ArticleJournal of primary care & community health
A Covid -19 Virtual Ward Model: A Preliminary Retrospective Clinical Evaluation From a UK District General Hospital.
Article in Journal of primary care & community health. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 23 citations in OpenAlex.
- What is the evidence for virtual wards or hospital-at-home care pathways for exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease? A systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ open respiratory research · 2026Pooled it
- Beyond the Bedside: The Pivotal Role of Nursing Clinical Leadership in Developing Virtual Ward Care Through Telemedicine-A Review of the Evidence.Journal of clinical nursing · 2026Review
- Remote Patient Monitoring in Hospital at Home: Bibliometric Analysis of the Field and Scoping Review of Nursing Practice.Journal of nursing management · 2026Review
- Virtual Health Care in Hospital-at-Home Models for Patients With Acute Infections: A Scoping Review.Mayo Clinic proceedings. Digital health · 2025Review
- Managing Patients With COVID-19 in Armenia Using a Remote Monitoring System: Descriptive Study.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2024Article
- Can we learn from an imagined ransomware attack on a hospital at home platform?NPJ digital medicine · 2024Article
- A Digital Respiratory Ward in Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland, England, for Patients With COVID-19: Economic Evaluation of the Impact on Acute Capacity and Wider National Health Service Resource Use.JMIR formative research · 2024Article
- Designing a Virtual Hospital-at-Home Intervention for Patients with Infectious Diseases: A Data-Driven Approach.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Article
- COVID-19 (Omicron strain) hospital admissions from a virtual ward - who required further care?Influenza and other respiratory viruses · 2023Observational
- Large-scale real-life implementation of technology-enabled care to maximize hospitals' medical surge preparedness during future infectious disease outbreaks and winter seasons: a viewpoint.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
- Evaluation of a remote monitoring service for patients with COVID-19 discharged from University College London Hospital.PloS one · 2023Article
- International Collaboration to Develop a Remote Monitoring Web App for COVID-19 Patients in Armenia: Design and Development With Agile Methodology.JMIR human factors · 2022Article
- Digital healthcare: the future.Future healthcare journal · 2022Article
- A 2-Year Retrospective Clinical Evaluation of a Novel Virtual Ward Model.Journal of primary care & community healthArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThis study aims to evaluate the safety, utilization, ability to reduce length of hospitalization and overall outcomes of a COVID-19 virtual ward providing ongoing treatment at home.
methodA retrospective single-center study of patients discharged to the COVID-19 virtual "step down" ward between January 27th 2021 and March 2nd 2021. The referral process, length of hospitalization, length of stay on the virtual ward, readmissions, and ongoing treatment requirements including supplemental oxygen, antibiotics, and/or steroids were all noted.
resultsA total of 50 patients were referred to the virtual ward. 43 referrals were accepted, 39 of which were from the respiratory ward. Four patients were readmitted, all due to hypoxia. All readmissions occurred within 5 days of discharge. 72% (n = 31) were discharged home with an ongoing oxygen requirement. 14.3% of patients were discharged with antibiotics only, 9.5% with steroids only and 23.8% with both antibiotics and steroids. The mean length of hospital stay for patients discharged to the virtual ward was 10.3 ± 9.7 days and 11.9 ± 11.6 days for all covid positive patients during this time. On average, patients spent 13.7 ± 7.3 days on the virtual ward. The average number of days spent on oxygen on the virtual ward was 11.6 ± 6.0 days.
conclusionThe virtual ward model exemplifies the potential benefits of collaborative working between primary and secondary care services, relieving pressure on hospitals whilst providing ongoing treatments at home such as supplemental oxygen. It also facilitates an early supported discharge of clinically stable patients with an improving clinical trajectory by managing them in the community.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.