Why accept Out of Area Patients?
Accepting out of area (OOA) patients is the single biggest step you can take to unlock your practice growth is starting to accept out of area patients. The nature of public transport links and working patterns means that some patients who seem far away can access your practice easily and efficiently.
Taking patients from a 3 mile radius of your practice instead of 1 mile opens you up to 9x more potential people, assuming uniform distribution.
Your findings may inform future plans to open new branch sites as you truly expand your footprint.
However, we know that out of area registration is not appropriate for all patients e.g., housebound patients, those with complex mental health conditions who need local referrals, and those generally less mobile. The good news is, we can offer you flexibility to overcome this. 🎉
🤷♀️ How?
With Bookable, we introduce new flexibility, letting you decide whether you take out-of-area patients and set a maximum catchment area. This is the maximum area you can safely service (e.g. you can’t refer into local services beyond this point). This area can be a circle radius or a customisable shape.
Also, note that Bookable currently only shows practices up to 5 miles from the patient, so registrations will still remain sensible!
How can I start accepting out of area registrations?
First check Find a GP to see if you are already accepting OOA registrations
If you are you will see the 'accepts out of area registrations' flag
If that isn't showing, you just need to contact NHSE via [email protected] to have your practice activated for out of area patients
Then, let us know your preference of maximum catchment area and we can configure this for you
And start growing your list faster than ever before! 🤩
How does communication differ for out of area patients?
Patients outside of your normal catchment area, but within your maximum catchment will be shown a warning before they register - using the same communication principles of clarity and transparency that Raj discussed in blog 003, How to make de-registration crystal clear.
And when expanded...
In case you wish to borrow our wording, here's the text...
In case you wish to borrow our wording, here's the text...
Headline
We can still offer you appointments at the practice and on the phone, but we aren't able to offer you home visits and some local referrals.
Detail
NHS GP Practices have a defined catchment area they cover (e.g. if a home visit is needed, the doctor needs to be able to travel in a reasonable amount of time).
They are able to register patients outside of the area where it is appropriate to do so. You should register closer to your home if:
• You need home visits or regular attendance at the GP practice
• You need referral to or regular visits from local services, such as district nurses, social services, mental health services, or health visitors
If we feel that we cannot meet your health needs we may advise you register with a GP that can.
What do you code?
In addition, we'll also send patients the normal Out of Area communications and place the correct SNOMED code on their record.
824381000000105 | Registered patient lives outside practice area (finding)
Get in touch with us today if you want to make any changes to your catchment area set up via [email protected]! ✨