Central Referral Service
“Right Care, Right Place, Right Time”
General Information Session - 30th October 2013
Frances Downey Project Coordinator
Emma Davies
Project Coordinator
centralreferralservice@health.wa.gov.au
Information Session - Overview
 Background
 Overview of Service
 Next Steps
 Questions
Project Team
Janice Shields
Senior Project Coordinator
Frances Downey
Project Coordinator
Emma Davies
Project Coordinator
Caitlin Hynes
Senior Project Officer
Bill Darby
Senior Project Officer
Trish Baldwin
CRS Nursing Coordinator
Background
 February 2013: MfH, DG and SHEF ORC endorsed the
metropolitan CRS for outpatient referral management.
 There is a need for a coordinated and sustainable
model for outpatient referral management across the
system to support patients receiving their care within a
clinically appropriate timeframe, in the most
appropriate location.
Scope
In Scope
Out of Scope
All steps of the outpatient referral
process from referral generation to
site specialty acceptance
Hospital site operational
processes for management of
outpatient waitlists
External referrals from General
Practitioners and Private
Specialists
Follow-up outpatient
appointments
WA Health referrals from rural
Specialists
Unplanned presentations
Referrals for first (initial) doctor-led
outpatient appointments
WA Health rural outpatient
clinics
Public metropolitan hospitals
Mental Health Services
Key Project Deliverables
 Standardised and streamlined referral process, with a
single point of entry for external referrals
 A metropolitan central referral unit – staffed with a
Co-ordinator, CPANs & clerical staff
 A policy and supporting business rules
 Referral education and support for external referrers
and WA Health staff on CRS requirements
 Service capability database
 ICT solutions that align with existing and planned WA
Health applications
Expected Outcomes
 Improve information at the point of referral and access
for GPs and private referrers
 Improve tracking, auditing and reporting of referrals
 Improve referral allocation to the most appropriate
site, based on postcode and specialty required
 Improve completeness of mandatory referral
information
 Trend away from paper-based systems and expand
electronic systems
Central Referral Service: What is it?
 Single point of referral entry for all public Doctor-led
outpatient services
 Receive and allocate external referrals from GPs and
Private Specialists
 Only referrals to Doctor-led outpatient services
 Referrals will be allocated based on postcode, level
of service required, specialty required and indicative
wait times across the system.
Central Referral Service: What it is NOT…
 Not responsible for appointment booking
 Will not clinically triage referrals
 Will not accept referrals for Allied Health services
 Will not manage metropolitan inter-hospital and
internal referrals
 Is not responsible for referrals for registration onto
the ESWL
Referral Pathway
Referral Pathway
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WA Health templates
Urgent referral process
Acknowledgment to GP at receipt and allocation
Mode of referral delivery
Named referrals
Doctor-led Procedural clinics
Referral not appropriate for site
Clinical triage
Central Referral Service
 Will be staffed with:
 Nurse Coordinator (recruited)
 Clinical Priority Access Nurses (recruitment underway)
 Clerical Supervisors
 Clerical Staff
 Data Analyst
 Located in Midland
Service Capability Database
 Will detail the referral acceptance and exclusion
criteria for each specialty across hospitals
 Sites are currently populating templates
 Will inform the CPANs in the CRS as to the most
appropriate site and specialty to allocate to
 Will be able to be updated as required to align with
planned area reconfigurations
ICT Requirements
 Trend away from paper-based referral methods
and increase electronic functionality over time
 Interim solution using SharePoint distribution
 Utilise eReferrals when available
 Enhancements will be made to the GP Website
GP Engagement
 Hospital Liaison GP Group
 Medicare Locals
 GP workshops
 Representation on the Project Control Group
Timeline
 The Central Referral Service is to be operational in
a test environment towards the end of 2013.
Next Steps…
 Ongoing consultation with hospital staff, health
services and GPs
 Endorsement of business rules and policy
 Operate service in a test environment
 Communication and education to referrers and
hospital staff regarding implementation and
operational processes
 Roll-out to all hospitals early 2014.
More Information
 centralreferralservice@health.wa.gov.au
 http://www.health.wa.gov.au/hrit/home/central_referral_s
ervice.cfm
 Site workshops November
 Hospital site information sessions November/December
 Project team happy to meet with any groups/individuals
at their request
Questions?