University Hospitals Collaborates with Vitalchat to Set National Standard in Virtual Nursing

CLEVELAND, OH and RALEIGH, NC — University Hospitals has launched its Connected Care Team initiative at UH Lake West, making it one of the first hospitals in the nation to go live with a whole-hospital virtual nursing program. The initiative, powered by Vitalchat’s flexible AI-driven audio and video platform, builds on a successful initial phase that spanned six units and five hospitals and demonstrated strong benefits for patients, caregivers, and health system efficiency.

The Connected Care Team extends the reach of UH nurses through secure, high-definition video and two-way communication. Collaborative workflows enable the virtual team to support their bedside colleagues with admissions, discharges, patient education, monitoring, and urgent interventions. Working in tandem with bedside care teams, virtual nurses optimize capacity allowing bedside clinicians to spend more time providing focused hands-on care and building personal connections with patients.

In Phase 1, UH staffed one remote nurse per unit from a centralized command center. Early outcomes included:

• Higher patient experience and caregiver engagement scores than comparable units
• More efficient support for critical workflows such as admissions, discharges, pain assessments, and falls prevention
• Three clinical studies, including an FDA-supported trial evaluating AI to detect fall risks

“The success of Phase 1 gave us the confidence to expand to a whole-hospital launch,” said Brian Nelson, MHA, BSN, RN, Program Lead for the Veale Healthcare Transformation Institute at UH. “This isn’t just about technology, it’s about supporting every patient in every room with high-quality care and easing the burden on our caregivers.”

With the UH Lake West go-live, every inpatient unit now has access to virtual nursing support. UH will continue to expand the program, including piloting 24/7 operations, adding virtual patient observation, and broadening use cases into the emergency department and operating room.

“The Connected Care Team is exactly the kind of bold innovation the Veale Healthcare Transformation Institute was created to champion,” said Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, UH Chief Quality & Clinical Transformation Officer and Veale Distinguished Chair in Leadership and Clinical Transformation. “By reimagining how nurses deliver care, UH is proving it’s possible to simultaneously ease workforce strain, improve safety, and elevate the patient experience.”

Frontline leaders underscored the cultural shift: “All of the care team members are sharing their ideas and figuring out how to improve the system, often in real time,” said Michelle D. Hereford, MSHA, RN, FACHE, UH Chief Nursing Executive and Ethel Morikis Endowed Chair in Nursing Leadership. “We learned that innovation ignites energy. The joy and excitement in the care teams are palpable.”

“Vitalchat is proud to collaborate with University Hospitals as they set a new national standard for virtual nursing,” added Mike Raymer, CEO of Vitalchat. “UH is demonstrating how intelligent technology can transform care by supporting caregivers, improving outcomes, and creating lasting value for health systems.”

Pictured: UH Virtual Nurse Team Members.

From Left to Right: Melvin Cain, Bridget Waite, Shannon Bracken, Sheila Neel, Sherese Wong, Heather Truong, Brianna King, and LaNina Bulgerin.