2265 Patient experience and outcome measures in virtual wards at Swansea Bay university health board.

Abstract

Introduction: Swansea Bay Health Board is covered by eight community clusters (240 virtual beds), each with their own Virtual Ward (VW) MDT which provides community based Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment and reablement.The VWgovernance structure includes the routine collection of person-centred metrics. There is no recognised PROM or PREM specifically designed for needs of frail older people and PROMs and PREMsare rarely used to inform quality and continuity in services at transitions of care (e.g. at discharge from hospital). Method(s): VW data from June 2023 to February 2024 was analysed. Patient-reported outcomes and experiences (PROMS and PREMS) were collected by the VW team at set timepoints in the patient journey. Data was collected using the PRO-MAPP digital interface ensuring inter-user consistency. Result(s): 1858 VW patients, 1094 (58.9%) female, median age 86 years. The majority, 1044 (56.2%) were referred from secondary care, primarily from acute frailty services, with the remainder identified by primary care. In total, 418 PROMS and 344 PREMS were collected. PROMS-Reported improvements in mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain and anxiety & depression (p<0.001) after VW input. PREMS-The majority of patients found the VW had been explained well prior to referral (84.0%), were contacted promptly (95.6%), staff were professional and friendly (100%), provided patient-centred care (94.2%), staff were contactable (92.4%), were glad they avoided or reduced the length of hospital admission (95.3%). When speaking with 72 care-givers, they were happy the patients' needs were met (100%) and the VW positively impacted their lives as carers (90.1%). Discussion(s): There was high patient and care-giver satisfaction with the VW service. PROM data suggested a significant positive impact on patient outcomes. Not all the patients referred to the VW have been sampled which is a missed opportunity and there was a variability between data collection between clusters.