Back to Contents Monitoring oxygen levels at home
Oximetry @ home was commissioned by NHS England and NHS Improvement to provide ‘ high risk ’ COVID patients with pulse oximeters to support the use of home monitoring of blood oxygen levels .
The normal oxygen level in the blood is between 95 % and 100 % but patients were being admitted to hospitals with oxygen levels between 70 % and 80 %.
A pulse oximeter slips over your middle finger and shines a light into the body . It measures how much of the light is absorbed in order to calculate oxygen levels in the blood . If oxygen levels dropped to 93 % or 94 %, then people were encouraged to follow advice they were given and call the dedicated phone lines for help . If they went below 92 %, people were advised to go to A & E or call 999 for an ambulance .
As the region ’ s Patient Safety Collaborative ( PSC ), which is hosted by the Yorkshire & Humber AHSN , we have been supporting the use of the oximeters in our local health and care systems .
Through regular meetings with dedicated oximetry project teams , we have supported all 15 Clinical Commissioning Groups ( CCG ) in Yorkshire and the Humber to successfully adopt and spread an Oximetry @ home project . Oximeters were given to patients as part of the on-boarding process either by the GP practice or COVID ' hot hubs ' that had been established in some areas .
Data up to April 2021 estimates at least 1,500 patients across the Yorkshire and Humber and North East and North Cumbria regions were able to remain in their own homes and be supported by a clinical team .
15
Clinical Commissioning Groups
1500 patients are estimated to have been able to remain in their own homes to be treated have adopted the Oximetry @ home project
Impact Report 2020-21 9