The U.S. nursing shortage has reached critical levels during the pandemic battle, paired with an aging population. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the need for 1.1 million new RNs for expansion and replacement of retirees.

To serve its inpatient population and overcome the nursing shortage, St. Luke's Health System of Kansas City has developed an innovative approach leveraging virtual care. The organization created and implemented one of the nation's first virtual nursing units to reduce the burden on bedside nurses and much more.

In her HIMSS22 educational session entitled "Lessons Learned from Launching a Virtual Nursing Unit," Jennifer Ball, RN, director of virtual care at Saint Luke's Health System of Kansas City will offer attendees next month a deep dive into the workings of the virtual nursing unit. She has been a nurse for 35 years, with a clinical background in ICU, trauma and ED, and has 25 years of experience in nursing management.

Healthcare IT News interviewed Ball to have her offer readers a taste of what's to come in her session at the HIMSS22 Global Conference & Exhibition.

Q. What are some of the benefits of a virtual nursing unit and its impact on both patients and nurses?

A. There are many benefits to a virtual nursing team supporting the bedside unit. For nursing, it centers around satisfaction and retention, as the virtual staff handle all the non-hands-on care and workflows. This allows the bedside team to respond to physical patient needs faster and reduce their workload. They have more time with the patient when they are in the room.

Our patients benefit by having a virtual nurse who can answer their questions and support them in several ways such as contacting family, all kinds of education and faster discharges. There also is the benefit to the facility of increasing throughput, which is critical these days.

This is highly valuable for us as many health systems face staffing shortages. Our virtual-nursing unit has enhanced our bedside-care response rates, increased patient and nurse satisfaction, reduced the burden on bedside nurses, and positively impacted quality and safety for a better work environment.

Q. What is the role virtual nurses hold in the health system, and where does virtual nursing allow for better interdepartmental coordination?

A. The virtual nurse role is instrumental to the health system, as they can support so many different tasks and flex in different ways.

By having telehealth capabilities in a patient room, virtual nurses can mentor newer staff, provide detailed education with a visual for the patient, or just have a conversation with an anxious patient to help calm them during stressful situations. Our virtual team has the time to contact other departments and help coordinate the care so bedside staff can focus on the physical care.

Everything from helping set up consults, arranging where they can pick up their medications on the way home, getting multiple folks together when coordinating a discharge, and working with family to coordinate their ride to go home. Our nurses can package everything up for discharge for the patient and family.

I can see this role expanding to other tracks as we move forward. We already have had some experience with virtual precepting and temporary teams spun up to assist with COVID-19 surges over the last two years. This also will expand beyond nursing to other disciplines.

Q. What kind of training is needed to stand up a virtual nursing unit?

A. Training to support and stand up a virtual unit covers all disciplines, including IT supporting the equipment, bedside staff, virtual team, support staff and education for the patients upon admission.

You approach the interviews of staff for the unit differently, making sure they understand the model and how it will be different from traditional nursing they have experienced. Folks need to be flexible and willing to change aspects of their role on a dime, if needed. Change management is always involved.

I cannot speak enough to team-building and getting both sides of the patient care team together. It is crucial they get to know each other and develop those relationships so they have a better workflow and understanding of what each side is trying to accomplish. We continue to train as we morph and grow with this new care model.

Ball's session, "Lessons Learned from Launching a Virtual Nursing Unit," will be presented with Dr. Shayan Vyas, medical director of hospital and health systems at Teladoc Health. It's scheduled for Tuesday, March 15, from 4:15-5:15 p.m. in room W230A of the Orange County Convention Center.

Twitter: @SiwickiHealthIT
Email the writer: bsiwicki@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.