Rapid evaluation of the use of pulse oximeters

How has this device, called a pulse oximeter, helped staff working in care homes in England save the lives of residents during the COVID 19 pandemic? Over the next couple of minutes, I'll explain how findings from two independent evaluations on the use of pulse oximetry, in care homes in general and as part of a new service called NHS COVID Oximetry at Home (which involves the remote monitoring of patients using the telephone or online app with the support of clinicians), has helped inform policymakers to understand the needs of care homes better.

My name is Manni Sidhu and I'm a Research Fellow working for NIHR-funded BRACE Rapid Evaluation Centre. I've worked with colleagues from the RSET Rapid Service Evaluation Team and Imperial College London. Collectively, we’ve produced a slide deck to share key lessons from our two evaluations. Study One will explore the views of NHS and care home staff about the use of COVID Oximetry to manage the health of residents, and Study Two describes the characteristics of residents on-boarded onto the COVID Oximetry at Home programme and the rates of mortality and hospital admission.

In summary, we found that pulse oximetry was not challenging to use by members of staff, and pulse oximeters were quite easy to use as part of a suite of diagnostic tools to manage the health and wellbeing of residents within care homes. There is a need for further training, and especially when to escalate the care of residents and when to seek NHS help. There is scope for further awareness of the COVID Oximetry at Home programme in the health sector, and of the 29,606 care home residents with a positive COVID-19 test, only 812—that's 2.7 percent—were onboarded onto the COVID Oximetry at Home programme.

Findings from both evaluations have been summarised in the slide deck, which is available from the BRACE, RSET, and Imperial College London websites. More comprehensive findings, both in the form of peer-reviewed publications and reports, will be forthcoming. If you'd like to learn more about these studies or have any questions, please visit our institutional websites. Thank you for listening.