<p>Home is where the heart is. Now, previous frequent visitors to the emergency department can have medical care at home, assisted by a professional team. This mobile care team brings benefits to patients, relatives, and physicians, as well as to hospitals, in the Swedish county of Ängelholm.<br><br>The mobile care team unloads their kit outside the home of an elderly patient, deep in the Swedish countryside. I help them with one of four bags, the one with the laboratory equipment. We’re about to make one of many regular visits to this particular patient, an older lady. She smiles and invites us into her living room. After discussing her recent symptoms with the doctor, the nurse takes a blood sample and runs it through the point-of-care analyzer. We sit around the coffee table, waiting for the results. The patient takes several drugs for heart problems, and she’s had ongoing issues with her electrolytes. It’s time to check whether the latest changes in her medication have had a positive effect. Soon, the printer produces a slip of paper. The doctor examines the printout of her electrolytes and creatinine levels. He nods. “Yes, the results look good,” he tells the patient. They both nod and smile. This lady is one of 36 patients who receive regular care from the local home care team in Ängelholm, Sweden. She used to be a frequent visitor to the hospital. Now, she can stay at home, thanks to the advanced medical care provided by the professional team. She hasn’t had to go to the hospital by ambulance in the middle of the night for a long time. And so the patient is happy – as is the team and staff at the emergency department.</p><p>A few years ago, the patient often had to call an ambulance and spend days in hospital. She was frequently readmitted. Her treatment was not structured. Acute symptoms were taken care of but not her general medical situation. One day, her primary care physician referred her to the mobile care team. She was a patient in need of their advanced, yet home-based treatment. A plan for her care was established – with the patient’s involvement – and different possible actions were defined. What should happen in various situations? Who should be called, and when? This approach gave the patient and her medical team – both general and specialized – a new tool, customized to the patient’s needs and based on solutions available to today’s healthcare providers.<br> </p>