Observational studyInfluenza and other respiratory viruses2023
COVID-19 (Omicron strain) hospital admissions from a virtual ward - who required further care?
Observational study in Influenza and other respiratory viruses, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 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
5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Admission avoidance hospital at home.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Implementation of a Virtual Hospital in the Home Service for Patients With COVID-19 in Queensland, Australia: Mixed Methods Evaluation Using the RE-AIM Framework.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Virtual Health Care in Hospital-at-Home Models for Patients With Acute Infections: A Scoping Review.Mayo Clinic proceedings. Digital health · 2025Review
- Article
- COVID-19 (Omicron strain) hospital admissions from a virtual ward - who required further care?Influenza and other respiratory viruses · 2023Observational
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe COVID-19 virtual ward was created to provide care for people at home with COVID-19. Given this was a new model of care, little was known about the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients requiring admission to hospital from the virtual ward platform. The aims were to characterise hospital admission volume, patient epidemiology, clinical characteristics, and outcome from a virtual ward in the setting of an Omicron (BA.1, BA.2) outbreak.
methodsA retrospective observational study was performed for all virtual ward patients admitted from 1st January 2022 to 25th March 2022 (over 16 years old). Epidemiological, clinical and laboratory data was reviewed on all patients who required hospital admission.
resultsA total of 7021 patients were cared for on the virtual ward over the study period with 473 referred to hospital for assessment. Twenty-six (0.4%) patients were admitted to hospital during their care on the ward. Twenty-two (84.6%) admissions were COVID-19 related. Fifty three percent of the hospitalised patients were fully vaccinated and 11 had received prior therapeutics for COVID-19. Shortness of breath was the most common reason for escalation to hospital. Chest pain was the second most common reason and the most common diagnosis after investigation was non-cardiac chest pain.
conclusionsFew patients required admission from the virtual ward in the setting of the Omicron variant (BA.1, BA.2) as a direct result of COVID-19 disease and virtual ward care. Shortness of breath and chest pain were the most common symptoms driving further clinical care.
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