Are virtual wards for children safe and effective? A 3-year retrospective service evaluation of an urban Hospital at Home service for children and young people.

Objective: Service evaluation of an urban 'Hospital at Home' service which provides care in patients' homes that would traditionally be delivered in the hospital setting.

Design: Retrospective longitudinal review of routinely collected data recorded contemporaneously for clinical use, analysed to elicit utilisation patterns and service impact.

Setting: A paediatric 'Hospital at Home' service delivered across two large acute hospitals, treating a total of 4427 patients across both primary and secondary care in South London from January 2018 to June 2022.