Situation
NHS Health Call aimed to develop a ground-breaking and innovative Virtual Ward solution that could be offered to NHS organisations throughout the UK. This solution was envisioned to provide a secure, dependable alternative to treating and monitoring patients in the already capacity-challenged NHS inpatient wards. The solution offered an innovative alternative to traditional bedded care, enabling NHS clinicians to deliver hospital-level care and support people from their homes, including care homes. Patients could be physically discharged from the hospital to their homes, with their care and clinical responsibility remaining with the hospital until clinical discharge.
Solution
Servita was commissioned to co-create and build the solution with NHS Health Call and to produce the product while providing expert support. Together, we developed a fully flexible, customisable virtual ward solution that can be adapted to meet clinical and patient needs. This solution can alleviate the pressure on health and care services, shorten the average length of stay in hospitals, reduce pressure on beds, and offer a new level of intermediate care. It can also revolutionise how community care is delivered. The virtual ward service offers all the same features and benefits as a physical ward. This hybrid solution is designed to provide the best possible care for patients while avoiding hospital readmissions.
Results
The product of our collaboration is a safe, secure, reliable and scalable Virtual Ward platform that provides a range of benefits. These include:
- Enabling patients to recover in their homes amidst their comforts and family
- Allowing patients to receive hospital-level care at home
- Supporting early discharge from the hospital
- Reducing the length of hospital stays
- Avoid hospital admission with step-up care
- Improving patient experience
- Empowering people to manage long-term conditions remotely
With this solution, we are driving a transformative shift in patient care within the UK’s healthcare system. This innovation not only enhances the patient experience but also significantly reduces the strain on the inpatient wards of the NHS.