A new electronic system is about to make the referral process for surgeries a lot easier for doctors and patients.
Primary care providers will send their requests to surgeons through Ocean e-Referrals instead of faxing, emailing or mailing them.
It will make the process more efficient with better tracking, review and management of referrals which will lead to shorter wait times for surgery, with faster consults.
“Waiting for care is hard for patients and their families. It’s also frustrating for healthcare professionals when they don’t have the information to answer their patients’ questions,” said Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson. “Nova Scotians deserve short wait times that will keep them out of pain and allow them to move on with their lives.”
Patients and their doctors will get an email when their referral is received, forwarded to a surgeon, and a consult is booked or changed.
“Having a uniform process for referral will simplify the practices of both family physicians and specialists. eReferral also has the potential to give us data to better track wait times and waitlists so that future resources can be directed strategically.”
– Dr. Dafydd Davies, Chief of Surgery, IWK Health
The service goes live for physicians and surgeons at Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health Friday, March 31.
Quick Facts:
— all non-emergency surgical referrals will eventually be processed centrally through the system
— work is underway to expand the use of the system to allow for e-referrals for diagnostic imaging services including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computerized tomography (CT) scans and ultrasounds
— the need for a co-ordinated approach to surgical referrals was highlighted in a 2014 Auditor General report on surgical access and in various accreditation surveys
