ICU At Home: A New Era In Patient-centered Critical Care

A couple of decades ago, no one would have imagined that a patient could set up an ICU at their home! It is surprising how far we have come in terms of medical and technological advancements. In 2024, home critical care has become more convenient than ever. You can now treat your critically ill loved ones from the comfort of their homes. While setting up an ICU at home is not free from challenges, it is a noteworthy achievement in medical science.

Let us understand this new setup better and explore the new era in patient-centered care:

What Is ICU At Home?

ICU at home is a modern healthcare service offered by hospitals and doctors across the globe. As the name suggests, it involves creating an ICU setup at the patient’s home. Whether a patient already admitted to a conventional ICU needs to extend their treatment at home or get admitted to a home-based ICU directly, healthcare professionals ensure that the setup is effective.

An ICU setup at home is similar to that of a hospital. From ventilators and patient monitors to ICU beds and IV drips, a home-based ICU has all the equipment a patient needs. Doctors may also customize the setup depending on the patient’s condition. For example, patients suffering from critical kidney complications may need a dialysis machine in their home-based ICU.

Just like a conventional ICU, an ICU setup at home requires continuous patient monitoring. Doctors have specially trained caregivers and nursing staff stay with their patients at all times. They remain connected to their patients through modern telemedicine tools. From video conferencing to remote patient monitoring tools, doctors do their best to keep track of their patients’ health while they are admitted to an ICU at home.

Must Read: Human Factors In ICU Design: Providing A Healing Environment To Patients And Their Families

What Are The Benefits Of Setting Up An ICU At Home?

Let us now have a look at some of the most important benefits of setting up an ICU at home:

Making Patients Comfortable

No other place makes a person more comfortable than their own home. While battling critical illnesses, patients feel more comfortable receiving ICU services at their homes. Such a setup also increases familiarity by giving patients an environment they are used to living in. Hospital ICUs can stress a patient out over time, hurting their health. At home, a patient can be free from this additional anxiety, positively influencing their recovery.

Having Family Members Around

While home-based ICUs also have rules and protocols regarding family members staying near the patient, the patient also knows that they are surrounded by their loved ones. Consistently being around your family members gives you confidence and makes you feel a little more comfortable. A patient admitted to an ICU at home always knows that they have access to their loved ones as they are right outside!

Personalized Critical Care

Home-based ICUs take patient-centered care up a notch. Here, doctors and their nursing staff can personalize the care given to their patients as they are the only ones to look after. Such a setup leaves more scope for personalized care plans that are tailored precisely to the needs and preferences of the patient being treated.

Receiving Undivided Attention

While conventional ICU services at hospitals also ensure that every patient receives individual attention, a single team of nursing staff often caters to multiple patients under the same roof. This is not the case in home-based ICUs.

When an ICU is set up at the patient’s home, they receive undivided attention from every caregiver and nurse looking after them. Along with personalized care plans, they can communicate with the nursing staff and have their issues resolved without any delays. As there is no one else to look after under the same roof, the services a patient receives in this setup automatically improve.

Reduced Infection Risks

No matter how secure a hospital ICU is, there is always some risk of infections. The two disastrous COVID waves have shown us what a minor infection can lead to in the long term. Patients and doctors can avoid this by setting up an ICU at home. Here, you have complete control over the environment the patient stays in, who can visit them, and how clean the area should be.

Moreover, in most cases, the only ill person in a home-based ICU is the patient being looked after. This significantly reduces the risk of infections. If your loved one is already struggling with a critical disease, you would never want them to have a brush against even a trivial infection.

Cost-effective In The Long Run

If you are looking for long-term ICU services, setting up an ICU at home is a more cost-effective option. While the initial setup cost is often high, the overall money you spend on an ICU setup at home will always be lower than the expensive hospital bills you would have otherwise paid.

Customizable Environment

A patient has no control over the environment they live in at a hospital ICU. Home-based ICU gives you more power over your surroundings, letting you customize it according to the patient’s convenience. As long as the surroundings do not interfere with the ICU setup, you can make as many changes in the patient’s room as possible, making the environment conducive for them. This is bound to have a direct influence on the patient’s recovery speed.

Must Read: Understanding ICU Equipment: An Overview For Patients And Families

Help Your Loved Ones Heal In Comfort With Docville’s ICU At Home Services

If any of your loved ones is suffering from a critical illness and you want them to recover in the most comfortable environment possible, you can seek Docville’s ICU at home services. Our team of dedicated and qualified doctors and nurses set up an ICU at your home, offering holistic patient-centered critical care. Docville leaves no stone unturned in providing the patient with precise and comprehensive ICU services at their home. While adhering to modern technology, we ensure that your loved ones recover in an environment they are most comfortable with.