Virtual wards (also known as ‘hospital at home’) allow patients to get the care they need safely and conveniently at home, rather than being in hospital. The NHS is increasingly introducing virtual wards to support people at the place they call home, including care homes.
As of May 2024, the NHS in north central London (which includes Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington) has over 190 virtual ward beds for adults and children which support many different people, including those with age and heart related health issues.
Patients on a virtual ward are cared for by teams of clinicians and health specialists who carry out the same tests and treatments as they would in a hospital. Clinical teams check in on patients every day, while many virtual wards use technology like mobile apps and wearable devices to monitor patients’ health too.
Over the past ten years, over 20,000 people across North Central London have been safely cared for at home by Whittington Health NHS Trust’s virtual ward alone!
Watch a short video (below) featuring clinician Arul and Haringey virtual ward patient Eric to find out more.
Feedback from local patients
A patient from a Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust virtual ward in Camden said: “I felt fine and supported, I was assured that I could reach the virtual ward if I needed. In the virtual ward, the staff [and] the amount of care received was excellent”.
Another patient shared that “we as a family are grateful about the NHS as a whole, but more so about the VW (virtual ward) you guys are amazing.”
A family member shared that they “felt reassured that these services exist in the community and these services have the expertise to deal with my wife’s situation.”
Recent updates on virtual wards in north central London
- North Mid children and young people’s ‘hospital at home’ – visit their virtual ward / hospital at home webpages and read a news story about their paediatric virtual ward
- Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust’s virtual ward in Camden – visit their website
- Whittington Health’s virtual ward – visit their virtual ward webpages and read about their new remote monitoring technology
More information
Find out more about virtual wards in England by going to the NHS England virtual wards webpages