Q Online Visit: Reducing urology patient wait time across Birmingham

South Doc Services (SDS) are a GP cooperative based in South Birmingham, encompassing nine primary care networks covering a diverse patient base.

In August 2023, patients were waiting around 62 weeks for an initial outpatient urology appointment. There were no insights into waiting times across subspecialties. Then, SDS teams worked together to tackle this by redesigning the patient pathway. This prioritised taking advantage of urology expertise in primary care, freeing up capacity in secondary care for those who need it most.

During this online Visit, you will hear about the service development that SDS undertook, what worked and what didn’t and the lessons learnt along the way.

You’ll hear from Transformation Director Mani Dhesi, clinicians who have been pivotal in the project, and from patients themselves about their experience.

• South Doc Services (SDS) is a Birmingham-based GP Federation made up of 52 member practices. Their patient list size covers around a third of the population of Birmingham.
• SDS are an innovative health service using a hub and spoke model that offers patients a range of ways to access the support they need. 
• They were also a Q Lab partner, working alongside researchers to trial and pilot ways to reduce waits in elective care

During this Visit you will: 

• Learn more about the steps SDS have taken to improve patient experience and reduce wait time.
• Hear from consultants working with Urology patients and have the chance to ask questions.
• Listen to the stories of patients, helping you to understand their experience.
• Reflect on how this approach applies to the context of your own work.
• Connect with other members from the Q community.