Evaluation of the home care service: a remote inpatient service for people requiring mental health care

Abstract

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, St Patrick's Mental Health Services introduced a home care package, offering all the elements of the inpatient programmes, but provided to the service user remotely in their own home. A survey was used to evaluate service user experiences of receiving remote inpatient mental health treatment via the home care service. All participants who had a virtual admission were invited to complete a quantitative survey online. Data were inputted into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences software and a descriptive analysis was completed. A total of 88 participants completed the online survey, the majority of whom were women (62.5%) and between the ages of 61 and 70 years (28.4%). Diagnosis was most often depression (60.2%) or anxiety (29.4%) and almost 66% of participants had previous inpatient experience. Staff rated most highly by participants were the consultant psychiatrist (96.7%), ward-based nursing staff (95.2%) and their psychologist (92.3%). The highest rating statements, which participants rated as part of a questionnaire, were around technology options (87.1%), one-to-one work with a clinician (81.3%) and arranging collection of medicine (81%). Preliminary scores on this survey demonstrate that remote care is an effective way to improve access, enhance quality and provide efficient care. Further research should consider clinical outcomes with this model compared to standard care.