{
  "abstract": "Introduction Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) require timely access to specialist advice to support ongoing disease management. The IBD Standards of Care recommend a dedicated helpline to enable early intervention and respond to patient queries in a timely manner.Methods In June 2024, a specialist IBD Accurx Patient Triage Form was introduced alongside the existing answerphone service. This enabled patients to submit medical or administrative queries digitally, with responses provided via secure text messaging where clinically appropriate.Patients were provided with a secure, reusable link to the form via SMS and through patient-facing clinic letters and information leaflets. Patients confirmed their date of birth and completed a short, structured questionnaire tailored to their reason for contact. For flare-related queries, questions focused on symptoms, medication use, and expectations of next steps. Submitted forms were received in the Accurx inbox, where requests were triaged by clinical urgency, supporting the team to prioritise patients requiring medical input quickly, e.g. flares.Users of the service were sent a patient experience questionnaire, to gain feedback on their overall experience, including ease of use of the triage forms, with the option to comment on any changes they would like to see to the online access to the serviceResults Patient experience feedback was collected over 12months, with 109 responses (9.5%). Of respondents, 67% contacted the service via the online form and 33% via the telephone helpline. Overall, 90% rated their experience as good or excellent. Patients valued the convenience of digital access and were satisfied receiving outcomes via secure messaging when a telephone call was not clinically required. Same-day resolution of queries improved from 71% to 100%, reflecting improved responsiveness, all achieved without additional staffing. Free-text feedback highlighted improved accessibility and reassurance, including comments such as ‘better online, more convenient’ and ‘hard to get hold of nurses by phone’.Conclusion Introducing Accurx alongside the telephone helpline improved access, efficiency, and patient experience within the IBD service. Increased demand was managed without additional staffing as the triage-first approach supported faster responses and more effective use of clinical time, while maintaining inclusive access. It exceeds the minimum requirements of the IBD Standards of Care and demonstrates a more responsive, efficient, and patient-centred model of IBD helpline delivery.Abstract P298 Figure 1",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Sharon Gethins"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Lauren Matts"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Jodie Walton"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Kelly Hiatt"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Femi Roy"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Nadifa Mohamed"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Claire Thomas"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Tracey Duckett"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Sarah Rosser"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Patricia Hooper"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospitals of Leicester, Infirmary Square. Leicester, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Nicky Hamilton"
    }
  ],
  "title": "P298 Evaluating the patient experience of an IBD service following the implementation of accurx",
  "uid": "5d7be9b9-d66e-5210-9084-a4254da94c4d"
}