Mary Washington Healthcare Develops Safe at Home Monitoring Care Program

Fredericksburg, VA – Mary Washington Healthcare (MWHC) has developed a “safe at home” program for patients with COVID-19 who are experiencing moderate symptoms and are well enough to go home with special treatment and monitoring. This program allows MWHC to partner with the patient and their family to monitor the care plan as the patient recuperates. This program has shown better clinical results, better patient satisfaction and better cost savings than a traditional inpatient stay.

To determine if a patient is a candidate for this program, the patient’s medical records and current symptoms are carefully reviewed. Participation in the Safe at Home program allows the patient to recover in the comfort of their own home with necessary medications, equipment and medical attention.

When the patient is discharged from the hospital, the care team will provide a digital thermometer, a pulse oximeter—a simple device that clips to the fingertip to measure the level of oxygen in the blood—as well as oxygen therapy to help maintain oxygen levels. A nurse will call every day for seven days to monitor how the patient is feeling.

The patient will be provided up to two virtual appointments with a local physician to ensure recovery is on track. Finally, MWHC will schedule a follow-up appointment for the patient with a Mary Washington Primary Care physician—or their own established PCP—within two weeks to review their progress and answer any questions.

“The current COVID-19 surge with the Omicron variant has hit our region in an unprecedented way, impacting our community and health care system in critical ways,” says M. Stephen Mandell, Jr., MD, Senior Medical Director, Mary Washington Healthcare. “We have worked collaboratively with our emergency department providers, nursing leadership, infusion team, along with our infectious disease specialists, and IT and logistics experts, to structure a means wherein we can meet the changing volumes and therapeutic options currently available for treatment of COVID-19. We will continue to offer limited monoclonal antibody infusions to appropriate candidates, as well as alternative infusion options. Likewise, we can safely offer outpatient treatments and monitoring, for mild to moderately ill COVID-19 patients, based on the current standards of care. Early identification of those ill heightens the success of all treatments, so we are now positioned to expand our current acute care options.”

Learn more about the Safe at Home program and find answers to the most frequently asked questions.

About Mary Washington Healthcare:

Mary Washington Healthcare is a fully integrated, regional medical system that provides inpatient and outpatient care through over 50 facilities including Mary Washington Hospital, a 471-bed regional medical center, and Stafford Hospital, a 100-bed community hospital. Mary Washington Healthcare is a non-profit health system with a longstanding commitment to provide care regardless of ability to pay. For more information about our services and facilities, visit mwhc.com.