CHI Saint Joseph Hospital Pilots Virtual Nursing to Address Shortages

CHI Saint Joseph Health is one of the first hospitals to implement a virtual nursing model using technology developed by CommonSpirit Health, according to a recent announcement. The model adds a virtual registered nurse (RN) to in-home care teams to assist in improving care quality and lessening staff difficulties.  

CHI Saint Joseph Health is a comprehensive health system that is part of CommonSpirit Health with 100 locations in 20 counties throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Nursing shortages have grown in the last several decades, and the pandemic only elevated the severity of the issue. Despite these challenges, organizations have discovered methods of improving care delivery, often through new technology implementation. 

The addition of the virtual nursing model occurred following updates on virtually integrated care technology from CommonSpirit Health. These changes led the organization to choose CHI Saint Joseph Health as the initial site to test the model.

The model consists of adding a virtual RN to the hospital care team, encompassing a bedside nurse and a patient care assistant. Through this tool, patients would gain the ability to access the virtual RN through a screen, which would assist with tasks related to charting, education, assessments, and discharges. Although this feature does not act as a full substitute for the bedside nurse, its capabilities would benefit the bedside team, enabling them to shift their attention to more urgent matters.

Saint Joseph Hospital began using a similar virtually integrated care model in a small subset of the hospital in December. Following successful outcomes, its application has expanded.

“I’ve been a nurse for 33 years, and the shortage of nurses has been a constant throughout my career, but the pandemic over the last three years has exacerbated the problem,” CHI Saint Joseph Health’s COO Melissa Bennett, DHA, RN, CNE, said in the announcement.

“I’ve watched nurses leave the profession altogether, and fewer people are entering nursing school, adding to the crisis level of nursing shortages across the country. Like many other health care systems, CHI Saint Joseph Health has been searching for ways to address staffing issues, and I’m proud to see a new care model that will truly make a difference for facilities and patients alike. It is a game-changer for our facility,” continued Bennett.

CHI Saint Joseph Health intends to expand the use of the virtual nursing tool across the hospital system and eventually deploy the model to external locations.

Virtual tools can address staffing challenges, leading to the delivery of better care, according to recent research.

A study from February found that many organizations and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) began using telehealth because of the COVID-19 pandemic. These tools have since been found to alleviate workforce challenges, such as labor shortages and clinician burnout.

For example, Rainelle Medical Center, an FQHC in Rainelle West Virginia, experienced significant staffing shortages throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, often due to staff members getting infected with the disease.

However, in 2020, the system began using a telehealth solution to handle staff burnout and expand upon the ability of the FQHC to provide care. By allowing providers to conduct clinical visits virtually from their homes, they gained the ability to work while executing personal tasks such as caring for a sick child.

Virtual nursing and other virtual care models continue to help healthcare providers address persistent workforce issues, prompting many providers to scale the use of such technologies.