Essentia Health, a 14-hospital system based in Duluth, Minn., rolled out its virtual nursing model systemwide in January 2024.
Three things to know:
1. The system provides virtual nursing support during some admissions and discharges. Eligible patients must be alert, oriented and able to hear, or have a caregiver who meets these criteria, according to a March 19 post from the health system.
Patients receive an iPad, the MyChart Bedside app and a virtual nurse. For discharges, virtual nurses review after-visit summaries, confirm follow-up appointments are arranged and coordinate with the pharmacy if needed.
“We’re often asked, ‘Is this a robot?'” Charisha McGowan, a virtual nurse at Essentia, said in a statement. “I am not a robot, so there’s always a little comedy when patients realize we’re real, … we’re humans and actually skilled nurses with experience.”
2. Six virtual nurses cover 22 units across Duluth, Superior, Detroit Lakes and Fargo.
3. Within a year, virtual nurses completed nearly 5,000 remote admissions and discharges, saving bedside nurses more than 2,100 hours.
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