[Early hospital discharge for patients with COVID-19: evaluation of the transmural healthcare program in Amsterdam].

Hoolwerf, Evert W; Zonneveld, Stella J M; Nieuwkerk, Pythia T; Bedert, Maarten R D; Nijman, Suzan F M; Posthuma, Nynke; Reesink, Herre J; Kanters, E C Kees; Prins, Jan M; van der Valk, Marc

OBJECTIVE Evaluation of an early discharge program for COVID-19-patients who still required additional oxygen support, supervised by their own general practitioner (GP) in a home setting. We evaluated safety and gathered experiences from patients, caregivers and GPs. DESIGN Cohort study (prospective and retrospective inclusion) METHOD: Adult COVID-19-patients admitted to one of the three Amsterdam hospitals, the Netherlands, were eligible when clinically stable for at least 48 hours, with a minimum oxygen saturation of 94% and a maximum of 3 l/min oxygen support. Patients were included from 23-10-2020 to 26-03-2021. RESULTS We included 113 patients, of whom 40 retrospectively . Median age was 58 years and median length of hospital stay 8 days. Four patients (3.7%) were readmitted within 14 days after discharge. Median duration of oxygen support at home was 8 days. Almost no home visits were conducted by GPs, but contact by telephone was regular (median 6 times in 2 weeks). All stakeholders reported feeling safe, able and confident while delivering the necessary (self) care. The program was graded by patients and GPs with an 8 (on a scale of 1 to 10). CONCLUSION Early discharge for COVID-19-patients with a necessity for oxygen support, under supervision of the GP, is safe and was positively evaluated by all stakeholders involved.