Abstract

A problem with follow up was identified in our Obstetric anaesthetic department at UHCW (Coventry). The follow up process was conducted on paper, and had a lot of steps in the process, which added to unnecessary waste, and ultimately frustration with the anaesthetists. It also meant a unified patient record was not possible. There are a lot of different methods employed in different hospitals, including commercial electronic products, which were suggested. Due to cost constraints as well as practicality issues, this was not feasible.

An alternative method was needed. The idea was to modify our existing patient portal to incorporate anaesthetic follow up onto, so that it doesn’t add to any costs, the infrastructure is already in place and the system was familiar to everyone.

This QI project was very ambitious to start with but received a lot of support from colleagues. Eventually after 8 months of collaboration with the ICT department a potential solution was found.

We have implemented a new electronic follow up system which is incorporated into the existing patient portal and has replaced the previous paper system. The feedback has been excellent, with the 18 anaesthetists who completed the questionnaire, all of them found the new system to be easier to use. Over 90% of them found every element of the new follow up process to be easier. This has eliminated steps that added waste and improve the time we spend with our patients, and ultimately adding value to them.