More help for patients to take medicines at home
A new service helping patients take key drugs at home rather than in hospital has launched at St Bartholomew’s.
The outpatient antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) team supports patients who need intravenous antibiotics but are otherwise safe to be discharged.
For patients it means continuing their care in the comfort of their own home. It can also free-up beds within the hospital for patients in greater need.
The OPAT team at St Bartholomew’s Hospital is made up of specialist nurse Eric Andaya, specialist antimicrobial pharmacist Natalie Hollins and consultant Cristina Suarez.
They work closely with district nurses who administer the antibiotics and can even train patients and their relatives to do it themselves.
Whilst in the community, patients remain under the responsibility of the 'parent' department that discharged them.
But OPAT colleagues are on hand to help with the transition to home life and should patients develop any side effects from taking the drugs.
The service was previously offered on an ad-hoc basis at St Bartholomew’s but it is now being scaled-up to help more of the hospital across heart, cancer and respiratory services.
The team expect to see about 80 patients per year and generate significant savings. They are also rolling out a new device called an elastomeric pump that makes taking intravenous antibiotics easier.
Cristina said: “Taking antibiotics at home rather than in hospital means patients can get on with their lives and in return we get more beds to treat more patients.
“The expertise of the OPAT team is available to all our teams and departments – please get in touch if you think your patients would benefit from our support.”
Pictured: NHS district nurse with a patient in the home