Hampshire paramedics provide home oxygen kits for Covid-19 patients

South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) has started supplying home oxygen monitoring kits to patients who are at high risk but don’t require immediate hospital treatment.

The kits contain a pulse oximeter device, a symptom diary and a set of strict guidelines and are only distributed to patients who require emergency assessment by the ambulance service.

It comes following a study run by Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and SCAS last year, which studied 20,000 patients at the point they were initially assessed by paramedics at home.

Medical experts hope these kits will help ease pressure on hospitals.

SCAS medical director Dr John Black said: ‘Our original research helped to inform the wider rollout of the Covid Oximetry @home project to enable patients in high-risk groups to monitor their blood oxygen levels directly and help ensure timely referral to hospital when indicated.

‘We are now pleased to be the first ambulance service to offer pulse oximeters to patients along with guidance once we have assessed them and determined they don’t need to be taken to hospital but are at increased risk of their condition changing.

‘It provides patients with the reassurance that they can keep regular check on their oxygen levels independently and seek the help they need if their levels drop below 95 per cent, while for us it means our clinicians can leave patients knowing they have the ability to spot any change promptly and take swift action.’

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Patients whose blood oxygen levels dropped only 1-2 per cent below 96 per cent – still within the normal range of 94-98 per cent – and showed no signs of shortness of breath often went on to require admission to intensive care and had a lower chance of survival.

The oximeters work by placing a clip on the end of a finger to measure oxygen in the blood and heart rate.

Dr Matthew Inada-Kim from Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘SCAS has produced groundbreaking research that has informed national policy and led to the evolution of the Covid-19 home oximetry model and its staff are again leading the way with this new project to help identify patients at risk as early as possible.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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