Implementation and evaluation of a pre-assessment telephone triage system in an outpatient photopheresis service.

The prompt assessment of patients as fit for photopheresis is imperative to ensure delivery of a safe and efficient service. Before January 2015 the photopheresis unit was reliant on patients contacting the department directly to cancel their appointment if they were unwell or were suffering from any pre-defined exclusion criteria. Methods to reduce the number of cancellations and patients arriving unwell were therefore examined. The authors combined aspects of patient pre-assessment with telephone triage to develop a system that could provide better care and improve the use of resources within the department. The pre-assessment telephone triage system successfully reduced cancellations and increased patient awareness of conditions that would prevent delivery of photopheresis treatment. Subsequently the quality improvement initiative established that the pre-assessment telephone triage system saved the photopheresis unit over £33 000 over a 12-month period.