In a first-of-its-kind program for Georgia, Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center is now offering admitted hospital patients the option to receive care from the comfort of their own homes. The new Hospital Care at Home program provides acute, hospital-level care at home for patients admitted to the medical center who meet certain criteria—such as having a qualifying non-life-threatening condition, needing relatively straightforward care and having access to a reliable caregiver, if bedbound.
Emergency department clinicians now assess if their patients need to stay in the hospital or if they can safely receive treatment at home. This treatment involves the use of hospital equipment, two or more daily in-person visits from nurses or paramedics, daily virtual visits from a dedicated provider and 24/7 virtual access to clinicians. Patients admitted to the Hospital Care at Home program receive all necessary medical supplies—including blood pressure cuffs, video communication devices and patches that monitor vital signs—along with healthy pre-packaged meals and training on how to take medications and use equipment.
“This latest innovation shows, once again, how Wellstar and the Medical College of Georgia lead the way in digital health,” Ralph Turner, senior vice president and hospital president at Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center, said. “By maximizing virtual services at our academic medical center, we have the chance to reduce readmissions and open up beds for those who need it most while improving patient and family satisfaction.”
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the conditions most often treated by Hospital Care at Home programs include conditions affecting the lungs, kidneys and cardiovascular system, along with infectious diseases.
Patients admitted with severe illnesses requiring urgent attention or continuous IV treatment will stay on-site at the medical center. Because Wellstar Hospital Care at Home patients might occasionally need to return to the hospital for additional support, the care team must be able to respond to a patient’s home within 30 minutes for emergent needs. As a result, geographic boundaries are considered for admission.
Wellstar MCG Health plans to start accepting patients the week of December 2 for admission into its new Hospital Care at Home program. The medical center remains the only hospital in Georgia to have received an approved waiver from CMS to offer acute hospital care at home.
Our ability to offer this care long-term depends on Congressional renewal of the Acute Hospital Care at Home initiative beyond 2024. If passed, H.R. 7623, the “Telehealth Modernization Act of 2024,” would extend the flexibilities that make possible hospital-at-home services for our patients. To date, CMS has approved the waiver for 139 health systems in 39 states.