Supported hospital discharge
A community-based, multi-disciplinary service providing care in the patient’s home that allows safe, early discharge from hospital.
Healthcare at Home reduces long stays in hospital by providing the support package and resources to ensure a far quicker and easier discharge. Medical patient groups may include respiratory, cardiovascular (stable), diabetes, general medicine and patients requiring anticoagulant or antibiotic therapy. Surgical patient groups may include general surgery, orthopaedics and neuro-surgery.
Key features include:
- A local, multi-disciplinary clinical team consisting of specialist nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, healthcare assistants and family liaison co-ordinators.
- Fully-qualified, specialist nurses providing personalised care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- Proactive team work with local providers and multi-disciplinary teams to agree plan of care.
- Pre-discharge assessment to ascertain patient need and suitability for home treatment, design and co-ordinate care package, including therapies and equipment.
- Collaborative planning and daily meetings with local clinicians and management.
- A patient advocacy service by liaising with local authorities and other agencies including housing benefits and grant applications.
- A rapid response team for clinical assessment and patient visits, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Having treatment at home meant I could be discharged from hospital after a fortnight and continue being cared for by nurses at home. I had to be given antibiotics intravenously four times a day for four weeks, which was a bit disruptive to family life, but that was nothing compared to how disruptive my being in hospital five miles away would have been for my partner, with a new baby to care for.
Patient
