Trinity Health Muskegon Begins Virtual Nursing Program to Improve Care Delivery

TogetherTeam Virtual Connected Care™ revolutionizes nursing practice by providing patients with professional, highly proficient nursing care 24/7 at the touch of a button.

In response to the national nurse shortage, Trinity Health Muskegon has launched TogetherTeam Virtual Connected Care™, a unique team-based care model featuring three caregivers for each patient – a direct care Registered Nurse (RN), an on-site RN partner such as a nursing assistant or a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), and a virtual Registered Nurse (vRN), on the 9^th and 10^th floors of the hospital.

The team functions as a cohesive and highly connected unit to deliver comprehensive care. The vRN supports the RN and the RN partner, both of whom are at the bedside, via a high-resolution camera that turns on when a patient gives permission for the vRN to enter the room via the camera. The patient can then interact with the vRN on their television screen. To protect privacy, no part of the exchange is recorded.

One key benefit of the vRN is that response times to patient care requests and questions is often much faster.

The vRN, who is a more seasoned RN with many years of experience, can handle many tasks remotely, such as answering patient questions, providing instructions, expediting discharges, updating medical records, documenting care, checking on medication adherence, contacting a physician on a nurse’s behalf, clarifying doctor’s orders, or contacting family members with condition updates.

The virtual nurse can also perform detailed examinations using the advanced camera technology. This innovative approach allows the patients’ care team to provide more personalized care, respond to needs more quickly, and to collaborate more effectively with doctors, resulting in improved patient experiences and outcomes.

"As we incorporate this technology, we’re finding that bedside nurses can actually spend more uninterrupted quality time with their patients,” said Linda Dunmore, MSN, RN, chief nursing officer at Trinity Health Muskegon. “This is the power of three people working together as a team throughout their shift all day to care for a patient, who is at the center of the team. That's quite a different model from other organizations.”

Another benefit of the TogetherTeam Virtual Connected Care model is increased job satisfaction for nurses and a career pathway for nurses at any state of their career.

This new care model gives experienced nurses in the vRN role a chance to pass along their knowledge to the next generation of bedside nurses, ensuring the future quality and safety of care.

In fact, Trinity Health Muskegon is starting with nine vRNs representing a total of 193 years of clinical experience between them.

Laurie Kohlbeck brings 27 years of nursing experience to her new role as a vRN. She previously cared for patients on the hospital’s med-surg and renal floors. “For me, this new role represents a new challenge and an opportunity for me to transition toward retirement while still contributing in a meaningful way,” she said.

vRN Judy Devaney brings 26 years of nursing experience to this role. Judy wanted something different as she moved toward retirement and this vRN role allows her to support bedside nurses in a unique way. As a vRN, she can take on some of the tasks involved in patient care, allowing the bedside nurse to spend more quality time with the patient. “I can also lend my expertise as a mentor and resource to new nurses on the team, in addition to helping patients,” she said.

Patients and families, too, appreciate the increased engagement with a nurse who they can reach with the touch of a button. Here is what a few Muskegon patients had to say when asked about having a vRN on their team:

• Older male patient: "You know what, I like the virtual one. This is pretty cool.”
• Younger female patient: "This is a really nice backup."
• Middle-aged female patient: "Oh I definitely like this better."

Trinity Health has successfully implemented TogetherTeam Virtual Connected Care on 50 units representing 1,800 beds in 19 hospitals across 10 states – including in Michigan at Trinity Health Grand Rapids, Trinity Health Oakland, and Trinity Health Ann Arbor.