UHNM partnership project helps almost 2,000 patients get home from hospital quicker

Almost 2,000 elderly and vulnerable patients from University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) have benefitted from quicker and more bespoke discharges thanks to a successful partnership initiative.    

The ‘Home from Hospital’ scheme, which is ran in partnership with Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service, helps patients from the Royal Stoke University Hospital who are medically fit for discharge return to their own homes or places of care.

As part of the service, which runs seven days a week, specially appointed fire and health partnership technicians not only collect patients from Royal Stoke and take them home, but provide a range of wellbeing and fire safety checks with the aim of avoiding hospital re-admissions.  

Lisa Duncan, Integrated Discharge Lead at UHNM, said: “Staying in hospital longer than necessary can have a negative impact on how well patients recover and can often cause serious harm, impacting adversely on their health and wellbeing.

“Since its launch in December 2023, the Home from Hospital scheme has helped almost 2,000 patients who are well enough to return home and continue their recovery in the comfort of their own surroundings whilst freeing up vial bed spaces at UHNM.”

Ian Read, Head of Prevent, Protect and Partnerships at Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “Home from Hospital is about the Fire Service and UHNM working together for the common good, whilst giving us an opportunity to keep people who could be at risk from fire, safe.

“We work directly with UHNM’s Integrated Discharge Hub (IDH), who select patients that would benefit from the service. After collecting patients from hospital, our technicians transport them home and make sure they’re safe, warm and have everything they need. This can include ensuring the water and heating supplies are working, identifying any potential hazards, checking they have food and access to a phone and completing a fire safety check.”

Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service were awarded the Chief Executive Award in recognition of the initiative, as well as their ongoing support of patient care at UHNM. 

Dr Simon Constable, Chief Executive, said: “Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service have become the first external partner to receive the Chief Executive Award as a symbol of UHNM’s appreciation for everything they do for us and our patients throughout the year. Home from Hospital is a hugely successful and impactful patient safety initiative for us that we couldn’t do without. 

Speaking at the award presentation, Lisa said: “Working with Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service, we know patients are going home and they’re safe. The quality of the discharge going home with the Fire Service makes all the difference. If we’re ever under pressure, we know we can pick the phone up and say can you help, our principles are the same. It’s a real partnership, it doesn’t matter what we ask, if there’s an ability to do it, they’ll do it for us.”

Ian added: “Receiving this CEO Award is absolutely brilliant, and we have a really good, mutually supportive relationship with UHNM.”