Consultant Connect – What does our four-year anniversary data tell you about Enhanced Advice & Guidance?

The first Consultant Connect project launched on 29 June 2015 in North East Essex. Shortly after 9am, the first call was made to Diabetes & Endocrinology and answered by Dr Charles Bodmer, a consultant at Colchester Hospital. After a conversation lasting just over three and a half minutes, Dr Bodmer and the calling GP were able to agree a plan of action that kept the patient’s care with the GP rather than sending the patient to hospital. The call outcome recorded by the clinicians was “Referral Avoided.”

Over 250,000 calls have been made and photos been taken across the country in 40 Elective Care and Urgent Care specialties since that first call was placed. This four-year “anniversary” report analyses the data from 29 June 2015 to 30 June 2019 and answers the following questions:

• How effective is Consultant Connect’s Enhanced Advice & Guidance system at preventing unnecessary elective referrals / urgent admissions?
• What are the top elective specialties in terms of hospital avoidance?
• What are the most popular elective specialties by call volume?
• Why is telephone a helpful channel for mental health advice & guidance?
• Why is photo advice & guidance highly effective for dermatology?
• What do GPs and consultants think about Enhanced Advice & Guidance?

Click here to read and download a PDF of the full report or view the full report by clicking through the slideshow below:

A number of use cases on our system have evolved across the country since the first call from a GP to a consultant in Elective Care. Click here to read about 8 high-achieving areas.