What

The Waiting Well initiative provides specific assistance to patients awaiting treatment or surgery. Hospitals can utilise PKB's care plans and library features to aid patients in self-management during the period leading up to their initial assessments or consultations. By sharing relevant information, patients can be supported in waiting well and stay informed about their position on the waiting list.

Why

There is much evidence to show that when people take simple steps before their surgery or treatment to improve or maintain their fitness, have a healthy diet and have good mental health, it aids their recovery. It also reduces the risk of their surgery or treatment being cancelled on the day because of them not being well or fit enough to have the operation.

How

Organisations can effectively initiate contact with all referred patients through eMeet and Greet, offering waiting well resources and maintaining communication from the very beginning. All these resources are conveniently accessible through the NHS App/Login.

Teams and organisations can simply and efficiently create a library of content for the patients in the waiting well team, providing generic information on healthy eating, weight management before and after surgery, and fitness and mental health support. 

Key features 

There are key Key PKB features all services can use to deliver health promotion and education to patients while they wait for their operation/treatment or outpatient appointments .  A list of them is are listed below.

Questionnaires 

Patients can initiate a questionnaire by clicking Start Questionnaire on their homepage or directly within the NHS App. Once completed, the questionnaire can be sent to a professional or team.

Send questionnaires to assess a patient’s health situation or preferences.  For example, this can be used to understand suitability for a pre-operative surgical hub and provide data to inform or reduce time for pre-assessment appointments.

Questionnaire templates

• Early health screening

• Patient Reported Outcomes (PROMS)

• Per operative questionnaire

• Capturing Digital Outcome Measures

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Library 

Disease and condition-specific education resources are available within PKB’s Library function to support all patients who are waiting well.  Offer Prehab care plans with week-by-week guidance to ensure patients are ready for surgery.

• Waiting Well information

• Prehab advice

• Resources and websites

Care plans 

PKB care plans can be used at every stage of a patient's condition journey; below are some of the care plan templates being used and templates that can be created.

• Living Well for Longer

• Monitoring condition plan (example cardiology monitoring care plan)

• Rehab, physical activity and musculoskeletal health

• Goals setting care plan

• 8 Week Orthopaedic Prehabilitation plan

• Peri-operative care plans

• Shared Decision Support Tools care plans,  PKB has converted nationally validated NHSE Shared Decision Aids into PKB care plans. Use these condition-specific aids to prepare patients for their appointments, inform decision making and ensure a robust consent process.

Appointments 

• Appointment letters and appointments sent to PKB via integration

• Manually entered appointments

PKB eMeet and Greet with Waiting Well Workflow

Further Information

• PKB's enhance eMeet and Greet: a list of key features hospitals can use with all patients on any pathway

• Hybrid mail and PKB: solution to reduce postage costs and increase access

• Consent Care Plan Templates: informed consent care plan examples

• Elective Recovery: how PKB can digitally support teams and patients at every stage of the pathway