Virtual Ward scoping for technology and connectivity proposition development

The Challenge

Our client, a mobile telephony and broadband major needed to customise its Virtual Ward (VW) offering for NHS England by building foundational knowledge about the same. There was a need to understand current and emergent connectivity, devices and technology needs in NHS Integrated Care Systems (ICS); their implications for acute respiratory infections, frailty and geriatrics, cardiology, and paediatrics.

Our Approach

A combination of desk research and in-depth interviews were chosen as methods to understand virtual wards from the perspectives of doctors and nurses, IT decision makers, ICS decision makers and patients and caregivers. A total of 36 online interviews were conducted. We spoke to decision makers from hospitals with established virtual wards as well as those planning one. This allowed us to understand the established and emergent trends in the area. Additionally, we also split the interviews to cover fully automated virtual wards as well as manual virtual wards.

The Outcome

VW landscape: We were able to define adoption and implementation of VWs, success factors, challenges and barriers faced by various stakeholders, and patient experience.

Technology analysis: Our interviews uncovered how connectivity underpinned VWs; how medical and connectivity technology suppliers were evaluated. We tested our client’s VW solution with the stakeholders and were able to identify the opportunities and gaps and make clear go-to-market recommendations.