Virtual wards allow patients to get the care they need at home safely and conveniently, rather than being in hospital.
The NHS is increasingly introducing virtual wards to support people at the place they call home, including care homes, providing safe care for appropriate patients who would otherwise be in hospital, either by preventing admissions or allowing for an earlier, supported discharge.
In a virtual ward, new technologies such as wearable devices, oxygen and blood pressure monitors along with apps, provide real-time information on people’s vital signs to a dedicated remote team of health and care professionals.
Personalised care plans identify what matters to the person to ensure that the support they receive is designed and coordinated around their desired outcomes. Support may involve face-to-face care from multi-disciplinary teams based in the community too when needed.
Sussex Health and Care is developing these virtual wards for people experiencing a deterioration in their respiratory, frailty or heart failure condition or those with a general medical acute illness. Virtual wards will provide additional capacity to our existing hospital beds enabling more patients to receive the care they need.
Research shows that being at home – where patients can see friends, family and pets – is much better for their physical health, mental wellbeing and overall recovery rate.
We know that it if people stay too long in hospital, they can experience serious deconditioning with reduction in muscle strength that affects their mobility, which can be hard to recover from. This approach enables patients to have all the benefits of home, with the wraparound care of a dedicated clinical team reviewing them remotely, and face-to-face when needed.
We also know that the positive impact of this is that more patients maintain their independence at home and are less likely to need to be re-admitted to hospital.
Watch this BBC news report about Hailsham resident Michael’s experience with virtual wards:
Watch this ITV news report about Eastbourne resident Frederick’s experience with virtual wards:
Find out more about virtual wards on our FAQs page.
