When Rob Herbert, 63, of Blackboys suffered a major knee infection recently he had to stay in hospital for over two weeks.
In the past, however, his stay would have been much longer.
As part of a new approach to care and treatment Rob has been able to continue his recovery in the comfort of his own home.
Although he still needed intravenous antibiotics, he was able to come home and be treated there - all thanks to the nurse-led Rapid Response Team operating from Crowborough Hospital
Rob says:
“The most important thing for me was having a choice. It is so much better to be at home and if the Rapid Response Team had not been around I would have been stuck in hospital even longer”.
Compared to last year the team have doubled the number of patients they help; from around 18 to some 35 per month, any of whom could have ended up having to stay in hospital.
The service offered is flexible and the nurses will do their best to prevent a patient being admitted to hospital and keep them capable of staying at home, if it is safe to do so and if the patient would prefer to be there.
Team manager Lizzie Silver says,
“We are willing to do whatever organising or caring is necessary. Sometimes this may mean giving antibiotics intravenously which is a specialised skill, it could mean getting special equipment for use at home, it could even mean feeding the cat. Sometimes it is simple jobs that mean the most to the patient”.
Patients may be experiencing a sudden illness which can be safely nursed in their home, or have a long term condition which has become worse.
In either case a short-term programme of nursing and personal care can help people get better, avoid a hospital stay, and restore independence.
Patients who are 18 years of age and over and who are registered with a GP in the NHS East Sussex Downs and Weald area can be referred to the Rapid Response Team by their doctor.
