COVID Care @ Home was created to improve care for patients who did not require, or no longer required, hospitalization and could manage COVID-19 at home.
From November 2020 to June 2021, Niagara Health supported more than 120 Niagara patients through the COVID Care @ Home program. The program is no longer accepting new patients. However, we continue to seek opportunities to create new models of care that link providers and connect patients and families.
Our Successes for Patients and Families
Together, we:- Created one integrated team with primary care, acute care, and home and community care to bring care to the patient and work together on a care plan tailored to the patient’s needs.
- Enhanced patient care by giving one point of contact for questions and support.
- Reduced unnecessary Emergency Department visits and readmissions. Which in turn helped us to preserve hospital capacity to continue to serve patients.
- Provided coaching support and advice in infection control and COVID-care standards to congregate care settings to proactively reduce outbreaks and the need for crisis response during the pandemic.
How the Program Worked
This unique model of case was delivered by St. Joseph’s Home Care in partnership with St. Joseph’s Health System, Niagara Health and community partners.
Blending virtual and in-person care, a personalized team guided and followed patients from diagnosis through to recovery. Patients were supported by remote monitoring, 24/7 on-call services, direct access to specialists and mobile COVID testing, among other services.
COVID Care @ Home was a new model of care that will serve as a blueprint for future programs, linking up providers and connecting patients to care wherever they are, whenever they need it.
The program evolved into an innovative model of care that shows incredible promise to scale into other chronic diseases and patient populations. We believe that this collaborative spirit will play a critical role in recovery planning and inspire how we bring care to the most vulnerable patients.
Thank you to the members of the care team St. Joseph’s Home Care, St. Joseph’s Health System and all our community partners for making this possible. Our hope is that we can continue to build on this powerful, collaborative model to support seamless, connected care in the community.
Extraordinary Caring. Every Person. Every Time.
