Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital is looking to expand its hospital-at-home program after one year of operation in order to treat transplant patients, Fox affiliate WTVT reported May 23.
"We're actually working with our liver transplant team," Peter Chang, MD, vice president of healthcare design at Tampa General, told the publication. "And if a liver transplant patient is going to spend eight or 10 days in the hospital, maybe they just spend the first four or five in the hospital, and then we can transition home for the remainder."
According to Dr. Chang, Tampa General's home-based program gives patients the opportunity to receive personalized care without having to stay in the hospital for an extended period of time. And with hospitals becoming more expensive to build, Dr. Chang sees hospital-at-home programs as the future of healthcare.
Tampa General physicians said using the home-based program, they have been able to see around 100 patients and are planning to continue to widen the range of eligible patients for the program.