Sunday 29 January 2023
The doctor could be anywhere
NHS to treat 50,000 elderly and vulnerable patients in 'virtual wards' at home
"Up to 20% of emergency hospital admissions (are) avoidable with the right care in place," NHS England says, as it tries to improve ambulance response times and cut pressures on A&E.
In December, about 10,000 people were being cared for in that way in England, and ministers want to increase the monthly figure five-fold.
Clinical teams may visit them at home or use video to "monitor and check how they are recovering".
It sounds like an idea worth trying, although the media are bound to root out horror stories linked to it and the underfunding claims won't stop. Presumably phone and video contact could be done by any doctor or nurse anywhere in the country with access to the right medical computer systems.
In a similar vein - over the past few months, Mrs H has been treated by a local doctor via phone consultations and prescriptions collected from the local pharmacy. Mrs H has never actually seen the doctor treating her - she could be any doctor anywhere in the world with access to the right systems.
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7 comments:
The idea of using technology to diagnose, treat, and prescribe at a distance is clearly a good one. Not least because it avoids unwell people getting up, going out in the cold, and then sitting in a disease-ridden surgery.
The main problem here is that use of the term "virtual wards". Perfectly chosen to make me think that the wool is being pulled over our eyes.
Sam - that's what I think. A PR term which won't be anywhere near the reality.
A Virtual Ward?
With Deliveroo rolling up with the crap food. At 5am, noon, and sometime between 4pm And 8pm.
And a sachet of assorted fungal, bacterial and viral infections?
Haud me back, hen.
Worth trying as long as there is provision for fast tracking into emergency hospital care if the situation worsens.
Last year, I rang NHS 111 for information on an eye problem; within three minutes of describing the symptoms, I was told to get myself driven to the nearest A&E, where they had already checked me in and alerted the eye department (so no wait and a specialist standing by).
If they can do the same thing with ‘virtual ward’ patients, it could be a vast improvement on the grim business of being an in-patient.
Doohamer - I hope it doesn't turn out to be be a virtual Deliveroo rolling up with virtual food - nil by mouth approach.
Macheath - Mrs H and have both received a comparatively slick service recently. Nothing major, but quick and easy. We're not sure what it is - maybe better computer systems are making a difference. In which case, virtual wards could work.
I can just see it: granny falls over and breaks a hip. She's 80-odd, lying on the floor in shock and pain. The response: "just fire up your laptop, dear, while we take a look".
No doubt I am too cynical.
Peter - you are not being too cynical, it's certainly a problem with the idea.
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