What Is The Process And Purpose Of Making A Referral For Services

Welcome to the Toolkit

Many individuals describe publicly funded family unit planning centers as their "usual source of care."^one In this regard, family planning service sites are oft an entry point for other services needed past their clients, and visits may include referrals for other related services. Family planning agencies must provide referrals for medical and social needs that go across a site's scope of services as a cadre component of furthering the goals of access, equity, and quality in family planning services.²

In This Toolkit:

The purpose of this toolkit is to support Championship X grantees' ability to provide effective referrals. It has also been designed to help with oversight of subrecipients in their network who provide referrals. This toolkit provides guidance on setting up systems for consistent provision of referrals. It includes sample policies and strategies for providing high-quality supportive and constructive referrals. The toolkit also contains resources for preparation subrecipients and service sites.

Title Ten programs are expected to provide appropriate referrals for medical, informational, educational, and social services related to family planning for clients who want such services.²

Title X grantees, subrecipients, and/or service sites are expected to develop and implement plans to coordinate with and refer clients to other providers of health intendance and social services, optimally with signed, written collaborative agreements.

Title X-funded agencies should provide for coordination and use of referrals and linkages with, at a minimum:

• Providers of other health intendance services not provided on-site (due east.g. primary or specialty care such as infertility, infectious disease, prenatal intendance, pregnancy termination)
• Other medical facilities (including hospitals) when medically indicated
• Infant care, foster care, adoption
• Local health and welfare departments (east.one thousand. SNAP, WIC)
• Voluntary agencies (e.g., domestic violence, crisis intervention, Alcoholics Anonymous)
• Ancillary services which may be necessary to facilitate clinic attendance (e.g. childcare, transportation)
• Health services projects supported past other federal programs, who are in close physical proximity to the Title 10 site, when feasible, in guild to promote access to services and provide a seamless continuum of care.

Title X grantees are expected to accept a written policy that requires subrecipients and service sites to have policies for providing needed referrals.

Activeness Steps	Supportive Resources
Develop written policies for providing needed referrals. Sample policy templates can be modified with agency or site-specific information.	Availability of Social Services Sample Policy Template View Coordination and Use of Referrals and Linkages View Provision of Medical Services Related to Family unit Planning Sample Policy Template View
Develop written policy for nondirective counseling and referral. The sample policy template tin exist modified with bureau or site-specific data.	Nondirective Counseling and Referral Sample Policy Template View

Referrals should exist provided when a clinical service provider determines that a client has either medical or social service needs beyond the scope of the clinic's services. Not all referrals, however, require the same level of support to the customer.

Referral-making encompasses a spectrum of potential information-giving and supportive behaviors. These range from providing information on specific services to follow-upwards on service utilization and outcomes and continuous cess and improvement of the quality of referrals. "Cold" and "warm" are often used to depict referral behaviors at 2 points forth this spectrum.

A cold referral ways providing information to the client well-nigh some other bureau or service. This ways that it is the client's responsibility to contact the bureau or service (for example, after giving the customer a business menu or name and telephone number for a local resource).

A warm referral involves contacting another bureau or service provider on the client's behalf. This means calling and making an date for the client, providing back up to overcome barriers to care, and following upward to decide if the appointment is kept.

Agency policies should indicate the blazon of referral that is usually most appropriate for each service. Referral blazon may also depend on the client'due south individual circumstances, and then providers should employ their best judgement.

A common cold referral may exist advisable for services like: WIC Weight management treatment Primary care for elevated blood pressure Alcoholics Bearding	A warm referral may be advisable for services like: Syphilis treatment HIV-positive test upshot Prenatal care
A cold referral may be appropriate for clients who: Have reliable internet/phone access, transportation, and housing Can communicate in English (if services are limited to this) Accept access to social, financial, and other supports	A warm referral may exist advisable for clients who: Lack reliable net/phone access, transportation, and housing May experience language barriers/ challenges Lack access to social, financial, and other supports

Championship X agencies should identify other health care and social service agencies serving the aforementioned target population to explore whether having an informal or formal relationship may exist mutually beneficial. Information technology is important to develop partnerships with community groups, programs, and organizations that represent various sectors and stakeholders, including those addressing social, economic, and environmental factors—the social determinants—that bear on sexual and reproductive health.

