Introducing the Reset Pathway - supporting COVID-19 recovery and long-term transformation
As the NHS emerges from ‘lockdown’ there will be a need to ‘reset the NHS’ to new ways-of-working, but in a managed and sustainable way. Whilst the NHS never stopped, some aspects did (and needed to) go on ‘hold’ temporarily. It is inevitable that the NHS will continue to deal with COVID-19 as acute, chronic, and long-term care activity increases. Therefore, technology must support infection prevention and control measures within these new ways-of-working - resetting the patient pathway.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Intouch with Health announces the Reset Pathway. A 3-phase approach to supporting the NHS reset and recover from coronavirus and deliver a scalable, long-term transformation pathway.
Key benefits of the Reset Pathway
- Reset patient, information, and operational pathways at pace
- Introduce COVID-19 questioning into check-in processes and flow patients as required - supporting infection prevention and control measures
- Deploy the Lite product pack at pace - delivering the future-proof foundations of the award-winning Intouch Patient Journey Platform
- Conveniently scale when required from Lite products to full products – increasing functionality, ease-of-working and capability
- Slow the growth and begin reducing the backlog of appointments efficiently and safely
- Manage remote and physical patients efficiently within one platform, simplifying and consolidating processes for staff
- Adopt ‘digital-by-default’ processes to meet immediate patient needs, while addressing new priorities
- Improve infection prevention and control measures, especially as outpatient activity increases
- Deploy new approaches to minimise / reduce patient time in hospital and physical activity between patients and staff
- Scale ways-of-working towards a community approach to address long-term conditions / shielded patients
- Improve the patient experience by delivering improved appointment convenience
- Empower front-line staff with more efficient solutions to improve ease-of-working
- Empower managers with superior analytical tools
- Improve auditing and reporting processes
Phase 01 – Reset and recover
The Lite product pack
Reset patient, information, and operational pathways at pace with the new Lite product set, forming the foundations of the award-winning Intouch Patient Journey Platform. The Lite product set delivers immediate key functionality and benefits, without requiring extensive resources or time to deploy. Each Lite product can easily be transitioned into their full counterparts, releasing advanced functionality.
Blended patient flow - physical and remote patients
The reset phase provides intelligent patient flow hospital-wide for physical and remote patients. For patients requiring a visit to hospital, they can be digitally flowed from home to a clinician’s room with minimal physical interaction, improving infection prevention and control measures.
improving infection prevention and control
Patients can use the Mobile app to check-in for their appointment from their car, receive updates on their appointment and be called forward for their appointment – all whilst avoiding waiting rooms / other patients. On check-in, patients can be asked specific COVID-19 questions, redirecting them, and alerting staff if necessary - supporting infection control .
Video consultations can be utilised to keep the number of patients attending hospital to a minimum, where appropriate, providing greater convenience for patients and further supporting infection prevention and control measures. Managers are able to monitor operational performance using a holistic KPI (Key Performance Indicator) ‘widget’ dashboard.
Phase 02 – Embed and expand
Transition to full solutions
Expand the pathway’s functionality as the Lite solutions are transitioned into their full counterparts to further improve ways-of-working for staff, further improve the patient experience, and realise greater organisational efficiencies.
Increase and expand functionality
Add complex and custom arrival rules with Check-in, including multiple language and accessibility options. Further improve ways-of-working for staff with increased capability within the Flow Manager control centre, maximising operational and communication efficiencies.
Empower managers
Introduce Activity Manager to support staff manage patient activities and tests, enabling informed decision making around next steps to engage in each patient’s flow.
Phase 03 - Adopt and apply
Apply advanced functionality
Incrementally and seamlessly extend the pathway, ensuring scarce clinic appointments and hospital resources are used to the best effect. Empower patients and staff with expanded, integrated solutions, providing greater convenience and satisfaction. Integrate the pathway with existing hospital systems (where not already integrated), increasing automation and maximising efficiencies.
Co-create technical advances and new initiatives
Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic requires new services and new ways of working it also provides the opportunity to adopt secure, future-proof, scalable processes from which current services can be delivered in innovative ways. These can then be applied within, and beyond the hospital environment. Working in partnership, build on the earlier foundations and co-create technical advances to support new health initiatives and specific functionality as required.