improvement initiative, improving hospital to home transitions and focusing appropriate resources on high risk patients. Lessons learned will inform future home health care quality improvement initiatives.