A Nurse Knows

RN becomes a patient experiencing the new Advanced Care at Home

She appreciated the care, but it seemed somewhat unnecessary to be receiving it where she was.

Cancer survivor Jordan Stohler, a registered nurse, was back in a hospital after becoming septic following a bilateral mastectomy. She knew she needed intravenous antibiotics, and she knew she needed diuretics to combat the fluid that had built up during her treatment.

But Jordan couldn’t shake the feeling that she was taking up a hospital bed that could be filled by someone who needed it more urgently. She also simply wanted to go home.

“In a hospital, you don’t have your regular surroundings, you can’t cook your own meals, you can’t do what you need to do,” Jordan says.

When she found out she was a candidate for Advanced Care at Home (ACH) through Covenant Health, it made perfect sense to join the program.

Hospital Care at Home

“The Advanced Care at Home team, the physicians, the nurses – everyone was incredible,” Jordan says. “24-hour service care within your own home, it was really an amazing experience.”

ACH nurse Stacey Jenkins, RN, explains that the program can be an important bridge between hospital care and home health care.

“When you are an ACH patient you are considered an inpatient receiving hospital-level care,” nurse Jenkins says. “We have a team of specially trained paramedics who go into the home twice per day at minimum and advanced practice providers that go into the home on Day 2 and Day 4 of the program and as needed.”

The ACH equipment includes a tablet that’s set up for communication with the medical team at any time of day or night. When Jordan experienced shortness of breath one night and required a change in her medication, her needs were met quickly.

“There’s always a physician there for you to be able to speak to if you have an issue,” Jordan says. “To me, that was very important.”

Clinical Excellence and Comfort Combined

ACH services can include lab tests, mobile imaging like X-rays and ultrasounds, IV therapies, durable medical equipment, meal delivery and home health aides as needed. Jordan says it was almost like a hospital room was set up in her home.

“I had one-on-one care the entire time, and I was always able to reach out to the Advanced Care at Home team as well as the paramedics,” Jordan says. “The paramedics were able to assess me and administer medication that normally I would have gotten in the hospital.”

It was also a comfort to be in a more secluded space and reduce the risk of infection. At the same time, Jordan was able to welcome her family, and that family included the four-legged variety.

“Being able just to pet my dog and know that she was taken care of and that I was there with her meant a lot,” Jordan says.

Jordan believes if she had been discharged from the hospital to regular home health care, she most likely would have ended up right back in the hospital. Advanced Care at Home allowed her to receive IV antibiotics and diuretics with hospital-level care before home health services took over.

Today she’s doing well and back to her job as a staffing services travel coordinator and educator for Covenant Health. She shares her experience and praises the team that cared for her when home was the better place to be.

“I’m just very, very thankful that Covenant has decided to do this,” Jordan says. “I think it’s remarkable.”

For more information on Covenant Health Advanced Care at Home, please visit CovenantHealth.com/ACH.