Many people know the pain of waiting to see a specialist. Sometimes it can take three to six months, but other times, it can be up to a year. But a pair of doctors from eastern Ontario are trying to change that.
"We talked a lot about what the problem was and maybe if we could just communicate as a family doctor and a specialist a little more easy, we might be able to get better access for our patients," says Dr. Clare Liddy, a family doctor and researcher at the Bruyère Research Institute.
Dr. Liddy, along with Dr. Erin Keely, launched Building Access to Specialists through E-consultation, or BASE, in 2008.
It allows family doctors and nurse practitioners to submit forms on a secure server to specialists. The specialists can then provide answers to questions or suggestions for treatment plans, without booking an in-person appointment.
The program started with five specialties, but has grown to 84 in the last four years. Over 200 specialists in the region are available to respond to primary care providers when called on.
"I can say that it's been the most satisfying thing in my career to see the difference we've made to patients and primary care providers" says Dr. Keely, who's the Chief of Endocrinology at the Ottawa Hospital.
Since 2011, more than 14,000 patients have had e-consults. Only one-third have needed a face-to-face referral. Often, it doesn't take long to get answers.
"We get such a detailed, amazing answer from our specialists that it lets me phone my patient and I'm usually phoning them...sometimes as quickly as one or two days," says Dr. Liddy.
The Bruyère Research Institute has provided a haven for research to take place. Feedback from the program has come in from patients, family doctors and specialists, and so far, it's been very positive.
E-consults have been used for patients in Nunavut and the plan is to hopefully expand it across the country.
