As mentioned by Celia in the previous sprint notes, the main aim of this sprint was to finish the database restructure, and make the necessary interface changes, to allow for different types of PROM questionnaire to be added to the system, such that we could support patients with conditions other than rheumatoid arthritis.
We're really pleased with progress and we are now able to monitor patients with ankylosing spondylitis using the BASDAI PROM, and psoriatic arthritis using the PSAID. What's more, we now have a far more flexible structure in place which will allow us to easily add other PROMs beyond those used in rheumatology. We've also done some work on the way we "flag" patients whose PROMs may indicate they need additional support, ensuring that an historical record of these flags is maintained to provide a longer term picture of a patient's health.
From a design and research perspective, Ali has been talking to patients who are currently using the system but are not as fully engaged as we might hope, in order to understand the barriers they face. As a result of this work, we'll be making some changes to the information we provide about the service at various touch-points. We'll also be looking to make some improvements to the accessibility of the PROM form for those patients who may use assistive technology such as screen readers. This will be increasingly valuable as more patients are introduced to the service. Thanks to the NHS Digital team responsible for the NHS Service Standard for a useful chat about how we might work more closely with them.
There's lots to do in the third sprint, with an ambitious backlog including:
- Identifying patients who need more "active" monitoring than others
- Introducing more controls over who has access to which patients