Cincinnati Business Courier - Healthcare staffing agency plans four sites

February 10, 2006

Cincinnati is key in the expansion plans of a Chicago-based health care staffing agency.

BrightStar Healthcare hopes to have four franchised locations in Cincinnati and its suburbs within a couple of years.

"We want to find a franchisee in the first quarter of this year and have at least one location open by the end of the second quarter," said President Shelly Sun.

About 65 percent of the company's work involves home medical care, Sun said, and 5 percent is non-medical home companions. The rest is medical staffing for hospitals, nursing homes and other facilities.

Since its 2002 startup, the company's revenues have reached $3 million, Sun said. Most of its home care is private pay.

Plans call for opening 30 locations in several states in 2006. BrightStar has five locations and is targeting Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin for expansion.

Each of its four Cincinnati-area territories -- Cincinnati, East Hamilton, North Hamilton and Butler County -- has a population of more than 200,000, with between 34,000 and 42,000 residents over age 65.

A BrightStar location typically employs about 50 people. Sun said 70 percent of the workers tend to be certified nursing assistants. The rest can be medical assistants, nurses and "anyone with home care experience or training except a physician," provided they can pass background checks and drug screens.

"Most nurses are very compassionate and went into nursing to provide excellent patient care," she said. "Working at someone's home gives them that opportunity."

Robin Lee, assistant professor of nursing at the University of Cincinnati, said home care is a growth area but poses special challenges for the caregiver.

"You've got all that backup in the hospital," she said. "You don't have that in the community."

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