Virtual wards provide acute, hospital-level care in an individual’s own home, rather than in a hospital or hospice. They are also known as Hospital at Home services. We know that virtual wards can care for people who are in their last year of life. For individuals approaching the end of life, control of symptoms requires prompt access to medication. We know access to palliative care medication can be challenging in the community. There have also been reports of difficulty accessing medication on virtual wards; however, it is not known if there are specific issues accessing palliative care medications on virtual wards.

This study aims to investigate access to medication for adults on virtual wards who are in their last year of life. We aim to understand the experiences of healthcare professionals so that we can make recommendations on how to improve access to medication in the future.

We will ask healthcare professionals working in virtual wards to answer questions in an online survey. We will ask doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists to complete the survey. We will ask them about what works well and what does not. We will ask them about the challenges they have faced, and what would help them to minimise or eradicate these.

We will also interview 20 healthcare staff. This will include both professionals who completed the survey and individuals who oversee the management of virtual ward services. We will explore in more detail examples of good practice and the processes that need to be in place to ensure straightforward, fast access to medication.

We will consult with clinical and policy experts on potential solutions to the challenges identified in the study findings. We will also work with these experts to develop recommendations for policy and practice.

Project team includes:

Co-PI - Dr Nicola Andrews

Co-PI - Prof Sue Latter

Co-I Dr Natasha Campling

Co-I Dr Sara McKelvie

Research Fellow Dr Dan Aze