Real-life implementation and evaluation of the e-referral system SIPILINK

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Healthcare Management
• Digital Health

Background:

• General Practitioners (GPs) face challenges in referring semi-urgent patients to hospitals.
• An e-referral platform, SIPILINK, was implemented in a French hospital to address these referral difficulties.
• This study evaluates the SIPILINK platform after two years of use.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the effectiveness and impact of the SIPILINK e-referral platform.
• To evaluate implementation, user satisfaction, and patient care pathway improvements.
• To analyze referral request handling and response times.

Main Methods:

• Multidimensional assessment using the RE-AIM framework.
• Analysis of implementation data, referral requests, and health professional satisfaction.
• Evaluation of estimated hospital payments and patient care pathway improvements.

Main Results:

• 113 referral requests were processed over two years.
• 93% of response times were respected; 40.7% resulted in consultations, 10.6% in hospitalizations.
• High satisfaction reported: 100% of GPs, 78% of Hospital Practitioners (HPs), and 100% of Care Pathway Managers (CPMs) found pathways improved.

Conclusions:

• SIPILINK demonstrates potential for streamlining referrals and enhancing interprofessional communication.
• The platform shows promise in improving patient care pathways.
• Further research is needed to assess the impact on the quality of care and long-term sustainability.