Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust uses Patients Know Best for Waiting List Validation

Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust uses Patients Know Best for Waiting List Validation

Case Study
21 September 2023
                Updated 28 January 2025
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Patients Know Best (PKB) is a Personal Health Record (PHR) and Patient Engagement Platform (PEP) that offers the most extensive integration with the NHS App.  As well as being able to utilise NHS login, patients can effortlessly access their PKB record from within the NHS App directly, enabling them to gain seamless entry to PKB’s comprehensive range of features from Appointments, Digital Correspondence and Questionnaires through to Test results and Care plans.  Click here to find out more.
Using PKB has significantly contributed to the success of Mid Yorkshire’s Waiting List Validation programme with 57% of the overall responses being submitted via PKB

Introduction

In line with NHS England's 2023 Waiting List Validation (WLV) directive, Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust implemented a process using PKB's questionnaire functionality. This initiative aimed to improve waiting list accuracy and efficiency. Early trials showed significant cost savings exceeding £354,000 by identifying patients who no longer required treatment, leading to the adoption of this process for ongoing waiting list management. PKB's platform enables the Trust to gather detailed data, prioritise appointments, and engage patients effectively.

Problem

Mid Yorkshire, like many trusts, faced challenges managing long waiting lists due to a lack of up-to-date patient information. The constantly changing patient needs made it difficult to maintain an accurate waiting list snapshot. To address this, the Trust sought a long-term solution incorporating PKB to validate patient status regularly, optimise elective services, and include all patients, regardless of PKB registration, in the process.

Solution

Mid Yorkshire implemented a multi-channel approach to reach all patients waiting over 12 weeks. Tailored questionnaires were sent via PKB, email, SMS, and traditional mail, allowing patients a 21-day window to respond. The collected data enabled the Trust to identify and remove patients who no longer needed appointments, optimising the waiting list. Following a successful initial trial, the programme expanded to cover 27 specialties, streamlining the process through automation and achieving further time and cost efficiencies.

Outcomes/Impact

Using PKB has significantly contributed to the success of Mid Yorkshire’s Waiting List Validation programme with 57% of the overall responses being submitted via PKB.

The Trust achieved immediate positive outcomes with patient response rates ranging from 50% to 80%, this enabled: 

  • 5% of patients requested to be removed from the waiting list, resulting in improved efficiency and reduced backlog. 
  • Estimated cost savings for Referral To Treatment (RTT)  and Follow-Up (FU) patients removed from waiting lists to June 2024 >£354,000.00. 
  • 3% of the total RTT cohort and 7% of the total FU cohort were removed.
  • Of the 57% of responses submitted via PKB, 70% are completed within 24 hours. This rapid response time provided the Trust with a real-time snapshot of the waiting list, essential for effective management in the face of constant changes.
The Trust is continuing to use PKB for ongoing validation of the Trust's RTT and FU waiting lists.
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Future Developments

The successful implementation of waiting list validation has highlighted its positive impact. Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust plans to integrate further automation into ongoing pathway management  to increase efficiency and enhance the patient experience. This will be achieved through the utilisation of PKB's Advance Questionnaire feature, incorporating branching logic that improves patient experience and makes triage more efficient. 

The Trust is also evaluating improvements to its data feed, including using triggers to automate sending these WLV questionnaires and auto-extract data/responses for systematic on-going waiting list validation. This planned piece of work would also be evaluated to establish benefits related to time and cost savings as well as patient and staff experience.

Click here to find out more on how to use PKB for your Waiting List Validation process.

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