“It is easy to use and there is a rapid response time.” Dr Todd
Dr Ceri Todd is a GP at Abertawe Medical Partnership in Swansea. She has been a GP for 24 years and uses the free Consultant Connect App to access rapid Telephone Advice & Guidance. This service is provided by Consultant Connect and was launched for Swansea Bay University Health Board in April 2020.
Dr Todd finds using the rapid service very useful especially while COVID-19 is increasing pressure on GPs to provide more care in the community. She comments that one of the main benefits of using the Consultant Connect App is that she gets;
“Instant access to the correct department or person via a mobile device without needing to search for the correct telephone number or extension.”
This saves time compared to calling “via switchboard to the on-call Doctor or consultant secretary” which she previously had to do. It also “does not tie up a landline at the surgery, which is important now that we are using a telephone triage system.”
Dr Todd recommends that other GPs use the Consultant Connect Telephone Advice & Guidance service to speak to a specialist as;
“It is easy to use and there is a rapid response time.”
The following example details how Dr Todd has used Telephone Advice and Guidance to help a patient.
A patient with a swollen leg had previously presented to the Emergency Department. The symptoms had persisted and Dr Todd was concerned that the patient may have deep vein thrombosis (DVT). She used the Consultant Connect App to contact a GP working in the Acute GP Unit Medical Admissions team at Singleton Hospital. This team of GPs discusses patient cases with the GP making the call. Together, they decide on the best care for the patient and which is the most appropriate clinic or department to send them to.
How Telephone Advice & Guidance helped:
Dr Todd discussed her patient case with the Acute GP Unit Medical Admissions team and it was agreed that an urgent ultrasound scan was required. She was able to arrange this for the next day. This was a great result for the patient and the scan was also organised for a time when they would easily be able to get transport to the hospital. The use of rapid Telephone Advice & Guidance meant that the patient’s care was expedited.
