Revolutionising Patient Follow-Up: Optimised Resource Allocation with PIFU & NHS Integration
Healthcare
Dec 2021 – ongoing
The UK 
DigitalOcean|PostgreSQL|Ruby On Rails
Back-end Development|Front-end Development|Monolith App|UX/UI Design
Dedicated team behind the project
The client
RMSL has provided clinically-led electronic referral management solutions for over 12 years, serving a patient population exceeding 30 million. Building on their initial success as FDS Consultants, they have become a leading provider of comprehensive solutions in referral management, capacity and demand management, and advisory services.
THE CHALLENGE
RMSL faced the challenge of developing and testing a patient-initiated follow-up proof of concept. This initiative aimed to gather user feedback and inform decisions on further project development.
what was done
To address the challenge, Ralabs delivered a rapidly prototyped patient-initiated follow-up (PIFU) proof of concept to improve hospital workflows. This innovative solution offers two key functionalities:

- Secure Communication & Document Sharing:Â Hospitals can securely message patients, share medical advice, and documents.
- Intelligent Appointment Scheduling:Â Based on symptom reports and advice requests, the system identifies urgency and prompts patients to contact the clinic or request follow-up within 24 hours.
Implemented Patient Features:
Patients can easily Login to the system, facilitating quick interaction and self-service.
Patients can create reports detailing the outcome of their follow-up care for future reference, fostering improved care continuity.
A dedicated page provides relevant advice based on reported symptoms, empowering patients with informed self-management.
Patients can directly report new symptoms and request medical advice through the system, promoting timely communication and potentially improving healthcare outcomes.
Implemented Hospital Features:
Hospital staff can seamlessly access the system for patient management.
A comprehensive dashboard provides a real-time view of all patients currently on the PIFU pathway, enabling efficient patient monitoring.
The system automatically alerts hospital staff when a patient interaction requires their attention, ensuring timely responses.
Additional features
- Patient Addition: Searching by NHS number and date of birth for swift onboarding.
- PIFU Code & Letter Generation: Generating unique PIFU codes and customizable templates for various channels (post, email, print).
- Automated Appointment Scheduling & PDFs: Scheduling follow-up appointments and automatically generate PDFs for relevant practices.
- Direct Patient Advice: Sending personalized advice directly to patients through the secure platform.
- PIFU Pathway Closure: Automatically closing pathways for patients who no longer require follow-up.
- Comprehensive Patient History Download:Â Downloading complete patient PIFU pathway history for record-keeping and data analysis.
Project Management
This approach prioritizes flexibility and continuous improvement, making it ideal for iterative projects.
Enabling ongoing adjustments based on feedback and real-time needs.
Ensuring the project remained efficient and responsive to evolving requirements throughout development.
Tech stack
other Cases
