Video – how our UCLH@Home service is transforming healthcare

The UCLH@Home service is helping patients like 55-year-old Sherena Kranat to continue their recovery in their own home under the care of their hospital team.

Discharging patients and getting them home as soon as possible has proven benefits for their recovery.

UCLH@Home is a ‘virtual ward’ that is run in partnership with Whittington Health NHS Trust. The service enables clinically stable patients to go home from hospital and complete the remainder of their acute care in the community, while remaining under the care of UCLH. This could be patients who need regular intravenous antibiotics, or heart failure patients requiring ongoing monitoring after returning home. 

Since its launch in January 2018, UCLH@Home has expanded to offer new services, such as dedicated pathways for sickle cell and blood transfusions.

View the UCLH@Home service in action and hear from some of the key people involved, in this video.

Sherena receives three visits from a nurse each day to her home in Willesden, north-west London, to be given IV antibiotics for a kidney infection, while also receiving a thorough health check to ensure she remains well enough to stay out of hospital. 

“I feel very fortunate that I’m able to have the care I need in my home,” said Sherena. “It’s a really holistic approach. As well as giving me my medication, the nurses check on my wellbeing. Have I eaten? Am I drinking enough water? Are there any problems? Is there something they can help me with? The mental health side of being unwell can be quite difficult and isolating so it’s great to get support from the nurses. I think they're all great. I wish everybody could have a hospital at home!” 

Jennifer Shango (pictured) is one of the nurses who visits Sherena and will typically make five home visits each day, which could be to different patients or multiple visits to the same patient. 

Jennifer sees the benefits for patients every day and says she would like to encourage clinicians to identify patients who could receive care at home rather than staying in hospital for long periods. 

“I’ve worked in lots of different healthcare settings, and I see such a positive difference in patients who are treated through the UCLH@Home service. It's beneficial for the patient because obviously they get to recover in a familiar environment where they can be with family and keep a sense of independence, which can be lost if you spend a long time in hospital. It also means they’re less likely to pick up any bugs in hospital."

Melanie Justiniani, clinical operations lead for integrated discharge and UCLH@Home/virtual wards said: “Patients often recover faster in a familiar environment where they can maintain their daily routines and independence. By providing care at home for suitable patients, the UCLH@Home service helps reduce the number of hospital admissions, freeing up hospital beds for more critical cases, especially during the winter months.” 

Dr Tehmeena Khan, consultant in acute medicine and medical examiner at University College Hospital said: “The UCLH Acute Medicine Unit (AMU) is rapidly increasing its use of the UCLH@home service as we recognise its ability to deliver safe and effective acute medical care. We are working closely with the UCLH@home service team to identify and transition patients from the AMU to their own home with the UCLH@home service being an integral part of our wider integrated service.” 

Nigel Steventon, matron and clinical lead for the service, said: “I believe that the evolution of virtual wards such as UCLH@Home, are key to the future success of our National Health Service.

“We constantly strive to expand the range and scope of the type of interventions we offer. The road ahead is exciting, with an opportunity to learn from our patients about what works well and areas on which to focus and develop for the future of our service.”

The UCLH@Home virtual ward is one of a number of key areas where UCLH and Whittington Health are working together to benefit patients and staff. Find out more.