The Department of Health is to hold a workshop in every strategic health authority in England in an attempt to boost uptake of Choose and Book.
The ten sessions, to be held in January and early February next year, will include presentations from the national Choose and Book team and high performing local health communities in the morning, plus afternoon workshops focusing on the key issues and challenges in implementing Choose and Book. Issues identified for the workshops include how to describe and find services effectively, how to manage and support technical delivery and commissioning services to include capacity and demand and managing outpatient appointments.
Tom Denwood, programme head for Choose and Book and national implementation director Jane Cummings wrote to all SHA directors of performance and chief information officers last week to outline the plans.
The letter says: “The main objective of the day is to share experience and best practice and provide a platform which will enable SHAs and LHCs [local health communities] to significantly progress and increase utilisation of Choose and Book locally."
Those invited to attend the workshops include accountable directors or those with clearly delegated authority to make decisions, SHA staff responsible for delivering Choose and Book, GP practice staff – both clinical and non clinical staff- with experience of implementing or using Choose and Book, primary care trust staff involved in Choose and Book implementation in their area and clinical and non clinical hospital trust staff involved in implementing and using Choose and Book.
Figures from the week ending 19 November show that 31% of referrals were made via Choose and Book, substantially short of the 90% target the government had hoped to reach by the end of March next year.
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Choose and Book workshops for SHAs