TICC-19 is a COVID-19 triage pathway developed at the Royal Berkshire Hospital which allows some patients to be sent home with a sats probe. Then they receive a daily phone call from our Ambulatory COVID Clinic. This is our ‘Virtual COVID Ward‘ out there in the community.
As of 24/04/2020:
100 patients had been referred to the COVID Ambulatory Clinic to go into the Virtual Ward. Of these 100 patients…
- 67 patients had been discharged from the virtual ward
- 27 patients were still under review in the virtual ward
- 6 patients were in hospital
- 16 patients reattended the ED, and of these:
- 12 patients were readmitted
Of these 100 patients…
- None of the patients have died
Ambulatory Emergency Care services expect to convert about 10% to an inpatient admission*. We converted 12% so this means we are managing patients with the right level of ‘acuity’.
The Bottom Line: From our early data, patients with non-severe COVID-19 can be safely managed in the community instead of being admitted to hospital. A ‘virtual ward’ provides a safety net for this cohort of patients.
*See Directory of Ambulatory Emergency Care for Adults PDF:
https://www.ambulatoryemergencycare.org.uk/uploads/files/1/AEC-Directory%206th%20edition%20February%202018.pdf