Automated Electronic Waiver Process

Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Midlands, Mental Health

The problem

Waivers are needed urgently to avoid delays in patient care, but the manual system of approving waivers via email and physical signatures is slow. The finance department requires a transparent process to track waiver requests, support budget holders, and avoid healthcare delivery delays.

The challenge 

How might we deliver a more efficient and tracked process so that waivers are dealt with in a timely manner and any obstacles unblocked?

The outputs

  • Notifications to key stakeholders that a waiver had been submitted
  • Automated flow of approvals
  • One-page summary of the waiver form
  • Users being able to track the progress of their request so they can chase up relevant staff
  • A single database holding tender information is accessible by key stakeholders
  • Automated receipt of waiver completed
  • Automated excel document report of the reports
  • Auditable process using tracked changes
  • A quarterly extract of the waivers approved and their reasoning in audit committee papers

The outcomes

  • Faster process from submission to final sign off
  • Ease and clarity of submission status and waiver information
  • Improved working relationships with the market
  • Fewer ad hoc request to the finance team to investigate where waivers are in the process of being approved
  • More capacity for individuals who are involved in the process
  • Procurement can work faster to get the waiver completed and out to the supplier

The Innovation

Read the full innovation on the award recognition scheme

All the documents and resources relating to this innovation can be found in the downloads section at the bottom of the page.

Innovation D5

What the peer-reviewers said

“This is a great solution to what was a lengthy process, which from experience would have involved lots of manual intervention and chasing up.”

“I recommend that this application be recognised as an innovation. it clearly addresses the previous inefficiencies in the system and provides value.”

“I think this is a great innovation and a true reflection of what this process should be about. such a simple approach that probably should have been thought about sooner that can be provided at little or no cost.”

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Downloads

Here are all of the documents and resources related to this innovation

Innovation D5 – Waiver request form (Part 1)

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Innovation D5 – Waiver request form (Part 2)

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Innovation D5 – Waivers report example

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