COVID-19 – Digital in Care Homes

The AHSN NENC is leading a scoping exercise on behalf of the system across NENC and Yorkshire and Humber in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The exercise is aimed at getting a baseline of the digital capacity and capability across care homes in the region, specifically to consider how video conferencing can be supported. As the mapping exercise takes place, we are working with digital leaders at the CCGs and NECS in the NENC to develop quick guides for care homes staff on how to use the new video conferencing solutions. These will also be available across the network nationally.

More work will be needed to understand how the solutions being rolled out in primary care will work in a care home setting rather than with individual patients, and how we provide enhanced consultation, for example using equipment to measure physiology like blood pressure and oxygen saturation levels, in order to provide a high quality consultation and improve patient outcomes.

Work across care homes in the region has been supported over the last three years by the AHSN NENC’s Well Connected Care Homes Programme which has resulted in approximately 400 care homes already being digitally enabled, using digital NEWS scores, and discussions are underway to consider how we cover the remainder of the system.

Within Yorkshire & Humber a number of solutions are being developed across the region and scoping will continue to consider connectivity and future proofing solutions beyond the pandemic response.

For further information please contact [email protected].