Faxed Referral Follow-Up Monitor
BC’s eReferral tracks electronic referrals, but many still go by fax. Once faxed, there’s zero tracking. This monitor catches every referral that falls through the cracks.
The problem
BC’s eReferral system only tracks electronic referrals. But many specialists aren’t on eReferral — referrals to them still go by fax. Once faxed, there’s zero confirmation the specialist received it, zero alert if the patient was never booked. The MOA’s current tracking system is memory and sticky notes. Referral leakage costs clinics revenue and puts patients at risk of falling through the cracks.
Why not just use your EMR / existing tools?
BC’s eReferral system only covers electronic referrals — faxed referrals are invisible to it. Your EMR knows a referral was ordered but NOT whether the fax was received or the specialist is booking the patient. No existing tool tracks the fax-to-confirmation gap.
How it works
- 1MOA logs each outbound faxed referral in a Google Sheet (patient initials, specialist, date sent)
- 2Script runs daily at 8 AM checking for stale referrals — no confirmation after 7 days
- 3Sends an alert email: “3 referrals sent over 7 days ago with no confirmation”
- 4MOA marks when confirmation is received or re-fax is needed
- 5Monthly stats show referral completion rate, average response time, and problem specialists
What you need
- ✓Google account with Sheets and Gmail access
- ✓5 minutes to create the spreadsheet and paste the script
Download
Setup guide
Create the tracking spreadsheet
Create a new Google Sheet. Rename the first tab to "Referral Log". Add these headers in Row 1: Patient Initials, Specialist, Fax Number, Date Sent, Confirmation Received, Date Confirmed, Patient Booked, Notes, Days Waiting.
Add the Monthly Stats tab
Create a second tab called "Monthly Stats". Add these headers in Row 1: Month, Referrals Sent, Confirmed %, Avg Days to Confirm, Booked %.
Paste the script
Go to Extensions → Apps Script. Delete any existing code and paste the full script from the download below. Click Save.
Update the configuration
At the top of the script, change ALERT_EMAIL to your clinic manager's email address. Adjust STALE_DAYS if you want alerts sooner or later than 7 days.
Run the setup function
In the Apps Script editor, select setupReferralMonitor from the function dropdown and click Run. Grant the necessary permissions when prompted. This creates the daily trigger.
Start logging referrals
Each time an MOA faxes a referral, they add a row: patient initials, specialist name, fax number, and today's date. The script handles the rest — daily checks, alerts, and auto-calculated days waiting.
Full code
/**
* TOSC Faxed Referral Follow-Up Monitor
* Tracks outbound faxed referrals and alerts when confirmations are overdue.
*
* SETUP:
* 1. Create a Google Sheet with two tabs: "Referral Log" and "Monthly Stats"
* 2. In "Referral Log", add headers in Row 1:
* Patient Initials | Specialist | Fax Number | Date Sent | Confirmation Received |
* Date Confirmed | Patient Booked | Notes | Days Waiting
* 3. In "Monthly Stats", add headers in Row 1:
* Month | Referrals Sent | Confirmed % | Avg Days to Confirm | Booked %
* 4. Open Extensions → Apps Script, paste this code, save
* 5. Ru
// ... Enter your email above to see the full codeSheet structure
Tab: Referral Log
| Column | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Initials | First and last initials only (no PHI) | J.S. |
| Specialist | Name of the specialist referred to | Dr. Patel, Cardiology |
| Fax Number | Specialist office fax number | 604-555-0199 |
| Date Sent | Date the referral was faxed | 2025-03-01 |
| Confirmation Received | Y or N — has the specialist confirmed? | N |
| Date Confirmed | Date confirmation was received | |
| Patient Booked | Y or N — has the patient been given an appointment? | N |
| Notes | Free text for MOA notes | Re-faxed on Mar 8 |
| Days Waiting | Auto-calculated: days since sent (or Confirmed) | 10 |
Tab: Monthly Stats
| Column | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Month | Year-month grouping | 2025-03 |
| Referrals Sent | Total referrals faxed that month | 24 |
| Confirmed % | Percentage confirmed by specialist | 83% |
| Avg Days to Confirm | Average days from fax to confirmation | 5 |
| Booked % | Percentage where patient was booked | 71% |
Need help setting this up?
Book a free 30-minute call. We'll walk through the setup together and customise it for your clinic.