BHRUT recently communicated that they planned to roll out the PIFU approach in specialties across our Outpatient services.
PIFU describes when a patient, or their carer, can initiate their follow-up appointments as and when required, e.g. when their symptoms or circumstances change. This helps empower patients to take control of their own care and frees up our capacity to see patients when they need it the most. You can get more information about PIFU in the Implementing Phase 3 Guidance (pages 19-26).
They plan to rollout PIFU within their Trauma and Orthopaedics service as of Monday 15 November 2021.
This will mean that instead of routinely booking a follow up appointment for the patient at a specified point in the future, some patients will be asked to contact the hospital to request an appointment - if and when they need one. This option will be available to these patients for a fixed length of time, dependent on their condition or injury. After this length of time has elapsed, the patients will either be discharged from the service, or they will book a review appointment with them.
PIFU will not be suitable for all patients and the decision to put a patient on a PIFU pathway will be led by their clinician on a case-by-case basis, based on the patient’s individual needs, circumstances and preferences.
After the patient has agreed to be on a PIFU pathway, they will receive relevant information about their condition along with symptoms to watch out for and how to book an appointment if required. As their GP, BHRUT will copy you in on this information.
For queries, or if you would like some more information, please contact Jacqui Czarnocki at j.czarnocki@nhs.net