Making home hospitalisations a norm

As I watch the comings and goings within the hospital, I notice the wards are not overcrowded. Upon inquiry, I discover that modern Singapore has found a way to manage the shortage of beds due to an ageing population who requires complex care.

An innovative healthcare model, (MIC)@Home was mainstreamed from April 2024. SGH was the first SingHealth hospital to join this national programme when it was first piloted in April 2022. Three others, CGH, SKH and KKH subsequently joined the pilot in April 2024.

Enabled by technology, these ‘virtual wards’ free up hospital beds for higher acuity cases while allowing clinically suitable patients to recover in the comfort of their own homes. More than 1,000 SingHealth patients have benefited from the pilot scheme as of end April 2024, which translates to a reduction of 5,500 hospital bed-days and $5.5 million cost savings.

This is how it works: Clinical monitoring for simple things like weight and vital signs can be recorded by patients or caregivers remotely. While home, patients still have round-the-clock access to clinical care through telemedicine where patients may speak to their medical team using smartphones, which allows you to see and talk to the person on the other end of the screen as though you are right there with them – isn’t that amazing! Home visits can be scheduled as needed, and treatment such as IV antibiotics and infusions which could previously be provided only in hospital can now be provided at home!

By early 2025, the number of SingHealth virtual beds is expected to grow to 100, with the potential for these numbers to grow even more. In my time, the average man on the street would not be able to afford such care, but patients are now able to obtain financial support through government subsidies and/or utilise parts of their national savings account system, MediSave, MediShield Life and Integrated Shield Plans, or insurance plans.