East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust in partnership with Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS and Digital First Primary Care are developing a new virtual Community Kidney Service for patients.
The benefits to the new Lister Community Kidney Service are:
- Easier and quicker access for patients to renal specialists through weekly e-clinics
- Quicker response times for our patients giving them a better experience
- Online referrals leading to faster bookings
How does it work?
Patients with declining kidney function on blood tests (eGFR) are automatically alerted to their usual GP. The GP can refer online into an e-clinic. The e-clinic Kidney consultants will assess and triage patients by viewing their primary care record on SystmOne. The patients GP will get notified on the outcome of the e-clinic assessment. The service is supported by ongoing education sessions with practice teams to embed the service into routine practice.
Accessing the service
Patients can only be referred through SystmOne into the vCKD Community Clinic by their GP. Currently the vCKD service is being trialled in East and North Hertfordshire CCG in a phased approach throughout 2021.
EMIS Practices
East and North Hertfordshire CCG practices use SystmOne primarily (95%) as their Electronic Patient Record (EPR). A minority use EMIS as the EPR. A technological solution for a vCKD service within EMIS is being planned but is beyond the current scope of community nephrology services in 2021. In the meanwhile, all EMIS practices have access to standard e-RS Nephrology referral pathways and advice and guidance.
Location of the Lister Community Kidney Service
The e-clinic is virtual and will be rolled out to GP practices within East and North Hertfordshire CCG in 2021. It is hoped the rollout across West Essex CCG and Herts Valley CCG, served by East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust Renal services, will include EMIS and SystmOne.
For queries relating to e-clinic or to the service in general, contact Dr Andrew Findlay, consultant nephrologist at [email protected]
How do we notify a patient’s GP following vCKD referral
If a patient has been referred through the SystmOne vCKD referral pathway, the patient’s usual GP will be tasked via SystmOne when the vCKD review has taken place. This means you will not receive email notifications to your generic practice email address.
If you have any queries, please email Dr Andrew Findlay at [email protected]
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