As two key players in the health referral system, it was inevitable that a “Study Active x ReferAll” collaboration would be on the horizon - and this has recently been the case! Study Active partnering with ReferAll indicates a “stronger together” philosophy and it will be exciting to see how these two industry giants can help support the health referral sector.
So who exactly are ReferAll and what are they all about? I’m sure you are all keen to know so we caught up with Rachel Stokes, Outreach Lead for ReferAll to find out about the intriguing work they have been doing in the sector to date.
Tell us about ReferAll, what is this application and how does it work?
ReferAll has made it our mission to provide a leading software platform for community health data collection, not only transforming the growth of health and wellbeing services but unlocking new funding opportunities for service providers.
Operating securely in the cloud, ReferAll’s platform ensures GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) compliance and provides a 360-degree approach for all stakeholders involved in a health and wellbeing service.
How important is technology such as ReferAll in the Health Referral process and how can this lead to positive outcomes?
Technology plays a pivotal role in modern health referral programmes, significantly enhancing their effectiveness and efficiency. ReferAll’s customisable pathway solutions help streamline the referral process, improve the alignment of patient health needs with programme availability and advisor skills, enhancing engagement, uptake, and completion rates. Our all-in-one solution empowers providers to collect and analyse their service data, enabling them to generate Key Performance Indicator (KPI) and Outcome Reports quickly and efficiently.
How important is liaison with the clients GP and how can ReferAll help with this?
Establishing positive relationships with primary & secondary care professionals is crucial for the success of a health referrals. While it requires time, patience, and commitment, building strong partnerships helps prevent inappropriate referrals that may not meet the scheme’s inclusion criteria.
At ReferAll, we have developed two pathway options to receive referrals and communicate with healthcare professionals; webform solution and a referrers portal. When using either option, submitted referrals are saved in the providers ReferAll platform for review and processing, saving precious admin time and resources.
What organisations have you worked with so far and what has been the feedback/impact?
ReferAll was established in 2009 and our customer base includes Public Local Authorities, Leisure Trusts, the Voluntary Sector, Schools, Universities and NHS Trusts. Their facilities range from small independent health clubs, large multi-site leisure trusts and anything in between.
To give health schemes credibility, to get the NHS and healthcare providers to sit up and take notice of their successes, everything needs to be backed up by solid data.
Stakeholders and funders also want numbers, proof of positive change caused by leisure’s interventions.
As an example, ReferAll has supported delivery of the Prehab4Cancer programme, a free exercise, nutrition, and wellbeing scheme in Greater Manchester. Prehab4Cancer has used ReferAll’s platform to accept and manage patients referred into the service, monitor progress, manage individual patient records, and record outcomes since its inception in May 2019.
“Our ultimate goal is to create cost savings for the NHS and the data we’re extracting from ReferAll proves we’re doing this,” says Prehab4Cancer Programme Manager at GM Active, Jack Murphy. “Thanks to this data, the programme received recurrent funding in 2021.”
What are your plans and ambitions for the future?
Data can help our sector align with healthcare and holds the key to unlocking best practice and driving continuous improvement. It provides guiding evidence for the improvement of physical-activity-related social prescribing pathways and allows us to increase the efficacy of services.
Our aim is to continue innovating our data management platform and services, always keeping our customers' needs at the forefront. We plan to grow our partnerships, whether it involves software integrations at customers’ request at no charge or collaborations such as this exciting new partnership with Study Active.
We eagerly anticipate planning more knowledge, skills, and training opportunities around embracing data to ensure that health referral programmes lead the way in integrating health and leisure.
To learn more about ReferAll please see https://www.refer-all.net/