NHS Confederation: Patient-initiated follow up: designing it with patients at the centre (10 November 2023)

Summary

Patient-initiated follow up (PIFU) is an appointment process that helps hospitals manage capacity and puts patients in control of making appointments, when they need them.

In traditional care models, patients who have had treatment or surgery, or suffer with chronic conditions are provided with a set care plan and offered scheduled follow-up appointments either conducted in person, or remotely. PIFU offers an alternative way of organising planned follow-up care for patients following their elective procedures, rather than automatically being scheduled for appointments. This aims to give greater control to patients over the timing of their follow-up appointment based on their health status needs, helping patients save time, money and the inconvenience of travelling to pre-arranged appointments they may not need.

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