A great deal of positive experience has now been gained at the HSU Home Hospital, which has been operating at HSU in Selfoss in recent years. The founder of the Home Hospital is Guðný Stella Guðnadóttir, a physician and geriatrician, who says the hospital is the first of its kind in Iceland. It runs a three-part service in homes: the Home Hospital, a palliative care team, and traditional visits by a family doctor.

Better service and greater efficiency

Guðný Stella says society is facing a large increase in the oldest age group. ,,That is something to be celebrated. Older people give so much to society. However, this increase also involves significant tasks in healthcare. About eighty percent of people aged 65 and over require relatively little service from the health system, while the other twenty percent may require a great deal of service. At Heimaspítali HSU, we also serve people with palliative care needs of all ages and people with disabilities who have difficulty accessing healthcare. Heimaspítali HSU was developed to meet the needs of these groups. This is how improved service and increased efficiency go together."

Growing developments in the healthcare system

The most common issues at the Home Hospital are shortness of breath and weakness, which are often related to heart or lung diseases. About 20% of the Home Hospital's patients receive palliative care. Guðný Stella says that it is possible to provide excellent healthcare in homes, comparable to hospital services in most respects. She says that outpatient and day-care services in hospitals are growing rapidly everywhere, along with remote monitoring in home care, and wants to strengthen home care and visiting services by family doctors, as well as promote possibilities for rehabilitation in homes.

Great satisfaction with the project

,,The Home Hospital is doing very well. We are treating a complex patient group and reducing the number of visits to the emergency department. These are patients with complex needs who often do not fare well in hospitals. The Home Hospital is meeting the needs of this weakest group splendidly, but with methods that are simpler and cheaper than hospital stays. There is great satisfaction with the project among clients, their relatives, and staff."

The Home Hospital service area expanded

The service area of ​​Heimaspítali HSU is the municipality of Árborg, and about 12 thousand people live there, while Heimaspítali's clients were about 120 in 2024. ,,We are considering expanding the service area beyond Árborg in the coming months. If we look at other innovations shortly, we have just started giving people oxygen at home due to acute illnesses. We doctors at Heimaspítali are also going to learn to do ultrasound scans like emergency doctors do today, and start doing it during visits when needed. We are also considering testing remote doctor interviews."