UPDATE - Checking Patient Details

UPDATE: Please also ensure spelling of name and date of birth are checked for every visit. 

All patient information must be checked each and every time a patient comes to the Practice. A phone number is not confirmed if you quote the last four digits of a patient’s phone number and ask them if that’s correct.  What about the rest of the number? When confirming the address – ask the patient what is their address? Please do not ask – is the address the same as last time, or are you still at Blacktown? What if they’ve moved and think they have already provided us with a new address, but in fact we don’t have it. What if they’ve moved from one Blacktown address to another?

From a technical perspective – patient details must be checked prior to an examination being performed. Consent must be given by the patient and their identity confirmed. Any mismatches are reportable and any examinations that involve invasive injections or radiation are required to be reported as part of our accreditation, so please make sure that proper care is taken to ensure correct consent and scanning protocols are followed.