3 Hospital-at-Home Pioneers Get Rave Reviews

Three health systems are making a strong case that the hospital-at-home (HaH) practice model can significantly improve ambulatory care. Preventing hospital readmissions, reducing the need for nursing home care and decreasing overall healthcare costs are just a few of the benefits that have accrued, according to the health systems, whose HaH experts presented their results at the ASHP 2022 Midyear Clinical Meeting & Exhibition. It hasn’t always been easy, but University Hospital Health System (UHHS) developed a HaH program that has earned raves from patients and their families. “The people who have gone into this program think it’s the best thing since sliced bread,” said Rachael Lerman, PharmD, BCPS, the director of pharmacy at the northeastern Ohio health system. “They want to be home, and their families are happy, too.” Equally important, she noted, is that patients cared for in HaH programs experience increased physical activity, reduced risk for ending up in a nursing home at six months for strokes, shorter length of stay, lower readmission rates and fewer lab tests ordered, and reduced mortality.