Cancer patients needing urgent care in Hywel Dda University Health Board are benefitting from improved use of electronic referrals.
To improve waiting time performance for urgent suspected cancer (USC) patients, Hywel Dda's GPs, medical records staff and consultants are promoting use of the Welsh Patient Referral Service (WPRS).
This new push toward employing the WPRS more has seen the number of electronic referrals from GPs jump from 48% in August 2019 to 73% in November. E-referrals for USC patients have also climbed, reaching 96% in November, helping to achieve Hywel Dda's goal of having 90% of GP referrals for urgent suspect cancer patients processed electronically.
The WPRS enables electronic referrals to go directly from GPs to consultants - vital when patient care needs urgent attention. Consultants can carry out a number of electronic actions with each referral - including prioritising, returning referrals to the GP (with an explanation), and redirecting patients to non-consultant services or clinics.
The WPRS was implemented in Hywel Dda in 2016.