Grampian Good Practice Example
Integrating the Occupational Therapy Service in Aberdeen - Creating a Central Referral Point
Summary of Initiative
In 2003 the Intake Team of the Local Authority Occupational Therapy service co-located to the base of the Health OT service. This team is responsible for receiving all the social work OT referrals for the City of Aberdeen. Within Health there were two separate access points, one for the Rapid Response Team and one for domicillary referrals for health OT, Physio and Dietitics. This amounted to 3 points of access for 6 separate services. Each service was aware of the levels of duplication, the confusion around who to refer to, when and for what service, incompatible IT systems and this led to increased waiting times, poor communication and increased resources both clerical and clinical.
What this project did was to redesign the existing intake point to accommodate all referrals - create one point of access for patients and referring agencies. This was achieved within a six month period with the new service commencing in May 2006.
The benefits for patients include one point of access manned by qualified OTs and supported by clerical staff from Health and Social Work, one data base for all records, therefore all relevant information is accessible, reduced waiting times and allocated workers assigned asap so patients know who is going to visit, less overlap/duplication i.e. the right person at the right time in the right place.
The project is in its infancy but over 200 posters/flyers have been distributed to internal and external organisations and patients can also refer themselves which again reduces waiting times. There has already been some suggestion that quick access to the service is supporting the reduction in delayed discharges.
In the recent draft of the 'Rehabilitation Framework' it is clear that patients want quicker access to services and delivered locally which is the objective of this redesign project. This could not have been achieved if it had not been for the collaboration of all colleagues at management and front line level who have all embraced the project, aware of the importance of providing a more seamless service for the people we serve.
Structure
The redesign links to 'Partnership for Care' which suggests that the pathway of care should be 'smoother, more accessible, less complicated and less subject to delay.
Contact Details
Beth Thomson, Lead Occupational Therapist - email beth.bhomson@gpct.grampian.scot.nhs.uk
Liz Watt, Senior Occupational Therapist - email lwatt@aberdeencity.gov.uk
Kathleen Hepburn, Senior Services Manager - email kathleen'hepburn@nhs.net