Since the pandemic began in March, the COVID Positive Outreach team has served an astounding number of coronavirus patients —almost 7,000—as part of VUMC’s COVID-to-Home program. The team of nurses has provided care coordination services, telemedicine support and hospital-to-home support to assist COVID-positive patients on their journey to recovery. A recent Discover article showed how VUMC’s overall COVID-to-Home strategy has not only addressed capacity constraints and reduced length of stay and emergency department admissions, but also improved the acute care experience.
In addition to their clinical acumen, the nurses’ listening skills have been invaluable in helping calm stressed patients and discern when others needed additional care, according to Deborah Dußgger, MSN, RN, Team Lead of the COVID Positive Outreach Program. “I have reassured panicked patients that they’re going to be okay, but we have also stepped in to encourage others to get emergent care,” she said. “We recently talked to a 22-year-old who was extremely sick and couldn’t breathe. He didn’t think he should go to the emergency room because he was so young. We guide patients in these situations.”
Not only have the nurses shown compassion to fearful patients, but they also demonstrated flexibility and adaptability when yet another COVID-19 surge hit this winter.
“During this process, we have been able to change the cadence of our outreach quickly to better meet patients’ needs,” said Julie Scott, RN, director of the Care Management team in the Office of Population Health. “In addition to assessing symptoms, making sure patients have the right follow-up care, and helping them connect with a primary care provider, the team has also been trained on how to talk to patients sensitively about advanced care planning.”
The COVID Positive Outreach team believes their experiences with the COVID-to-Home program will help them in future projects as well, even after the pandemic eventually subsides. “Through these conversations,” Dugger says, ”we’re getting better at communication and becoming even better advocates for our patients.”