Acute Care @ Home PA Hub are opening more doors with creative solutions for patients to receive care outside of hospital.
This team use the support systems within the hospital environment to deliver high quality and safe care in patient’s homes, so they can return to loved ones and routines that will help them rest and heal.
Nurse Unit Manager of Acute Care @ Home PA Hub, Erin Dunne said their crew of 15-18 clinicians are committed to providing care options outside of the traditional inpatient setting.
“Our aim is to improve the patient experience, support earlier discharge, prevent unnecessary admissions and optimise hospital capacity,” she said.
A pull strategy means this vital service empowers inpatient teams to engage early in a patient’s discharge planning.
“Early identification allows our team to assess patient suitability and coordinate the necessary community supports for a more streamlined transfer of care out of an inpatient bed,” Erin said.
“Our presence on wards and at MDT meetings reinforces AC@H as a solution for both inpatient and outpatient models of care – particularly our key services of Hospital in the Home, Alternative Site Infusion Service, and Post-Acute Care Service.”
She said they are innovating new models based on the legacy proven by the Alternative Site Infusion Service (ASIS) which is a coordinated, flexible outpatient service for patient requiring long-term intravenous antimicrobial therapy.
“We are expanding the range of patients who can safely receive hospital-level care at home through the establishment of a multidisciplinary Hospital in the Home model known as HITH+ in partnership with our allied health colleagues.
“Strengthened partnerships across divisions will be the key to expansion,” she said. “Increasing our in-hospital presence and more informed service planning will mean we can understand and deliver what they need from community services.”
The numbers show the pathways are working with the 2025 to 2026 financial year to-date showing
- HITH – inpatient: 693 patients | 3795 occasions of service
- ASIS – outpatient: 313 patients | 2396 occasions of service
- PACS – Outpatient: 135 patients | 832 occasions of service
Aside from growing innovative models that advance the needs of PAH to maximise bed availability, the team are taking up the challenge to meet patients’ needs in a way that is meaningful to them.
“We are undoing some of the historic views around the limitations of care that can be provided at home and focussing on a service that ‘will find a way’,” Erin said.
“We also take extraordinary delight in reuniting patients with their pets – there is the added benefit of a puppy cuddle for our team too which is a terrific perk of the job.”