HSE advertises for technology to roll out 'virtual wards'
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The HSE has advertised for the provision of technology to help it establish a "virtual ward" care model within the health service, at a projected eventual cost of €500m.
Virtual wards, otherwise known as "hospital at home", are aimed at providing hospital-level care for patients in their homes, with the joint goal of speeding up recoveries in familiar settings while freeing up hospital beds.
There were 602 patients recorded on trolleys waiting for a bed of their own earlier this month, despite flu season not impacting as hard as would normally be the case at this time of year.
The HSE said both its own and Government strategy had noted the potential to use “tele-health” services in order to enable the delivery of care in the home, which would in turn enable “earlier discharge from secondary care services, and to enhance access to services for patients and families”.
Virtual wards will be primarily aimed at providing services to respiratory, cardiology, and endocrinology (hormonal-related issues such as diabetes), the HSE said.
To that end, the companies expressing interest will be expected to demonstrate an ability to “record and store a person’s vital signs” and “other relevant health data” from their remote location.
Likewise, those operating the system would need to demonstrate the ability to “highlight when users are presenting early warning signs” of distress or major health events.
The provision of video consultations (such as in terms of daily ward rounds) and support via secure communications is another prerequisite, the HSE said.
The move to a virtual ward system, in addition to removing strain from the bed capacity of individual hospitals, should have the added benefit of reducing incidences of “hospital-acquired harm”, such as infections and physical debilitation resulting from long hospital stays, the contract documents state.
Last September the HSE said it would be expanding the use of mobile phone apps for the remote monitoring of patients by healthcare practitioners from 2024.
Meanwhile, the HSE is to spend €10m on the management of its various social media and digital content projects, including the execution of "behaviour change campaigns".
It has gone to public tender for a contractor to provide social and digital content and social media management services as part of a four-year contract.
The services required will include social media strategy, content writing, creative content, the ongoing management of digital campaigns and reporting, the HSE said.
Successful bidders will be expected to deliver, in terms of content, native advertising together with “digital communications to enhance the understanding of health and science-based information” within Ireland, the body said.
With regard to health-promotion campaigns, bidders will have to deliver distinct social media campaigns utilising an “agile” methodology, according to the contract documents.
In addition, the successful tenderer would be expected to deliver “crisis response” services and “urgent support” as required, in addition to budget management services.
The HSE’s digital communications team operates within its overall national communications division, and works with a combined audience of 1.5 million people, the body said, with the aim of helping people “improve their health and wellbeing and access to health services”.