Pathway Improvement

The purpose of the Pathway Improvement team is to drive improvements in outcomes, patient experience and operational performance across the Lancashire & South Cumbria region.

Our pathway improvement work is one of our key deliverables as part of the NHS Long-Term Plan to support the overarching ambition, that by 2028:

  • 55,000 more people will survive five years or more each year following diagnosis
  • Three in four (75%) cancers will be diagnosed at an early stage

Senior project managers bring together all relevant stakeholders which include secondary care clinicians, commissioners, primary care representatives to patient representatives and voluntary sector colleagues to ensure a holistic approach to improvement.

Through effective partnership working, the Pathway Improvement team aim to ensure consistency in service delivery and reduce unwarranted variation across all localities - from prevention, through diagnosis to treatment and beyond.

We work to identify and deliver consistent clinical pathways to achieve the best possible outcomes and experience for patients affected by cancer within Lancashire & South Cumbria.

For more information, please contact:

Hema Pownall hema.pownall1@nhs.net or Jen Burns jennifer.burns14@nhs.net

Key considerations

Cancer Wait Times performance standards

Our service improvement work has at its heart improving outcomes for patients.

We monitor our improvements through cancer operational targets.

Rapid Diagnostic Services (RDS)

The commitment to roll out RDS forms an important part of the Integrated Care Partnerships’ (ICP) broader strategy to deliver faster and earlier diagnosis and improved patient experience.

There are seven key components of the NHSE/I produced RDC specification and associated quality markers for ongoing improvement.

The following diagram explains the quality markers for ongoing improvement which include timely referrals and timely diagnosis of patient's symptoms.

Quality markers for ongoing improvement

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National Best Practice Timed Pathways (BPTP)

National best practice timed pathways support the delivery of faster diagnosis for patients. We will incorporate published pathways into our work programme.

Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs)

The creation of CDCs aims to increase NHS diagnostics capacity. All health systems are expected to include a network of CDCs as part of their health services offer.

The CDCs will allow patients to access planned diagnostic care nearer to home without the need to attend secondary care.

These services would be separate to urgent diagnostic scan facilities, which means shorter waiting times and a reduced risk of cancellation which can happen when more urgent cases take priority. Therefore, this would lead to improved patient experience and outcomes.

The CDCs will help achieve the following ambitions:

  • To improve population health outcomes by diagnosing health conditions earlier, faster and more accurately

  • To increase diagnostic capacity by investing in new facilities, equipment and training new staff, contributing to recovery from COVID-19

  • To improve productivity and efficiency by streamlining planned diagnostic services where it makes sense to do so; redesigning clinical pathways to reduce unnecessary steps, tests or duplication

  • To contribute to reducing health inequalities by ensuring everyone has the same access to care and the same health outcomes

  • To deliver a better diagnostic service and more personalised experience by providing a single point of access to a range of services in the community

  • To support more joined-up care across primary, community and secondary care

Streamlining Multidisciplinary team working

A discrete programme of MDT optimisation is being undertaken.

For further information on multidisciplinary team working.

 

 

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