Activeness Steps	Supportive Resources
Develop partnerships with community groups, programs, and organizations that represent various sectors and stakeholders, including those addressing social, economic, and environmental factors.	Engaging Diverse Community Partners Job Aid View
Initiate conversations with key specialists, hospitals, and community services effectually common expectations for referrals. Be prepared to hash out the value of partnering with a Championship X bureau.	Value Proposition Template View
Decide the value-add of potential referral partnerships.
Develop a list of local resources, including primal contacts at each organization.	Local Resource List View
Verify referral information (contact information, hours, location) on an annual footing to ensure that it is electric current.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) is a written document, generally not legally binding, that outlines a voluntary understanding between parties. Information technology tin facilitate inter-agency communication, coordination of services, and continuity of care for clients. A MOU does not need to include complicated legal conditions, exclusions, indemnifications, etc. Information technology should support the work of the collaboration, not inhibit it.

Action Steps	Supportive Resources
Encounter with leadership and/or plan managers to discuss referral needs and request collaboration.
Develop a written mutual referral MOU, if during the meeting this is determined to be appropriate.	Title X Sample MOU Template View
Postal service a embrace letter and typhoon MOU, requesting a response with signatures to indicate blessing of the collaboration.	Sample MOU Introductory Messages for Family Planning Referrals View

Providing high-quality referrals involves assessing individual clients' circumstances, identifying potential barriers, and helping them to problem-solve and reduce all barriers, therein increasing their ability to access referral services. Without support, clients may receive referral data, but still non access services. Some of the many barriers Title X clients face in accessing services are related to:

• Finances
• Linguistic communication
• Transportation
• Lack of child care
• Historic period-based consent bug
• Legal and policy
• Fear of a lack of privacy
• Fear of judgement
• Fright of scorn, intimidation, coercion, or threats
• Fear of disclosing immigration condition

Ensure staff have adequate grooming and support to help clients with ways to overcome these barriers then they can access the services they need.

Staff must exist prepared to provide appropriate referrals and training, identify roles, and develop processes to ensure consequent implementation.

Action Steps	Supportive Resources
Ensure all dispensary staff and administration understand the need for and skills related to providing effective referrals.	Providing Effective Referrals Training Guide View
Provide frontline staff with an opportunity to practice skills such as: Identify referral needs Speak directly to the referral provider (equally advisable) Provide a verbal and/or written handoff (with the person's consent) Manage hard situations Follow up with the client most the referral	Referral Quality Staff Observation Action, Instructions, and Handouts View
Designate staff roles to provide referrals, forth with a process for communicating that referrals have been fabricated.

Ensure that referrals and associated processes are well-documented. Shut the communications loop for high-priority referrals by establishing articulate expectations for client-centered communication while respecting client autonomy and confidentiality. Appraise periodically how effective agency referrals are and adjust appropriately.

Action Steps	Supportive Resources
Clearly document referrals. Employ a standard protocol and consequent documentation for referrals in the medical record. The reason for referral, informed consent of the client, and any correspondence with the referral provider/ organization should exist included.
Develop shared referral tools and processes for services that y'all regularly refer to (and those that regularly refer to you).	Referral Form Template View
Shut the loop. Determine preferred and acceptable methods of communication and set articulate expectations with the client at the time of making the referral.
Track referrals. Use referral management software, EHR downloads, or manually continue a record to ensure effective direction of referrals.
If a referral isn't completed, talk to the customer during the side by side visit to find out why, and document the response. Clients are not obligated to follow up with referral recommendations.
Periodically assess the effectiveness of referral services. Ask clients nigh their referral experience, and ask the partner agencies about their experience giving and receiving your client referrals.	Patient Experience Improvement Toolkit View

1. Frost JJ, U.Southward. Women's Use of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services: Trends, Sources of Care and Factors Associated with Use, 1995–2010, New York: Guttmacher Constitute, 2013, https://world wide web.guttmacher.org/written report/us-womens-apply-sexual-and-reproductive-health-services-trends-sources-care-and-factors, accessed December 7, 2021.
2. Lawmaking of Federal Regulations 42 CFR 59.five. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-42/chapter-I/subchapter-D/role-59 Accessed December seven, 2021.
3. Championship Ten Statutes, Regulations, and Legislative Mandates. https://opa.hhs.gov/grant-programs/championship-ten-service-grants/title-ten-statutes-regulations-and-legislative-mandates Accessed Dec 7, 2021.

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What Is The Process And Purpose Of Making A Referral For Services,

Source: https://rhntc.org/resources/establishing-and-providing-effective-referrals-clients-toolkit-family-planning-providers

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