A year ago, 84-year-old Jim Stickelmaier almost died from a series of heart attacks. His wife Karen, a former nurse, had to talk him into going to the emergency department at OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois. It was a close call but doctors were able to save him. In late July, Stickelmaier had another scary health threat. One morning, his breathing became so labored that he didn’t resist when Karen called an ambulance to rush him to the hospital.
Stickelmaier had COVID-19-related pneumonia. X-rays showed fluid on both sides of his lungs, a telltale sign of congestive heart failure. But, with treatment, Stickelmaier responded well and was quickly stabilized.
It turns out he was a perfect candidate for the new OSF OnCall Digital Hospital program that provides supportive hospital-level care, but at home. Stickelmaier was the first patient admitted to the recently launched program.
Paul Moots, M.D., chief medical officer for OSF OnCall Digital Hospital, says the program only involves select patients seen in the OSF Saint Francis Emergency Department. Candidates have to be 18 or older, live within 30 minutes of the hospital and have Medicare as their insurer.
Dr. Moots explains patients will typically have conditions that might require a three- or four-day hospital stay, such as heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – nothing that would require a lot of medical interventions.
A special team outfitted Stickelmaier’s living room with portable oxygen (in case he needed it), a tablet for video calls and electronic bracelet he wore for safety and instant contact with his care team. There were also Bluetooth devices to monitor vital signs that sent data automatically into his electronic medical record.
Equipment is set up based on the patient’s unique needs. Dr. Moots says the standard set-up offers safety and comfort through constant connectivity.
Software at the OSF OnCall Digital Hospital command center in downtown Peoria can identify potential candidates so ED doctors at OSF Saint Francis don’t have to. Cassie Worrick, an advanced practice provider who helped screen Stickelmaier in the ED and cared for him at home, says she uses screening tools to evaluate a patient’s ability to manage the in-home care instructions, and to know whether they have some type of nearby support.
Before the program launched Aug. 2, Digital Hospital operations and care teams were given a stress test of sorts during five weeks of training at Jump Trading Simulation & Education Center. Worrick says the effort simulated various scenarios using specially trained actors filling in as patients.
Each patient’s personalized schedule outlines days and times for in-home visits from the care team, such as a physical therapist, a nurse to deliver IV fluids and when needed, a night nurse to check on the patient. Worrick says APPs try to accommodate the patient’s lifestyle so, when possible, the care team schedules visits around a patient’s sleep schedule and favorite activities.
The early work for the Digital Hospital program started as part of a trailblazer challenge for OSF Mission Partners (employees) who researched more advanced home care as an idea to improve a patient’s experience and recovery. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit and OSF innovation used that research to quickly set up and scale a program to reduce the stress on hospital capacity and medical providers. It also allowed monitoring and treatment for people in their homes. In the first three months, OSF was among the few health systems in the country with a program that leveraged technology and cared for more than 100 patients without forcing them to seek treatment for COVID-19 at a medical clinic or hospital.
Source: newsroom.osfhealthcare.org/osf-healthcare-admits-first-patient-to-its-digital-hospital-program
