Working from home in medicine during coronavirus: What equipment do you need to get started and what can you do to help from home?

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic looks set to significantly change how we practice medicine. It is vital that the vulnerable and immunocompromised members of our workforce are protected, which may mean that they do not go into clinical areas. While the medical field has been slower than many professional areas to catch on to working from home, many trusts are already moving towards telephone or video outpatient appointments during COVID-19. We describe the equipment needed to set up working from home for healthcare practitioners (HCPs) and discuss a variety of other opportunities for home-based HCPs, including teaching, learning, carrying out audit and quality improvement work and offering psychological support for colleagues working on the front line.