Virtual Care - Hospital at Home: From Inception to Implementation - Dr. Sean Spina

Island Health launched a prototype of the Hospital at Home (HaH) program based out of the Victoria General Hospital (VGH) site on November 9, 2020; this project included a collaborative research and evaluation component to understand the impact of implementing HaH from a variety of perspectives. HaH allows for a subset of acutely ill, clinically stable patients to choose a safe and effective alternative to traditional facility-based in-patient treatment. HaH patients have 24/7 access to treatment, diagnostics, and hospital-level expertise from the comfort of their own home. Since the launch of the program, the VGH HaH team has established clinical workflows and implemented new technologies to support this transformative care delivery model. This presentation will discuss the background to the HaH initiative, the use of Patient-Oriented Research and patient and public engagement methods to inform its design and evolution and outline the integral role of technology within this program.

Dr. Spina graduated from the University of British Columbia Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences with his BSc in Pharmacy and his Doctor of Pharmacy. In addition to being the Coordinator of Clinical Services at Royal Jubilee Hospital, he is a Clinical Associate Professor with the University of British Columbia Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and an Adjunct Professor with the University of Victoria Health Information Sciences Faculty. Sean is the Principal Investigator of Alternatives to Traditional Hospital Care Offered in Monitored Environments (AT-HOME). Since the beginning of his career, Dr.Spina has been interested in incorporating technology into clinical practice and is committed to engaging patients, families, clinicians, and decision-makers in the research process. He has authored several published articles on this topic and has received numerous local, provincial, and national awards for his work informally evaluating the impact technology has on clinical practice and patient care. The Health Employers Association of British Columbia recognized Dr. Spina and his team for their work in 2017 by awarding them the Top Provincial Innovation Award in the “Excellence in BC Health Care” category.