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Understanding Waiting Lists

Learn how waiting lists work in Rio, how patients are added and removed, and what the different list types are used for.

Written by Connor Baeza

Waiting lists in Rio record the time a patient waits from the point their referral is accepted through to their first appointment or admission. Once the appointment or admission has taken place, the patient is automatically removed from the waiting list.

📌Note: Every waiting list entry must be linked to a referral. Without a referral recorded in Rio, a patient cannot be added to a waiting list.

How waiting lists measure time

Rio calculates waiting time from the referral received date. The end point depends on the type of waiting list:

  • For appointment waiting lists, time is measured to the appointment outcome date.

  • For admission waiting lists, time is measured to the actual admission date.

A single referral can be linked to more than one waiting list. For example, a first appointment waiting list followed by a treatment waiting list.

Appointment waiting lists

Appointment waiting lists are linked to the Appointment Management System (AMS) and are used to monitor the time from referral to appointment. They are typically used for:

  • First appointment waiting lists.

  • Treatment and therapy waiting lists.

  • Outpatient and community service waiting lists.

Admission waiting lists

Admission waiting lists are linked to the Inpatient Management System (IMS) and are used to monitor the time from referral to admission. They are typically used for:

  • Inpatient bed waiting lists.

  • Elective admission waiting lists.

  • Day case waiting lists.

📌Note: For inpatient waiting lists, a referral to the inpatient ward must be created in Rio to represent the clinical decision to admit the patient.

How patients move through a waiting list

A patient's journey through a waiting list follows this sequence:

  1. Referral is received and accepted.

  2. Patient is added to the waiting list (automatically or manually).

  3. Patient status is Active, waiting time clock is running.

  4. If applicable, the patient may be Suspended, the clock pauses during this period.

  5. Appointment or admission takes place.

  6. Patient is removed from the waiting list.

🤓Tip: Time spent in a suspended state does not count towards a patient's waiting time. Suspension is used for clinically appropriate scenarios, such as when a patient is temporarily unavailable or awaiting test results.

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