Release four of Choose and Book will go live on 12 April, delivering the government’s policy of free choice at referral, the Department of Health has announced.
Guidance from the DH sets out how the Choose and Book software has been changed to deliver the Free Choice agenda and the likely impact on referrers and commissioners.
The guidance says the revamped software will replace existing functions with two initial choices for referrers, either to ‘Search Primary Care’ or ‘Search All’. Services provided by GP practices, PCTs and care trusts will be listed under Primary Care and services provided by NHS acute and foundation trusts, the independent sector or hospices will be listed under Secondary Care. Primary care services are not subject to the free choice policy.
Selecting the ‘Search Primary Care’ button will list all services commissioned by the PCT and selecting the ‘Search All’ button will list all secondary care services across the country and all services commissioned by the PCT.
Certain services are not subject to the free choice policy including two week waits, diagnostics, obstetrics and mental health.
However, hospitals that attempt to withhold standard services from the national menu by listing them on the primary care menu only will be considered be in breach of their contract, the guidance states.
It also makes it clear that hospitals will not be expected to use the system to manage demand by limiting slot availability. It states: “Providers must accept all clinically appropriate referrals made to them and will need to manage their capacity flexibility in order to accommodate the choice of provider that patients will make.”
DH minister Ben Bradshaw said that enabling patients to choose from any NHS hospital in the country would mean patients were more likely to take greater responsibility for their care and treatment and have a better experience of it.
He added: “Choice is fundamental to the delivery of a personalised NHS. People would like to have more control and be more involved in the decisions about their illness and treatment. More choice will also help drive up quality and standards across the NHS."
The DH also announced this week that NHS trusts and organisations will be able to promote their services to patients for the first time. They said the move would help to ensure information about services was easily available for patients and GPs.
The DhHadded: “As well as health care providers being able to advertise their services, a series of NHS branded advertisements will run in regional newspapers and on regional radio, designed to raise awareness of choice and to help patients make informed decisions about their choice of provider.”
The DH said advertising and promotional activity will be regulated by a new code of practice.