Good practice from 2009/10 PbR inpatient audit
Area of good practice
Clinic coding reception
Background
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is a very large trust with large numbers of case notes passing through the coding department. The Trust has recently set up a new reception which allows people (by email, telephone or in person) to log a request for case notes which will be dealt with by the reception on a priority basis. The reception gives times when staff can collect required notes.
Objective
Initially, the Trust set up the coding reception up because it had a large backlog of notes in its coding offices. This was because of staff shortages and sickness levels. Staff were spending too many hours each day searching for notes for clinics and wards and getting less and less coding done.
The Trust decided to pilot a reception desk to see if dedicated staff could field calls.
Outline
Initially, the Trust used the coding staff on a rotational basis, but it now employs coding assistants to do this job. The Trust has three coding assistants at each of the two main sites. They rotate their duties - one mans the reception desk for a week while the other two collect and deliver all the case notes to and from the wards to the coders. All coding department phones are diverted to the reception desk. If anyone needs to contact a coder directly they email them.
Impact
Intended impact
To ease the pressure on coding staff to find notes needed for wards and clinics and to reduce the backlog of notes in the coding departments.
Actual impact
Because of this method of working the Trust has now reduced the backlog of notes in the departments. Most notes are now on a 24-hour turnaround as the coders have the time to deal with them without interruption.
Users can request notes by email (a dedicated email address that is checked daily), telephone or in person. The coding assistants keep the case notes for 48 hours from request. If no one has been to pick the notes up, the coding assistants ring the department to remind them or put the notes on the delivery trolleys if they are passing the relevant department to drop them off.
Source: D&A Consultancy and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust