Rules and Guidance
Business Objects
Training
The Business Objects User Manual 
[5MB] is specific to the Waiting Times Universe and gives useful advice on navigating Business Objects reports for New Ways.
The document 'Refresh Impact on BOXi reports' [KB] gives instructions on how to add flags to your user reports, including error reports, after the New Ways Refresh.
For more information on Business Objects training specific to New Ways, please contact stephen.bush@nhs.net.
Tips
It is always best to schedule the Publication report. Click on 'schedule' under the name of the report. All selections can be left as is apart from prompts. You need to click 'modify values' to select the prompts for your Health Board.
The Viewing Gallery folder acts as a ‘showcase’ for modified reports that may be examples of best practice or could provide a model that other Boards may wish to adopt depending on their own reporting needs. All Board users can view, run and save copies of the reports in this folder but please note that they do not come with the gold standard of Standard reports.
A document has been written to explain how to show drill filter values (and report prompts) when exporting to excel [45KB]. Please note that selected report prompts and drill filter values are automatically exported to excel for relevant Standard reports.
Guidance and Definitional rules
Waiting Times Recording Manual
The Waiting Times Recording Manual defines each of the data items which form the waiting times 'dataset' from 1 January 2008 onwards. This manual describes the New Ways data items, recording rules and codes used.
- Waiting Times Recording Manual v04 [410KB] Published November 2009 with new code added to WT4 for 1 stop cataract clinics and notes/cross checks updated.
New Ways Guidance Document
Applying the Scottish Executive Health Department Guidance is a document which outlines the key elements of New Ways. This document should be read in conjunction with the Appendix and Summary of Changes. The appendix and summary outline definitional changes to New Ways Rules around reasonable offer, unavailability and PFB as of 1 April 2009.
- Appendix [57KB] Published February 2009
- Summary of changes [27KB] Published February 2009
- Summary of changes addendum [32KB] [updated July 2009]
- Applying the Scottish Executive Health Department guidance v3.0 [690KB] Published December 2007
Desktop Guide
The desktop guide [1.4MB] is a single page summary of the New Ways guidance. For further information on receiving copies please contact jane.goodall@nhs.net. Updated on 16 October 2007 to take account of revised CNA rules and further updated on 25 March 2009 to take account of revised definitions around reasonable offer, unavailability, infrequent services and response time for PFB offer.
Application of New Ways Principles to Radiology
Letter issued on 17 December 2007 providing an initial response to requests for guidance on whether and how New Ways principles of defining and measuring waiting in the NHS should be applied to the waiting times of patients waiting for radiology investigations.
- Administration of Radiology Waiting Lists and Calculation of Waiting Times [35KB] - Application of New Ways principles
Calculation of Wait
The Calculation of Wait paper sets out the calculation of waiting times that will be used in the national warehouse. The Calculation of Wait document is used in the national warehouse to form the basis of national publications, Business Objects reports, ISD responses to Information Requests etc.
- Calculation of Wait v1.0 [92.3KB] Published 01 April 2009 in line with changes to rules surrounding periods of unavailability (supercedes v0.4).
- Calculation of Wait Letter (Sent out with V02) 28 November 2007 [100KB]
Offer ordering
This document describes the offer ordering process in the New Ways Warehouse.
- Offer Ordering [24.3KB] Published February 2009
New Ways Guidance on the recording of main operation, location code and provider code
As each New Ways record is an episode of wait which is essentially closed when the patient is removed from the waiting list, data items relate to the patient whilst experiencing a wait unlike SMR01 for example, which is a 'discharge record'. The main data items that this approach affects are Main Operation, Location Code and Provider Code. This letter was issued on 20 July by Kate Harley, Head of Programme, ISD Scotland, to provide clarification on this.
New Ways Data Required and Extraction Specification
- Specification of data required and its extraction 28 February 2007 Version 1.1a [770KB] This specification supercedes Version 1.1 dated 13 February 2007. Version 1.1a corrects a typographical error and adds further clarification to WT19 and WT25(1).
In future, should an issue result in a substantive change to the specification it will be managed through a formal change control procedure but as it stands, this specification (Version 1.1a) is final and is the statement of what is required to deliver New Ways functionality.
Validation rules
Validation manual
This manual gives detail of the validation that is applied to waiting times records that are submitted to the ISD Warehouse. Each validation rule has a reference, error message, affected data items, rule notes and flag detail.
- Waiting Times Validation Manual V2.3 [430KB] – last updated 21 Oct 2010
Validation changes under consultation
- Validation: Changes & Consultation [36KB] - issued February 2010
- Validation: Changes & consultation [ 27KB] - issued September 2009
- Validation: Changes & consultation [ 31KB] - issued February 2009
Historical changes
- Changes to validation [256KB] introduced in October 2008
Useful Resources
Flow charts
Flow charts can help visually communicate how processes work which makes them a very useful tool for understanding processes for New Ways. Flow charts developed both by the Service and the New Ways team are available on the website.
Frequently asked Questions (FAQs)
Awaiting content
Staff leaflet
'An Introduction to New Ways - A guide for NHS Staff and Contractors' [290KB] summarises of New Ways changes. The leaflet is aimed at contractor staff such as GPs, GDPs and Opticians as well as NHS staff who need to have awareness of the introduction of New Ways.
Patient leaflet
At the request of the Cabinet Secretary, the Scottish Government Health Directorate (SGHD) have produced a revised patient guidance leaflet entitled 'Hospital appointments and waiting times explained' which sets out the principles of New Ways and the move to an 18 week referral to treatment maximum wait.
The new patient guidance leaflet supercedes the green ISD leaflet issued at the end of 2007. If you have any queries regarding supplies of this new leaflet, please contact Margaret Duncan at the SGHD by e-mail at Margaret.Duncan@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or by telephone on 0131 244 2291.
Should a patient require more information around the content of the new patient guidance leaflet entitled 'Hospital appointments and waiting times explained', they can get further advice from the Health Information team at NHS24. This team provides comprehensive up-to-date health information and self care advice for people in Scotland. The team will be able to offer general advice on the content of the leaflet.
Scenarios
The New Ways scenarios document contains ten scenarios which together cover the eight broad categories of New Ways patient journeys (i.e. combinations of DNA/CNA, unavailability, multiple offers). Although these 10 scenarios won't cover every possible type of New Ways journey, they are in combination expected to encompass the vast majority of episodes (i.e. the 'no DNA/CNA, no unavailability, no multiple offer' scenario itself is expected to cover the majority of episodes). These scenarios are provided for Boards/system users to use on local systems, if they wish, there is no national requirement to undertake this testing. However, for those boards who do wish to test these scenarios then local results can be compared with results produced from the national warehouse (i.e. calculation of wait). It should be noted that this scenario testing is not intended to assist Board colleagues in assessing local interpretation and recording of New Ways scenarios, rather to help assess whether local systems / extracts produce the 'expected' data from these scenarios.
Test Scripts
Test scripts are used to evaluate newly changed PAS systems e.g. what elements should be present/capable of being recorded; what functionality should be present; clinical scenarios to be tested.
