Levell Nick J
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Norfolk, UK.
Future Healthc J. 2022 Jul;9(2):106-112. doi: 10.7861/fhj.2022-0044.
The English NHS outpatient service was handling over 1.6 million referrals per month before the COVID-19 pandemic, with numbers growing each year. There was a fall during the pandemic but by 2022, referrals were close to pre-pandemic levels. The GIRFT programme clinical leads from over 41 specialties visited each English hospital to identify unwarranted variation in care and identify good practice. A wealth of innovations covering the whole outpatient journey were identified in the national reports, which are published on the GIRFT website. Patient needs and demands vary greatly between infants and the elderly, between mental health, medical and surgical specialties. However, it was remarkable how common themes bridged age and illness to identify again and again how services could be improved. This report summarises the key themes identified by GIRFT to improve outpatient services in England as it moves forwards from the COVID pandemic.
在新冠疫情之前，英国国家医疗服务体系（NHS）的门诊服务每月处理超过160万份转诊，而且数量逐年增加。疫情期间有所下降，但到2022年，转诊量已接近疫情前水平。来自41多个专科的GIRFT项目临床负责人走访了每一家英国医院，以确定护理中不必要的差异并找出良好做法。国家报告中确定了一系列涵盖整个门诊流程的创新举措，这些报告发布在GIRFT网站上。婴儿与老年人之间、心理健康、医疗和外科专科之间的患者需求差异很大。然而，值得注意的是，常见主题如何跨越年龄和疾病，一次又一次地确定改善服务的方法。本报告总结了GIRFT确定的关键主题，以便在英国从新冠疫情中走出来后改进门诊服务。
