As virtual nursing gains traction across U.S. hospitals, health systems have reported improvements in staff satisfaction, quality and patient experience. However, many still struggle to quantify how these programs affect operational efficiency.
At Norfolk, Va.-based Sentara Health, virtual nursing is beginning to show measurable gains in hospital throughput, particularly through discharges completed earlier in the day, according to Amber Price, DNP, MSN, the health system’s senior vice president and chief nursing officer.
The 12-hospital system implemented virtual nursing across all of its hospitals over an eight-month period in 2025. Looking back at the year, leaders found the model returned more than 18,000 hours to bedside nurses and coincided with a notable increase in discharges completed by midday.
“Even in a short time period, we saw a 7% increase in discharges prior to 1 p.m., which meant there was an efficiency created by being able to do discharges virtually,” she told Becker’s.
That progress was largely driven by virtual nurses taking on a portion of patient admissions and discharges, particularly on busy units where bedside nurses may be managing multiple discharges at once.
Earlier discharges are frequently cited as a key lever hospitals can use to ease capacity strain. Research conducted at large academic medical centers and children’s hospitals has found that timely discharge initiatives are associated with improved bed availability, reduced emergency department crowding and more efficient patient flow.
Virtual nurses spend about 15 minutes on average to complete an admission or discharge, Dr. Price said — time dedicated solely to working through a comprehensive checklist that includes medication reconciliation and social determinants of health. That focused review lowers the likelihood that prescriptions, follow-up orders or other discharge details are overlooked, she said, especially when bedside nurses are balancing discharge education with other patient care responsibilities.
“We’re seeing improved accuracy,” Dr. Price said. “We’re catching errors and mistakes — omitted prescriptions, for example. That oxygen prescription that you assumed somebody else was going to do — we’re catching those things.”
Downstream, Sentara expects the expanded use of virtual nursing could translate to fewer avoidable readmissions.
The health system has also seen patient experience scores rise alongside increased use of virtual nursing. Leaders are continuing to assess what specific factors are driving those improvements.
“Is it because our processes are more efficient, or is there another factor that is contributing to that?” Dr. Price said. “We have to continue collecting all of that data so we can see where the impact is.”
Looking ahead, Sentara plans to expand the model by bringing additional specialists into the virtual workflow and layering AI capabilities onto the platform, with the goal of further advancing patient care and throughput.
