Specialist teams need to be able to review, triage, and respond to high volumes of A&G efficiently, whilst visibility into what happens to those requests and whether pathways are working as intended is needed.
Making SPoA implementation practical now
Waiting for every requirement to be met through native e-RS is not the only option. e-RS Connect provides an additional layer of functionality, allowing Trusts to improve specialist workflows now, without the need to introduce a new system; it’s an overlay on e-RS. It’s been developed with the NHS e-RS team using official APIs and works alongside the existing system rather than creating a separate pathway.
For areas facing an imminent SPoA requirement, e-RS Connect can be switched on at specialty level, allowing Trusts to start with the services where there is the greatest operational need rather than undertaking a large-scale system change. Implementation requires no new IT setup or smartcard reconfiguration, clinicians familiar with e-RS do not need additional training or permissions, and activity continues to be recorded in NHS e-RS as usual.
More capability for specialist teams
One Trust demonstrates what this can look like at scale. 238 users within more than 20 specialties have reviewed 38,000 cases using e-RS Connect. The Trust switched on the platform to enable specialist teams to manage A&G within existing e-RS pathways whilst supporting the Trust’s development of SPoAs.
The biggest benefit is additional capability around a system clinicians already use, including faster case management, on-screen review of attachments, bespoke fields, and immediate reporting. Specialist teams can use these additional fields to capture information relevant to their pathways, giving clinical leads a clearer view of demand, outcomes, and patient direction.
e-RS Connect is a solution that can be introduced at specialty level, requires little implementation effort, and works alongside NHSE’s existing infrastructure, giving systems a way to make practical changes now rather than waiting for bigger modifications to the underlying pathway.
Turning A&G activity into actionable insight
e-RS Connect also allows the creation of additional fields within the platform, giving clinical teams information that is specific to their services and helping them understand what happens to the A&G request.
The additional fields can also make previously invisible clinical work easier to identify and evidence.
For dermatology, enhanced reporting provides similarly detailed operational insight.
As part of the implementation, e-RS Connect has been configured with the Trust so that all answered cases are transferred into the local electronic patient record (EPR)*.
This removes the need for administrative teams to manually upload responses and ensures that the clinical record is updated as part of the existing workflow.
This integration is particularly valuable for dermatology.
For dermatology teams, where requests can include 10-15 attachments, e-RS Connect also enables clinicians to preview images directly on screen rather than downloading each file.
* This feature was custom-built specifically for the Trust.
If you would like to learn how e-RS Connect can support your NHS area, please contact us on 01865 951207 or email info@consultantconnect.org.uk.
