For specialties in Secondary Care, many patients awaiting care on referral to treatment (RTT) pathways are now deemed long-waiters, carrying with it a significant clinical risk.
Clearing NHS waiting lists may seem daunting, but it doesn’t need to be. Our consultant-led long-waiter Referral Triage service clears waiting list backlogs in bulk and/or new referrals as they come in. The service uses the expertise of the NHS consultants from our National Consultant Network (NCN).
Through project implementation and continued management from our dedicated Account Management team, we ensure that all workflow, outcomes and processes are aligned before commencing and throughout the process.
Clearing NHS waiting lists | In Practice
Example 1: Backlog of over 2,800 long-waiters in Dermatology cleared
This NHS Trust used our Referral Triage service to triage their long-waiters in Dermatology. As a result, the majority of patients have been able to start treatment plans before their appointments. Photographs of lesions were looked at, and skin cancers were picked up, including melanomas and other skin cancers. These were upgraded, and many referrals were downgraded from urgent to routine, freeing up valuable urgent appointment slots. One clear benefit of the work is in managing clinical risk as it’s capturing the upgraded patients to 2WW as all cases are now triaged:
- 4% of patients upgraded to a 2WW pathway
- 11% of patients marked as urgent and booked for an outpatient appointment
- 74% of patients booked directly into a routine outpatient appointment
For the full breakdown of the outcomes of the triage work and more information about this project, click here.
Example 2: Backlog of over 1,000 Cardiology referrals cleared
Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn (QEHKL) and Norfolk and Waveney ICB used our Referral Triage service to run a pilot project focussing on the first 1,000 outpatient’s waiting list for Cardiology. As a result of this review of 1,000 Cardiology referrals, waiting times were reduced from 48 weeks to 41 weeks:
- 54% of patients reviewed did not require a first outpatient appointment
- 9% of patients marked as urgent and booked for an outpatient appointment
- 37% of patients booked directly into a routine outpatient appointment
To support capacity and efficiency, the most appropriate type of appointment (face to face or telephone) is also marked against each referral. This benefits the patients who do not need to incur travel costs if a telephone consultation is deemed most appropriate.
For the full breakdown of the outcomes of the triage work and more information about this project, click here.
Example 3: Backlog of over 450 community paediatrics referrals cleared
Due to a significant backlog of patients awaiting a community paediatrics appointment in Buckinghamshire, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust used our Referral Triage service to review the cases:
- 42.7% of patients were returned to the referring clinician with thorough Advice and guidance and a comprehensive patient management plan.
- 57.3% of patients have been booked into routine appointments without diagnostics with the community paediatrics team.
For more information about this project, click here.
Example 4: Backlog of over 3,000 referrals across 11 specialties cleared
This NHS Trust used our Referral Triage service to triage their waiting list backlogs across 11 specialties (Colorectal, E.N.T. – Paediatrics, Endocrinology, General Surgery, Gynaecology, Haematology, Orthopaedics – Adults, Orthopaedics – Paediatrics, Paediatrics, Rheumatology, Urology – Adults). Referrals across the board were triaged in under 3 weeks, with 20%, on average, being returned to Primary Care with thorough Advice & Guidance and a comprehensive management plan, and:
- 45% of E.N.T (Paediatrics) referrals returned to Primary Care with Advice & Guidance
- 38% of Endocrinology referrals returned to Primary Care with Advice & Guidance
- 33% of Orthopaedics (Paediatrics) referrals returned to Primary Care with Advice & Guidance
- 30% of Paediatrics referrals returned to Primary Care with Advice & Guidance
For more information, get in touch:
If you have any questions about how our Referral Triage service can help clear your NHS area’s waiting list, email info@consultantconnect.org.uk, call us on 01865 261 467 or fill in the short form below to request a call back from the team:
