A new model for sustainable inflammatory bowel disease outpatient care
Challenge
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Units are under increasing pressure as patient numbers grow while clinical capacity remained constrained. Stable patients continue to attend routine outpatient follow-ups, limiting the services’ ability to prioritise those with urgent or complex needs. This model leads to inefficiencies, unnecessary hospital attendances and higher costs, while delays for patients experiencing flare-ups increased the risk of avoidable deterioration.
New approaches are needed to maintain high-quality care, reduce unnecessary appointments, free up clinical capacity and support elective recovery across IBD services.
Solution
Trusts including Hull University Teaching Hospitals, King’s College Hospital, Bart’s Health and others, implemented the My IBD Care digital platform alongside a Patient-Initiated Follow-Up (PIFU) pathway. Ampersand Health, creator of the digital platform, is a behavioural health company focused on immunology and inflammation. It helps patients with complex long-term conditions navigate the journey from diagnosis to long term remission.
This enabled patients to self-manage their condition from home, digitally report symptoms and access behavioural health interventions.
Impact
The introduction of My IBD Care and PIFU delivered significant benefits for patients by enabling earlier intervention and reducing reliance on emergency care. A 50% reduction in A&E attendances was achieved by supporting patients to manage flare-ups before escalation, with real-world deployments showing up to an 89% reduction in unplanned care.
High levels of engagement were sustained, with 92% adherence to care plans and 85% of patients reporting satisfaction with and preference for digital, remote care. Patients also reported broader wellbeing benefits, with 86% experiencing improved mental health through access to behavioural health interventions. The ability to access care from home was particularly valuable for patients in rural areas and those balancing work or caring responsibilities.
For staff, the pathway delivered substantial efficiency gains. At King’s, clinics reported up to a 47% reduction in overall clinic burden, allowing clinicians to focus on patients with urgent or complex needs. At HUTH, routine follow-ups were reduced by 40% for digitally monitored patients.
The use of patient-reported outcome measures and point-of-care test results enabled triage by Band 3 and 4 staff, reducing clinician workload while improving prioritisation and safety. The platform also reduced unnecessary emails and phone calls by acting as a single digital front door to the service, increasing clinical confidence in remote monitoring through evidence from randomised controlled trials and service evaluations.
Financial and productivity benefits were also realised. HUTH avoided 1,520 follow-up appointments, generating savings of £181,868, while reallocating freed capacity to new patients generated an additional £223,703 in revenue. At King’s, a 14% reduction in the cost of care was demonstrated through a 12-month case-controlled study.
Environmental benefits were also delivered, with 6.65 tonnes of CO₂ emissions saved and over 1,000 hours of patient travel time avoided, supporting the NHS Net Zero strategy. Collectively, these outcomes demonstrated a strong value-based care impact through fewer flare-ups, fewer hospitalisations and more efficient use of clinical resources.
