Hospital at Home service makes headlines
The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust's pioneering Hospital at Home service made regional headlines recently, as a patient told of how being treated at home helped to alleviate his health anxiety.
West Cheshire was one of the first areas to set up a Hospital at Home service, which enables patients to receive hospital-quality care from the comfort of their own homes.
The service delivers the NHS England, Urgent Community Response (UCR), Virtual Wards and IV OPAT (Outpatient antimicrobial therapy) service for residents of Cheshire West under the umbrella of Hospital at Home.
As one of several joint initiatives delivered by NHS teams across the North West aimed at bringing specialities together to provide a one-stop-shop for patients, Hospital at Home helps people stay in their homes, or return home as quickly as possible after a stay.
A collaboration between the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Hospital at Home consists of multidisciplinary clinicians who provide care for people in their own home, where often people are more comfortable and are able to move around more freely in a nicer environment with their friends and family around them.
Our colleagues work together to ensure patients receive safe and effective care in their homes including assistance from therapists, who can support with mobility; support workers, who can support people with their rehab goals and personal care; and medics and advanced clinical practitioners, who can provide acute medical care and oversight whilst the person remains clinically unwell.
Over the last five years the team in West Cheshire has grown, meaning more patients with different types of medical needs are increasingly benefitting from the service.
ITV Granada highlighted the story of John Gore, a 73-year-old local patient who was referred to the Hospital at Home team by his GP after becoming extremely ill with pneumonia.
The Hospital at Home team arrived at his home within 45 minutes and were able to clinically assess and start IV antibiotics in order to manage his acute condition at home. This would have otherwise resulted in a hospital admission had the service not been available.
Thanks to the care he received in his own home, John was able to avoid spending the Christmas period in hospital and has since made good enough progress to be discharged.