Outpatient Transformation at St Hugh’s Hospital
At St Hugh’s Hospital, we have been working on transforming our outpatient approach, not only to create earlier screening and safer surgery, but also strengthening our connection with the community we serve and actively reducing health inequalities.
Serving one of the most socioeconomically challenged areas in North East Lincolnshire, we recognise that clinical optimisation alone is not enough. Many of our patients face barriers linked to deprivation, long-term conditions, housing instability, financial hardship, isolation and reduced access to wellbeing support. If we want patients to be ready for surgery, we must address the wider factors that influence their health.
Our approach is built on a simple principle: outpatients are not just appointments; they are people at different stages of readiness, risk and need.
What We’ve Changed
Early Identification and Optimisation: We introduced same-day initial preoperative screening, first piloted in orthopaedics and now embedded across other specialties. This allows us to identify patients who are not yet fit for surgery much earlier and begin optimisation.
The result has been fewer late and same-day cancellations and safer perioperative decisions coupled with improved patient flow.
Smarter Triage and Prioritisation: We implemented structured triage using breach-date ordering to prioritise patients by clinical risk and pathway need, not simply referral date.
We have seen a reduction is risk due to backlog with fairer access and improved compliance with referral to treatment.
Workforce Innovation: By adopting collaborative staffing models across Pre-Assessment, Ward and Endoscopy teams, we have improved flexibility, reduced bottlenecks and strengthened resilience.
Listening to Patients: We are enhancing real-time feedback through QR codes and integration with Doctify, ensuring patient voice directly informs service improvement.
Tackling Health Inequalities through Community Partnership
A key strength of our model is our close collaboration with Centre4, a trusted local organisation embedded within the heart of Grimsby.
Through this partnership, we are able to:
· Connect patients to social prescribing and community wellbeing programmes
· Support individuals living with frailty, long-term conditions and isolation
· Provide practical advice around housing, finance and access to local services
· Reduce barriers that may otherwise lead to cancellation or poorer outcomes
This ensures our outpatient pathway extends beyond hospital walls. It is proactive, preventative and personalised.
A Cultural Shift
Most importantly, our mindset has changed:
From: “Can we fit this patient in?” To: “Is this the right time and are they ready?”
This is more than a pathway adjustment. It is a whole-system transformation focused on safety, equity, experience and sustainability and it is already making a measurable difference for our patients and our teams.