Rochester, N.Y.-based UR Medicine plans to launch a hospital-at-home program in summer 2025.
CMS approved the health system's flagship Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester for acute hospital care at home in June 2024. The six-hospital system has since taken a "pragmatic and deliberate approach" to building the initiative, said Justin Hopkin, MD, chief of hospital medicine at University of Rochester Medical Center.
"We are listening closely to what community members want and need, while observing how other health systems overcome challenges as they scale up their hospital-at-home programs," Dr. Hopkin told Becker's.
He cited the proven benefits of the care model: "improved outcomes, safety and satisfaction compared to inpatient hospital stay."
"Implementing the model successfully requires institutions to take all the steps involved in building a new hospital, minus the bricks and mortar," he said.