Tasmania ditches the fax and welcomes digital reform

Tasmanian GPs are now able to refer their patients to all four major hospitals in the state using a standardised e-referral platform that replaces the need for faxed, emailed, scanned or printed referral letters.
 
The Tasmanian Government has reported that over 10,000 referrals have already been submitted using the platform, which provides GPs with a much needed alternative to burdensome hospital referral protocols that are increasingly problematic for referrers and patients.
 
Dr Toby Gardner, GP Practice Owner and RACGP Tasmania Deputy Chair, has embraced the new system and now uses the e-referral platform exclusively for both public and private referrals.
 
He told newsGP there are many benefits for GPs who use e-referrals, describing the two-way communication between the referring doctor and the accepting hospital as the platform’s greatest strength.
 
‘Gone are the days of the fax machine and missing referrals,’ he said.
 
‘I think by far the best feature is the automated response that is generated in the public sector referrals, usually from the hospital, that acknowledge receipt of the referral, then a second response once it has been triaged.
 
‘The system also allows a clinician to make a comment once it’s been triaged, which is fed back to the referring doctor. For example, a referral to Fracture Clinic once triaged will return with information such as “See this Wednesday, X-Ray on arrival” along with the name of the triaging doctor, so we’re not left wondering if timely follow-up has occurred.’
 
Dr Gardner said he has already been able to use clinical feedback from specialists who have triaged his e-referrals to optimise care while patients are awaiting their specialist appointments. He also said the platform is easy to use and he has been encouraging colleagues to get on board.
 
‘As with any new technology the initial barrier is unfamiliarity with a new template/system, though this is easily overcome after using it only a few times, even for the less IT-savvy doctor,’ he said.
 
Dr Tim Jackson, RACGP Tasmania Chair, has also had positive experiences with the platform which he agrees is user-friendly without much room for error.
 
‘It really doesn’t let you fill it out incorrectly and it also auto-fills a lot of the information too, which is really good,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘It lets you know in real time that they’ve been received, so that’s good because often when you fax them off, you’re sort of keeping your fingers crossed that it has gotten to the right place.’
 
Dr Jackson said e-referrals can reduce the administrative burden on support staff.
 
‘It takes pressure off our reception staff,’ he said. ‘They’re the ones who normally used to do the faxes, whereas this is all just done when you’re with the patient in the consulting room, so it’s more efficient.’
 
The Tasmanian e-referral rollout is part of the Digital Health Transformation program that has allocated $150 million in funding to solve the various challenges facing healthcare in the state.
 
The program aims to deliver a fully integrated digital platform that enables GPs, hospitals, allied health and other specialist providers to communicate easily and share clinical information.
 
It remains to be seen whether other states and territories will invest in a similar digital alternative to outdated referral systems, which would potentially put an end to controversial requests for GPs to name a specialist on their referral letters, as this is not currently a requirement of Tasmanian e-referral system.
 
‘There is no need to refer to a named specialist which is fantastic, and you can append any correspondence/investigations necessary,’ Dr Gardner said.
 
‘This should definitely be rolled out nationally.’
 
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