The paperless promise – Ireland’s health system moves to adopt electronic referrals

Great guest post by Dermot Dolan, the Director of Technology at Clanwilliam Group.

Technology can serve as a positive change agent – by which I mean it can enable us to improve existing processes, streamlining them and making them more efficient.

We can all think of industries which have been transformed by technology. Everywhere you turn, familiar aspects of all our lives have been made more convenient.

Ordering a pizza is now done through an app. Video stores are fast disappearing, replaced by streaming services that enable people to choose what they want to watch from the comfort of their own home and start watching instantly.

But not all industries have equally embraced technology. Particularly in sectors where privacy is very important, it’s not always as easy as saying ‘there’s an app for that.’

The healthcare system is one which we all encounter at some point in our lives. When we or a loved one is sick, we want quality care, not bells and whistles.

Of course everyone likes greater ease, but we also want to know that as patients our data is protected.

That was front of mind when we started working with eHealth Ireland to develop its new electronic referrals system which has now been adopted by 30 hospitals and by April will be accepted in all hospital sites.

The benefits of getting it right were plain to see.

Think of the process through which your GP traditionally referred you to the hospital. A note was written and sent off in a stamped, addressed envelope after your visit.

For the patient the system was characterised by waiting. Waiting for confirmation, waiting again for an appointment.

Working closely with eHealth Ireland, we imagined a system where the GP’s own practice management technology solution could be used to populate an electronic referral which could be sent off and acknowledged while the patient was still in the doctor’s office.

What impact will this have? As Richard Corbridge, the CIO of the HSE, has said, “if the patient knows that the referral has arrived in the hospital before they leave the GP practice then they know their concerns are in the health system and will be dealt with appropriately.”

That peace of mind is invaluable when you have health concerns.

Of paramount importance was making sure the system by which the HIQA-approved referral form is transferred is robust and secure. We initially piloted the scheme and were able to work collaboratively with GPs to make sure their needs and the needs of their patients – including their privacy needs – are reflected at the heart of the solution.

We also wanted the system to be scalable and to allow for future features and developments. For instance, we are planning to ensure that GP practice systems also receive a message to let them know when the patient has been triaged.

At Clanwilliam Group, we are proud to have worked as part of the team bringing the project from inception to this point. eReferral functionality is fully integrated in our three practice management systems: Socrates, Healthone and HPM. As Corbridge puts it, “this is a real example of collaboration across suppliers for the good of the whole healthcare system, an example eHealth Ireland and Clanwilliam are working on building upon in 2016.”