Technology-enabled virtual ward for COVID management of the elderly and immunocompromised in Singapore: a descriptive cohort.

ABSTRACT:

Background

To address the hospital bed demand for Delta and Omicron surges in Singapore, the National University Health System (NUHS) developed a COVID Virtual Ward to relieve bed pressures on its three acute hospitals-National University Hospital, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, Alexandra Hospital. To serve a multilingual population, the COVID Virtual Ward featuring protocolized teleconsultation of high-risk patients, use of a vital signs chatbot, supplemented by home visits where necessary. This study aims to evaluate the safety, outcomes and utilisation of the Virtual Ward as a scalable response to COVID-19 surges.

Methods

This is a retrospective cohort study of all patients admitted to the COVID Virtual Ward between 23 September to 9 November 2021. Patients were defined a

SUBMITTER: Ko SQ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9942066 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature