Healthcare
Integrated, sustainable, and efficient virtual fracture care
Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust revolutionised patient care and championed environmental responsibility by adopting Open Medical’s Pathpoint® Virtual Fracture Clinic (VFC), a game-changing solution that integrates with their EPR system, Oracle Cerner, and provided vital support during the pandemic.
For their remarkable feats with Pathpoint VFC, SASH and Open Medical:
Won the 2023 HealthTech Digital Awards for the Best COVID-19 Solution for Community Care
Won the 2023 Integrated Health Awards for the Green NHS Initiative of the Year
Won the 2023 AHSN Innovate Awards for Net Zero Innovation of the Year
Gained recognition on BBC News
Challenges
The fracture clinic at SASH received an average of 700 referrals per month, and their previous system was unable to handle the influx of patients and capture referral information effectively
Discharged emergency department patients were automatically scheduled for in-person follow-up appointments at the clinic, leading to long wait times and crowded waiting rooms
Clinicians struggled with managing nonessential appointments, resulting in wasted time for both patients and healthcare providers
The unsustainable practices of unnecessary patient travel, excessive appointments, and use of paper led to a significant carbon footprint
The complex stakeholder environment, regional workflows, and multiple systems caused a high administrative burden for clinicians
Poor referral quality, the impact of COVID-19, and social distancing measures–which reduced face-to-face clinic capacity–significantly hindered operational efficiency
Solution
Pathpoint VFC is an end-to-end cloud-based solution for orthopaedic clinical workflows and replaces outdated patient management tools
It simplifies the referral process by providing a centralised digital capture point for multiple referring teams
It incorporates diagnosis-based referral information, automatic coding, full feedback to referrers and referring teams, and generates protocols/leaflets at the time of referral presentation
By leveraging smart automation and integrating with EPR systems, Pathpoint VFC significantly reduces administrative burdens and consolidates all relevant patient data onto a unified portal
With real-time breach warnings and the ability to schedule semi-elective trauma cases, healthcare providers can deliver virtual specialist care and easily coordinate with multidisciplinary teams on a secure platform
It ensures the capture of high-quality, granular, SNOMED CT coded data at the point of entry, enabling real-time care metrics, improved auditing, and enhanced governance
Key improvements
General benefits
Reduced paperwork and administration processes with smart automation
Improved Governance with no data loss and rapid patient tracking
Cost savings achieved with optimised treatment and clinical efficiencies
78% of users agreed the electronic VFC is an overall improvement
79% agreed the electronic referral system is safer for patients
83% agreed the electronic referral system is easy to use
COVID-19 support
ing the challenging period of increasing COVID-19 related deaths in England, specifically between December 2020 and January 2021, SASH demonstrated exceptional performance with Pathpoint:
Processed over 500 referrals
Assessed 100% of referrals within 72 hrs
Achieved 69% discharge rate
Leading to:
Minimised COVID-19 exposure risk by reducing in-person visits
Enabled consultants in shielding/self-isolation to provide remote care
Facilitated staff redeployment to high-demand areas like Intensive Care Units
Sustainable excellence
Since the implementation of Pathpoint VFC in December 2020, SASH significantly reduced its carbon footprint:
