SK deploys COVID-19 e-referral and intake system

REGINA – The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) in partnership with eHealth Saskatchewan has deployed the Novari eReferral & central intake system province-wide for COVID-19 testing and assessment referrals. Working closely together, SHA, eHealth and Novari Health staff quickly configured the Novari technology to facilitate COVID-19 referrals to help ensure that patients with COVID-19 symptoms, concerns or wanting testing are quickly processed and sent to the closest and available testing or assessment sites across Saskatchewan.

With the Novari referral management & central intake technology in place, patients calling the provincial HealthLine 811 24-hour service with COVID-19 concerns are triaged by clinicians. When a referral is required, 811 COVID-19 screening clinicians then use the Novari eRequest system to generate and electronically send referrals to the province’s network of COVID-19 testing sites and assessment sites.

“With the implementation of Novari eReferral, the SHA has seen immediate improvements in the flow of information to support COVID-19 testing. Testing and Assessment Sites, along with 811, have all noted a quicker turnaround time due to the real-time referral processing and ability to level load,” said Michelle Mula (pictured), executive director of digital health, co-executive director for the 811 COVID-19 Screening Site, SHA. “We’ve had reports of patients being called to have their testing appointments booked shortly after calling 811 and having their referral sent, which was one of the targets of the implementation.”

Novari eRequest leverages made-to-order workflow capabilities to manage both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. Each referral is tracked in real-time with local testing and assessment sites digitally receiving the triage data and other necessary information for each referral.

The system provides the SHA with rich data on the volume of COVID-19 referrals received and sent to each testing and assessment site. This data delivers SHA and public health officials with real-time and accurate COVID-19 data.

Novari eRequest is a flexible 3-in-1 software solution with sophisticated referral management, central intake and workflow management capabilities. It is used by ministries of health, regional health authorities and hospitals across Canada to improve access to care, reduce wait times and increase efficiency. The system can be configured for any type of healthcare service including diabetes, mental health, addictions, surgery, COVID-19 and medical imaging.

“This project was successful due to the imperative to move quickly, SHA and eHealth’s leadership and an unwavering focus by everyone involved in the project. It is a perfect fit for Novari’s technology and our expertise,” said John Sinclair, CPHIMS, president Novari Health.

About Novari Health
Novari Health designs, builds, and implements award winning cloud-based, enterprise scale software solutions that improve access to care, coordination of care, and the delivery of healthcare services. The Novari Access to Care software platform includes virtual care, eReferral, central intake, workflow management, surgical waitlist management, and medical imaging requisition management modules. Based in Kingston, Ontario, Novari has become one of the largest Canadian based digital health solution providers.