Shropshire Phlebotomy Service Reconfiguration Project Helen Harvey

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Shropshire Phlebotomy Service Reconfiguration
ProjectHelen Harvey
Mission To improve patient access to phlebotomy
services Vision To provide the right care, in
the right place, at the right time, delivered by
the right people

• Background
• In 2009/10 14,000 primary care patients travelled
  to the hospital site to access a phlebotomy
  service.
• Demand is growing, putting the current drop-in
  service under severe pressure.
• There is no current Service Level Agreement (SLA)
  between the Trust and Shropshire County PCT for
  this service.

• Begin with the End in Mind
• Create a innovative community based service for
  all GP patients requiring blood tests (hub
  spoke model).
• Ensure the service is provided by the Trusts
  phlebotomists, to maintain the quality of the
  service for the benefit of patients and reduce
  error rates.
• Improve service productivity, by moving to an
  appointment system, thereby smoothing workflow.
• Negotiate a new SLA agreement between the Trust
  and PCT, to reduce the level of Trust resources
  currently allocated to supporting this service
  for benefit of primary care patients.
• Relocate the phlebotomy out-patients department,
  closer to out-patient clinics.

• Achievements to Date
• Seek First to Understand we conducted a series
  of surveys, inviting patients, staff, service
  users and GPs to tell us what was important to
  them.
• And then be understood we went out to talk to GP
  consortia, sharing our vision for the future of
  the service and asking them for feedback on our
  proposals. We also shared our vision with the
  phlebotomy team and have held regular briefings
  to keep them informed.
• Think win/win we have opened SLA negotiations
  with the PCT. They are also keen to move the
  service into General Practice and agree with the
  idea of introducing an appointment system (CAB).

• Why it matters
• Move care closer to home Patients will be able
  to access a phlebotomy service in their local
  area.
• The appointment system will reduce waiting times
  for patients and smooth workflow.
• The new SLA will mean that the Trust can
  re-direct some of its funds to improve
  in-patients services on the wards, by
  introducing a second daily ward round and
  introducing an on-call phlebotomist for urgent
  bloods. This will reduce pressures on other
  healthcare staff (medics nurses.
• Relocating the phlebotomy department will mean
  that patients wont have to walk from one end of
  the hospital to the other.
• The vacated area will be redeveloped to enabling
  the centralisation of Pathology.

Acknowledgements Thanks to the Project Team
Alison Fowles (Phlebotomy Manager), Sarah
Faulkner (Business Assistant), Hannah Roy
(Patient and Public Engagement Manager), Alison
Jones (GP Liaison Manager), Shaun Taylor
(Contracting) and Dianne Lloyd (SDU Manager)