Patient routing and process approach implementation for regional oncology service

Abstract

Background. Cancer care involves a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis and treatment of patients. A complex interaction of actors in the deployment of oncology services dictates usage of modern management technologies for improving the quality and efficiency of patient care through processes optimisation.Objectives. Provision of recommendations for patient routing based on research into the oncology service inter-level information exchange, integration of the process approach and electronic services. The lack of a unified information space with a regional oncology service has been explained. Measures are proposed for the patient routing optimisation as part of establishing a unified digital oncology service circuit.Methods. The oncology service was effectively remodelled through functional and information engineering of electronic services and the process management integration to establish a horizontal decision flow between facilities and employees on a process level bypassing the supervisor coordination. Statistical approaches were used to analyse the oncological patient population.Results. The following electronic services have been implemented: specialised patient referral routing, telemedicine and teleradiology. A comprehensive information framework has been created comprising medical, laboratory and radiological information subsystems integrated through regional electronic services of the unified state healthcare information platform. The goals, objectives, general principles, architecture and expected social economic impact on healthcare of Krasnodar Krai have been defined.Conclusion. Use of electronic services ensures an improved quality of specialised care and effective routing of patients. We perceive prospects of the integrated information platform in the extension and improvement of its subsystems’ functionality and content, sourcing more data providers and the circuit expansion to the federal and regional levels.

Keywords

• routing
• process approach
• electronic services
• telemedicine
• teleradiology
• digital circuit