Springfield Business Journal_2019-07-29

MASTERS DEGREES Accountancy Business Administration* Cybersecurity* Health Administration Project Management* * available 100% online business.missouristate.edu/Graduate-Programs.htm EO/AA/M/F/Veterans/Disability/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity You’re growing! So are your real estate needs. Congratulations on the growth of your company! With growth comes new opportunities and challenges. Let us help you navigate your real estate needs. Whether you need to build, buy or sell, Prosperiti Partners is your single-source solution for commercial, industrial, residential and multi- family real estate, locally and beyond. Call us at 417-413-4687 . Your Everything In Real Estate. SPRINGFIELD BUSINESS JOURNAL · 23 JULY 29-AUG. 4, 2019 2019 ECONOMIC IMPACT AWARDS 6-15 YEARS IN BUSINESS by Sony Hocklander · Contributing Writer As the area’s largest home health care agency, Phoenix Home Care Inc. employs nearly 3,500 people to provide a continuum of services helping patients where they live. Since 2011 when it was founded with a handful of employees, the Springfield- based company has not only grown its economic footprint to 18 offices across five states, it also has expanded those services to include pharmacy, palliative, mental health and additional hospice programs in new markets. Its newest office, established a year ago in Topeka, Kansas, already is serving 60 com- munity clients. Rapid growth in 2018 oc- curred also with its expanded services. The company’s Department of Mental Health, launched last August, is caring for 22 clients, and Phoenix Phar- macy, operational since March 2018, provides medica- tion to roughly 420 patients. Doing business now as Phoenix Home Care & Hos- pice, the company delivers roughly 50,000 hours of care each week to 5,000 patients overall. CEO and co-founder Phil Melugin says the company’s strategy for expansion in the next two years is to add more services to current markets. Providing more services fills an iden- tified gap, Melugin says. For instance, when patients who receive basic daily living help suddenly need higher level nursing care, it can be frustrating and confusing to work with multiple agen- cies. “We realized if we can create a con- tinuum from the least amount of care to the highest level of care – including hospice – we could help someone age in place at home,” Melugin says. “They have a one-stop-shop.” It makes sense economically, too, he says: “Caring for someone in the least restrictive, most independent environment is going to help the health care dollars spread farther because we can do so at a fraction of the cost of a hospital.” As a large employer, Melugin says the company’s payroll is $1 million-$1.5 million every week. That has significant impact on individuals who spend their dollars locally. “The amount of taxes we pay in Spring- field and the county and the state helps all kinds of economic development,” he adds. Beyond providing good care and economic benefits, Phoenix Home Care proactively engages with the commu- nity’s philanthropic needs, Melugin says. The company participates with numer- ous nonprofits, including Good Samari- tan Boys Ranch, Alzheimer’s Association and Senior Foundation of the Ozarks. Last year, the company established the In Time of Need Foundation to assist those strug- gling to afford medical expenses. They even help family members with dignified arrangements after a loved one’s death. Many families simply have no resources to properly say goodbye, Melugin says. Phoe- nix identified that as a need “no others have focused on.” Care in the Continuum Phoenix Home Care Inc. Founded: 2011 Address: 3033 S. Kansas Expressway Web: PhoenixHomeHC.com Products/Service: Home health and hospice, integrated medication management, in-home and consumer- directed services, pediatric nursing and care navigation Employees: 1,361 locally; 3,500 companywide 2018 Revenue: $20.1 million locally; $80.9 million companywide JESSICA ROSA Phoenix Home Care, led by co-owners Kim and Phil Melugin, has a weekly payroll between $1 million and $1.5 million. The amount of taxes we pay in Springfield ... helps all kinds of economic development.” —Phil Melugin Phoenix Home Care Inc.