News
Virtual wards will see thousands of children treated at home
New non-clinical team helps improve care at Guy’s and St Thomas’
A new non-clinical team has been introduced to support patients and staff at Guy’s and St Thomas’. The patient and staff enhancers, known as PASE, are on hand to do everything from making beds to making cups of tea. The team work in a variety of clinical areas, helping to improve quality of care, and patient and staff experience. The PASE team was initially launched in 2021
The hospital at home service, or ‘virtual wards’, will be expanded to cover children in every region of England from this month after successfully treating more than 6,400 children over the last year. NHS chief executive, Amanda Pritchard, said the NHS virtual wards programme has “provided peace of mind” to parents who have used them during trials, including in Blackpool, Dudley and Dorset. The services will treat a range of conditions like respiratory illness, such as asthma, and heart conditions, allowing kids to get the care they need from the comfort of their homes. It comes as more than 160,000 adult patients
have been successfully treated on virtual wards including hospital-at-home services since April last year. The rollout to children and young people will come as part of the NHS plan to create an extra 10,000 virtual ward beds by winter, meaning more
patients can be treated safely from home, also relieving pressure on hospital beds. NHS National clinical director for children and young people professor, Simon Kenny, said: “The introduction of paediatric virtual wards means children can receive clinical care from home, surrounded by family and an environment they and their parents would rather they be – with nurses and doctors just a call away. “More than 6,400 children have already been
treated on a virtual ward, which also means they spend less time in hospital and that paediatric beds are there for the children that need them most, when they need them.” As well as expanding the use of hospital at home or virtual wards to children, the NHS is committed to expanding their use to adult patients with heart or lung conditions.
to support with COVID-19, with staff supporting patients, answering phones when visitors were limited and undertaking non clinical duties. This released time for the clinical staff to provide direct patient care. It was relaunched this year as a Trust wide pilot with 16 full-time and part- time paid roles, with positions funded by the Guy’s & St Thomas’ Charity. Former ward housekeeper, Maggie Gibson
decided to apply for her new role as senior PASE as it involved more patient contact. She said: “It’s one of those roles that you don’t realise how much you need it until you’ve got it. It’s a really good project to support the staff and the patients, and I think they appreciate it.” Jennifer Yeboah, PASE programme manager,
added: “The clinical staff benefit as they are able to focus more on clinical aspects and the patients benefit from the additional emotional support. We have had some great feedback from both patients and staff.”
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