appropriate management could help improve patient outcomes and reduce the burden on the health and care system .
In primary care it can be difficult to differentiate between influenza , COVID-19 and chest infections without additional tests . To confirm a flu diagnosis a general practitioner ( GP ) may send a swab taken from a patient ’ s throat to a centralised microbiology service for a laboratory-based test . Results can take over 36 hours to arrive which is too late for the timely administration of antiviral treatments . Patients waiting for a diagnosis may sometimes be prescribed unnecessary antibiotics which may contribute to antibiotic resistance .
The Anti-Microbial Resistance Team at NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board ( ICB ) wanted to explore how implementing rapid , community-based testing might improve diagnostic confidence ( potentially reducing the prescribing of unnecessary antibiotics ), and impact upon the wider healthcare ecosystem . The innovation allows GPs to confirm whether their patients have flu , and this diagnostic certainty can help GPs in managing their patients ( for instance , in helping decisions about whether patients should isolate or not ).
Working in collaboration with , Roche Diagnostics Ltd , and Roche Products Ltd , we initiated a service evaluation . This aimed to build on prior evidence from a pilot project in 2022-23 that demonstrated a potential positive impact on patient outcomes achieved by community-based rapid diagnosis of patients with Flu A / B and COVID-19 , and their subsequent management by GPs .
We identified appropriate industry partners , managed the collaborative programme , and ensured that information governance requirements were met . We worked closely with our West Yorkshire community services and infection control teams to efficiently onboard multiple implementation sites that included 9 general practices , 11 care homes , and 13 elderly and dementia wards .
The project resulted in over 100 tests being carried out , with data collection of patient outcomes facilitated by a digital reporting innovation from the NHS-owned company Health Call Solutions . We provided qualitative data collection and analysis expertise to ensure the workforce and patients could share their respective experiences and contribute to the evaluation report . This ongoing work has already identified several positive themes including :
• familiarity of equipment enabling efficient usage by staff , ultimately providing patients with rapid results and helping to alleviate anxiety
• deployment of tests within care services and residential wards , permitting effective decision-making regarding patient isolation and so minimising community flu transmission and protecting others .
Positive outcomes and lessons learned are being used to help support the development of the flu ‘ test and treat ’ pathway . We have presented at 5 events to discuss this work with key stakeholders , and the programme has recently gained wider exposure in the national press . This has already resulted in 10 Primary Care Networks across our region expressing an interest in using a rapid diagnostic test during the next flu season . Our future aims are to support West Yorkshire ICB in the development of a business case to validate the continued use of rapid community-based diagnosis and work closely with the NHS , the public , and policy makers to help spread the pathway across the UK to mitigate future winter pressures on the healthcare system .
13 Transforming Lives Through Innovation