Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Inhealthcare have shared the impact of its virtual wards programme, launched in November 2023, to support six pathways within abdominal medicine and surgery and oncology.
Introduced as an alternative to admission or to support earlier discharge for patients requiring daily monitoring, the project estimates the service has supported the reduction of the average length of stay in hospital by five days for patients using the service. 176 patients used the service between November and April to be monitored at home, estimated to have potentially reduced 959 bed days.
Abigail Uttley, service manager at Leeds Teaching Hospitals, commented on the project: “While developing a service that is directly assisting the NHS with the crisis of over-occupied beds, it has been rewarding to see our remote monitoring virtual wards come to life, enabling patients to be cared for in their own homes with the safety of technology.”
The service utilises a multi-specialist nursing team and lead clinicians to monitor patients who take physiological measurements such as blood pressure, respiration rate and oxygen saturation. This data is transmitted through mobile app, text message or telephone, where care teams can view readings and be alerted if readings are out of range.
Adam Peckham-Cooper, lead consultant for emergency general surgery, added: “For many years we held on to a varied set of patients in hospital beds awaiting investigations, interventions or just for ongoing observation. By using the bespoke pathways, we have managed to facilitate earlier discharges and streamline ambulatory care of patients, vastly improving patient experiences.”
The trust plans to expand the service to include more pathways for patients with vascular, neurological and pancreatic conditions.
HTN
Leeds Teaching Hospitals shares impact of virtual wards since November launch
