Home Is Where the Care Is: Hospital-Quality Care in a Comfortable Home Setting
August 22, 2022
In one-and-a-half years, WellSpan’s hospital-at-home program accepted more than 800 patients, freeing up more than 1,500 hospital bed days and saving approximately $1.1 million.
WellSpan Health in Pennsylvania set up a hospital-at-home program so that lower-acuity patients could recuperate at home, making room in the hospital for those who are more critically ill. Before the program enrolled its first patient, WellSpan’s team meticulously designed referrals, orders, dispensing workflows, and delivery strategies. That attention to detail paid off: between September 2020 and April 2022, WellSpan accepted more than 800 patients, freeing up more than 1,500 hospital bed days and saving approximately $1.1 million.
How They Did It:
Enabled hospital-at-home physicians and APPs to perform video consults with patients and caregivers at home
Combined inpatient documentation tools with outpatient ordering to meet state regulatory requirements
Configured ordering and pharmacy workflows to support delivery of medications and equipment to patient homes
Created digital eligibility forms to identify good fits for hospital-at-home care
