The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) has some recommendations in response to the National Health Service (NHS) changing its e-Referral service.
The NHS e-referral Roadmap expects online patient booking to be available, and for 2017-2018 there is a Commissioning for Quality and Innovation (CQUIN) payment available to incentivize providers to publish all services and appointment slots on the NHS e-Referral service. In addition, beginning 1 October 2018, providers will no longer be paid for activity that results from referrals made other than through the NHS e-Referral Service, according to the RCR.
If a patient is admitted under radiology, the radiology department will receive the tariff minus the Trust Internal Financial Flow (TIFF) share. If a patient is admitted under another department, the radiology department will acquire the TIFF share, with the admitting directorate receiving the bulk of the tariff.
Thus, the RCR encourages all radiologists to consult with patients undergoing elective interventions in outpatients, have these available on the trust's directory of services, attract the appropriate tariff income for the department, and ensure availability of online patient booking for e-referral.
