An expansion of virtual wards will see up to tens of thousands of children able to receive hospital-level care at home, NHS Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard has announced on the 75th anniversary of the NHS.
The hospital at home service – already the largest of its kind in the world – will expand to cover children in every region of England from this month after successfully treating more than 6,400 children over the last year. Amanda Pritchard said the world-leading NHS virtual wards programme has “provided peace of mind” to parents who have used them during trials, including in Blackpool, Dudley and Dorset.
Virtual wards allow patients to get hospital-level care at home safely and in familiar surroundings, helping speed up their recovery while freeing up hospital beds for patients that need them most and reducing the burden of travel for families. The services will treat a range of conditions like respiratory illness, such as asthma, and heart conditions, allowing kids to get the care they need from the comfort of their homes.
It comes as more than 160,000 adult patients have been successfully treated on virtual wards including hospital-at-home services since April last year. The rollout to children and young people will come as part of the NHS plan to create an extra 10,000 virtual ward beds by winter, meaning more patients can be treated safely from home, also relieving pressure on hospital beds.
NHS Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard added: “As the NHS celebrates its 75th anniversary, it is amazing to see how services have changed since our foundation. Virtual wards are already providing excellent care to families when their children are sick, and this expansion will enable thousands more to receive high quality care from home. Being treated at home can have a hugely positive impact on patients – it means they receive hospital-level care, but it also means they are not separated from their families – providing peace of mind for loved ones.
NHS National Clinical Director for Children and Young People, Professor Simon Kenny said: “The introduction of paediatric virtual wards means children can receive clinical care from home, surrounded by family and an environment they and their parents would rather they be – with nurses and doctors just a call away. More than 6,400 children have already been treated on a virtual ward, which also means they spend less time in hospital and that paediatric beds are there for the children that need them most, when they need them.”
The success of virtual wards in treating adults at home and in particular those who are elderly or frail has been clear. People recover much quicker at home and in familiar surroundings where they would prefer to be. As well as expanding the use of hospital at home or virtual wards to children, the NHS is committed to expanding their use to adult patients with heart or lung conditions.
People on a virtual ward are cared for by a multi-skilled team who can provide a range of tests and treatments, including blood tests, prescribing medication or administering fluids through an intravenous drip.
Patients are reviewed daily by the clinical team and the ‘ward round’ may involve a home visit or take place through video technology. Many virtual wards use technology like apps, wearables and other medical devices enabling clinical staff to easily check in and monitor their recovery.
NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Recovery Plan set out guidance to support systems implement new models of virtual wards, in more clinical areas including heart failure and paediatrics, with the guidelines to be put in place to allow systems to scale up ahead of winter.
