Kettering General Hospital cuts neurology waiting list through telemedicine tech

Kettering General Hospital’s neurology department has rolled out telemedicine technology after waiting lists were reduced by more than 50% during a seven-week pilot.

The referral triage and validation project, which ran from January to March 2024, used Consultant Connect technology to triage 1,001 referrals, according to a press release.

During the pilot, 510 patients were safely removed from the waiting list and either referred to an alternative pathway or returned to their GP with a management plan.

The management plans are intended to ensure patients can access the support they need and give GPs a point of reference for future cases.

Of the patients who remained on the waiting list, 471 patients were accepted for a routine appointment and 20 patients were fast-tracked for urgent appointments.

Deborah Needham, chief executive of Kettering General Hospital, said: “This project has been a game-changer for us. It’s meant that 1,000 patients are now getting the treatment and care they need instead of dealing with the stress and uncertainty that comes with waiting for an appointment.

“The project has also reduced the pressure on our neurology specialists by making sure patients being referred to the department actually need to be there, while ensuring the most urgent patient cases are prioritised.”

NHS consultant neurologists who are members of Consultant Connect’s national consultant network were responsible for carrying out the project.

The consultants were briefed by Kettering General Hospital’s local clinical lead on the pathways available to them, before they reviewed the waiting list remotely to triage the neurology referrals.

Jonathan Patrick, chief executive of Consultant Connect, said it was “very pleasing” that the project had reduced patient waiting lists.

“The waiting lists crisis is the greatest emergency facing the NHS, and we’re happy that our tech is helping to make processes as efficient as possible.

“Kettering General Hospital is at the forefront of using healthcare technology to fight this crisis and making patients their priority,” Patrick said.

In June 2024, there were more than 230,000 patients on neurology waiting lists in England, who wait an average of 17 weeks to be seen, according to the LCP waiting list tracker.

Digital Health News reported in May 2024, that NHS Lanarkshire Health Board has adopted Consultant Connect technology, following a three-day trial with the Scottish Ambulance Service.