The NHS Q4 Sprint to boost outpatient care was, quite literally, a race against the clock (stops).
Whether it ultimately achieved all March 2026 targets remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: more patients benefited from faster access to care than would have been the case otherwise. In that sense alone, it delivered real value.
The more important question now is: what happens next?
What we saw during the Sprint
During the Q4 Sprint, we supported 17 Trusts.
Consultants from our network worked alongside local teams to review waiting lists and produce management plans for patients who could begin care immediately in the community, without needing to wait for a hospital appointment.
Out of 30,000 cases reviewed:
- 25% received immediate management plans
- 12% were redirected to appropriate Tier 2 services
- resulting in a total waiting list reduction of 37%
All other patients were clinically prioritised and directed onto the correct pathway.
In some specialties, the impact was even more pronounced. For example, in neurology and urology, 43% and 31% of patients, respectively, were managed through immediate care plans.
But the real challenge starts now
The Sprint has shown what is possible when focus, resource, and urgency align.
But sustainable improvement requires something different.
Systems need to consistently ensure that patients are directed to the right care, first time—as early as possible in the pathway—so that only those who genuinely need hospital care enter those pathways.
This is where specialist advice models play a critical role—whether delivered through Advice & Guidance, Advice & Refer, or post-referral triage.
What needs to happen next
From our experience, three core elements need to align for these models to deliver consistently at scale:
1. Financial incentives need to reward the right outcomes
Virtual care needs to be recognised for the value it creates.
Consultant-led management plans for patients who do not require a hospital appointment are often equivalent to what would have been delivered in a first outpatient consultation.
Yet this activity is not consistently remunerated at the same level as face-to-face care.
Some systems are starting to address this—introducing local payment mechanisms that recognise both activity and diversion.
But this needs to become the norm, not the exception.
2. Workforce models must remain flexible
The Q4 Sprint relied heavily on local teams going above and beyond—supported in many cases by additional capacity.
But this level of effort is not sustainable long term.
Workforce models need to reflect real-world pressures: recruitment challenges, unplanned absences, and fluctuating demand.
The ability to bring in additional clinical capacity at short notice to run your Specialist Advice models—and step it back when pressures ease—allows systems to maintain front-door performance without permanently increasing cost.
We’ve seen strong growth in this approach, with demand for our flexible, “switch-on / switch-off” remote consultant capacity increasing by around 30% over the past 12 months.
3. The front door must be treated as a core clinical service
Inside hospitals, services such as operating theatres are managed with discipline—clear governance, performance oversight, modern tools, and operational planning.
Front-door services should be no different.
When specialist advice models are run as a core service, outcomes improve, and clinician engagement follows.
This also requires the right tools.
Clinicians need platforms that are intuitive, reduce friction, and integrate seamlessly with existing systems such as eRS so that delivering Specialist Advice becomes the easiest option, not the hardest.
If you’d like more information on how our services can support your NHS area, please email info@consultantconnect.org.uk or call 01865 951207.
Related materials:
- What we do | Enhanced Advice & Guidance
- What we do | Referral Triage and Validation
- Frailty Call before Convery supports Warwickshire Trusts’ improved four-hour performance
- Press Release | All Greater Manchester GPs can now connect to specialist advice in seconds
- Case study | How a single conversation helped resolve a patient’s long-standing symptoms in Greater Manchester
- Case study | Same Day Emergency Care in South East London
- Case study | Elderly Care A&G across the NHS
