A specialist service which provides the health and care people need in their homes and avoids unnecessary hospital stays will receive extra government funding.

An additional £85m will support the Hospital at Home service to expand to 2,000 beds across Scotland by December 2026.

With a focus on the care of frail, older people who require treatment after a fall or have acute illnesses and health conditions, including respiratory and cardiac conditions, the service gives patients access to hospital-based investigations from their home.

The new funding will also be used to support the roll out of frailty services at the front door for every A&E by the end of this summer.

This comes after the government committed to act on A&E failings in response to a review highlighting national issues that contributed to patient safety risks in Glasgow’s emergency departments.

Announcing the additional investment during a visit to NHS Forth Valley’s Hospital at Home service, First Minister John Swinney said:

“I am resolutely focused on taking the necessary action to reduce wait times and clear the blockages leading to delayed discharges across our NHS. This investment will ensure many patients can receive first class NHS care in the comfort of their own homes and not have to travel to a hospital where it isn’t required.

“Expanding Hospital at Home to 2,000 beds by December 2026 will create the largest ‘hospital’ in the country, thereby improving the flow of patients throughout the NHS and generating greater capacity for staff.

“The NHS is Scotland’s greatest treasure, but we know we must do better to ensure patients get the care they need, when and where they need it.”

NHS Forth Valley will see £4.4m of the new funding which local consultant geriatrician Dr Sarah Henderson said will help the team develop more local services:

“Over the last four years, the service has helped thousands of local patients and the feedback we have received from them and their families has been overwhelmingly positive.

“I am delighted that the additional funding announced today will help us expand the Hospital at Home service further as well as develop local heart failure, respiratory and Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy services to help more people remain at home and still access the specialist care they require."

Dr Henderson said keeping patients in familiar surroundings at home can help to reduce some of the risks associated with hospital admissions, such as infections.

Marion Denholm from Stenhousemuir said the care her husband Bill received from the Forth Valley Hospital at Home team after developing a chest infection felt like a “win-win” for them and the busy local hospital, adding:

“There are no words to adequately describe the care and attention my husband received while under the care of Hospital at Home.

“We’ve had doctors, advanced nurse practitioners, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, a dietitian and a speech and language therapist all visit our home to provide the care and treatment he required so he didn’t have to go into hospital.

“This meant he was able to stay in familiar surroundings with his family around him and still receive the same type of care he would have received in hospital. I also felt very supported as I could contact the team direct if I had any worries or concerns.”

Read more: Government to merge two national NHS boards; Chief Medic: ‘Critical connections’ priority; Libraries offer light lift for low winter mood; NHS waits pushing patients private; ‘Big leaps’ needed to secure change for disabled people 

Sign up to our bulletin for key health & social care updates straight to your inbox.