Covenant Health to provide hospital-level care at home

Jay FitzOur Town Health

Covenant Health is pleased to announce a new collaboration with Medically Home Group Inc. to provide hospital-level care to patients in their homes as a part of Covenant Health’s newly established Advanced Care at Home program. The innovative program will be the first in the region to offer hospital-level services by combining in-home hospital services, virtual care and remote monitoring for around-the-clock hospital care.

The program initially will be offered through Covenant Health’s Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center in Knoxville and ultimately will be available to patients receiving care from Covenant Health’s other acute-care hospitals throughout East Tennessee. With Advanced Care at Home, Covenant physicians and nurses will monitor patients in their homes from a clinically integrated, virtual care command center that operates 24 hours a day. In addition to remote care that leverages the technology and infrastructure at Covenant Health’s operations center, in-person services will be delivered via home visits from qualified medical professionals.

The program is designed for patients who require high-acuity care. Patients will receive hospital-level medical support services including medication management, laboratory services, IV treatments, rehabilitation therapies (physical, speech and occupational), oxygen treatments, X-ray and ultrasound, all in their home setting.

“Covenant Health is a leader in combining medical expertise and telehealth technology to offer more care options for our patients. We already offer telehealth appointments and 24/7 virtual urgent care to provide medical services regardless of a patient’s location. And we were the first health system in our region to introduce tele-ICU, bringing an extra layer of remote support for our critically ill patients,” said Jim VanderSteeg, president and CEO. “Advanced Care at Home is another ‘first’ in bringing virtual technology and dedicated medical professionals together to better serve our patients and communities.”

“With Advanced Care at Home, healing can continue in a comfortable environment with more convenience for patients, their families and loved ones,” said Mike Belbeck, executive vice president of operations. “This service will be particularly valuable as the program expands to patients who live in rural areas served by our hospitals.”

Mandy Grubb Halford MD, senior vice president and chief medical informatics officer, noted that providing hospital-level care at home has been shown to increase patient satisfaction and improve outcomes. “This is an innovative step in transforming the future of healthcare delivery,” she said. “Our Covenant Health teams are currently in the process of aligning all the components that are necessary for safe, high-quality care in the home setting. We are so excited to be making this program a reality in our region – Advanced Care at Home will be a tremendous addition to our patient care services.”

Covenant Health plans to launch the program in early 2023.

 

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