Outpatient care is a planned appointment, traditionally at a hospital or clinic, that does not require an overnight stay

In South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw we are working hard to redesign outpatient services to better meet the needs of our local population.

We aim to achieve this through implementing and improving these three areas:

1. Advice and Guidance - An Advice and Guidance service allows a clinician (often, but not exclusively, in primary care – such as your GP) to seek advice from another clinician (usually a specialist – quite often a hospital consultant) prior to referring you, or instead of referring you, ensuring a patient’s care can be managed in the most appropriate setting with the necessary specialist advice, without the worry and concern that a referral can often cause for the patient.
2. Patient Initiated Follow-Ups:  ​Patient initiated follow-up is when a patient, or their carer, can request their own appointments as and when they need them. This might be when they have a flare up of their symptoms or change in their circumstances, rather than having their appointments at routine intervals (such as every few months for example) as is traditionally offered. This helps avoid unnecessary appointments and makes it easier for patients to book appointments when they really need them.
3. Virtual Consultations: A virtual consultation is a remote consultation between a healthcare professional and a patient, taking place via video or telephone. We are wanting to offer more choice to patients around virtual consultations as an alternative to face to face.