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| Area | Indicator | Comment |
|
| Network characteristics | Type of organization | |
| Main purpose | |
| Types of case | |
| Countries of operation | |
|
| Network demand | Number of potential referrers | |
| Referrers who had submitted a case | |
| Number of potential referring sites | |
| Referring sites from which a case had been submitted | |
| Referrals submitted | |
|
| Case mix | Three most common query types | The type of a query is defined by the specialty and subspecialty of the specialist to whom it is sent |
| Mean patient age in years (SD) | |
| Sex (% male, % female) | |
|
| Case complexity | Number of messages per case | The total number of messages for the case |
| Number of queries per case | The total number of queries sent to specialists |
| Proportion of unanswered queries (%) | The proportion of the queries sent which were not answered |
| Dialogue time (h) | The dialogue time is the interval (h) from case receipt until the last message from the referrer or specialist (excluding any progress report) |
|
| Case management | Proportion of cases allocated manually | The proportion of cases that were not allocated automatically (i.e., by the computer) to specialists |
| Allocation delay (h) | The allocation delay is a measure of the performance of the coordinator(s) during the period in question. Every case will result in at least one query. The interval between the arrival of the case and the first time it is allocated for reply represents the allocation delay. This is true even if say a case results in two queries, and the first goes unanswered. The allocation delay, which is measured in hours, is defined as the delay before the first query was sent out, irrespective of whether that query was actually answered. If automatic allocation is in use, then cases on which it is used will have zero allocation delay. |
| Number of coordinator messages per case | The number of messages sent by the coordinator(s) |
|
| Network performance | Answer delay (h) | The answer delay is a general measure of network performance, as perceived by the referrer. The answer delay, which is measured in hours, is defined as the delay after a case has been submitted before the first reply is received from a specialist. If queries are sent to several specialists (e.g., if the case is allocated to an expert group), then, the answer delay is measured from case submission to the earliest reply received. |
| Number of completed questionnaires | |
| Proportion of questionnaires completed (%) | |
| Q6 “did you find the advice helpful?” (% yes) | |
| Q8 “do you think the eventual outcome for the patient will be beneficial?” (% yes) | |
| Q9 “was there any educational benefit to you in the reply?” (% yes) | |
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| Network resources | Specialists available | |
| Specialists who were sent a query during 2020 (% of those available) | |
| Specialists who answered a query during 2020 (% of those sent a query) | |
| Case coordinators available | |
| Case coordinators who allocated a query during 2020 (% of those available) | |
|
| Network efficiency | Cases per potentially-available case coordinator | |
| Cases per actual case coordinator | |
| Cases per potential specialist | |
| Cases per actual specialist | |
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