Lincolnshire ICB deploys SHREWD WaitLess app

Overview

Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board launched an app developed by VitalHub UK to the population of Lincolnshire. The app provided real-time data on waiting times, queue numbers and travel times to urgent care facilities in the region, helping patients make the most informed choice of where to get treatment.

What the organisation faced

The demand on urgent and emergency care services has been a serious challenge for many systems. The ability of services to meet these demands has become increasingly difficult, with sustained system pressures around workforce, capacity, community, and adult social care resulting in issues around patient flow. Consequently, national performance against the four-hour target has remained challenging, leaving many patients across systems waiting longer to receive treatment in emergency departments (Nuffield Trust, 2023).

Emergency departments in the Lincolnshire ICB were experiencing these performance pressures and increased patient waiting times. Additionally, being one of the largest geographical counties in the country, it has a set of unique geographical challenges around patients in the region accessing timely care.

Improvement

Lincolnshire ICB looked to bring together providers and commissioners of NHS services across the region to collectively plan health and care services to meet the needs of the population.

In a bid to address these challenges and improve waiting times for patients across the region, Lincolnshire ICB launched an app called WaitLess designed to provide live urgent and emergency care waiting times and queue numbers.

The WaitLess app combines current waiting times, queue numbers and travel time to urgent care facilities in the region. This information is designed to help people choose the least pressured urgent and emergency care services and understand waiting times better, to help patients make informed decision about where to seek the fastest treatment for minor illness and injuries. The times shown on the app combine travel, waiting and treatment time, look to give patients the most accurate picture of how long they may spend at each location, allowing them to decide on the most appropriate setting to attend. The app also displays a full list of services available at each site, parking and opening time information and other non-emergency treatment options.

Outcome

Rather than going to the emergency department for minor injuries or illness, the WaitLess app has helped direct patients with less serious conditions to alternative sites across Lincolnshire with lower waiting times so they can be treated more quickly. The app has improved patient experience within the region, while also helping to reduce pressure on urgent and emergency care facilities by getting more patients seen in the quickest time and in the most appropriate setting.