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Homepage PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES

Facilitated Access to Specialized Treatment (FAST) Program

Transforming healthcare, one referral at a time.

Overview

FAST is a central access and intake program for some surgical referrals. FAST is working to improve Alberta’s surgical referral and consultation process so patients can be seen by the right provider, in the right place, at the right time.

FAST operates Monday to Friday between 7:30 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. (except in Central area – 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.). For more information, email ABFAST@primarycarealberta.ca or call 1-833-553-3278.

FAST referrals by specialty

FAST receives referrals for the following specialties only. While referrals are sent to many other specialties, FAST does not receive those.

Specialty North Edmonton Central Calgary South
Cardiac Surgery Not available Not available Not available Not available Not available
General Surgery Available Available Available Available Available
Gynecology Available Colp. only Available Not available Medicine Hat & area
Neurosurgery Referred outside zone Not available Referred outside zone Available Referred outside zone
Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Available Available Referred outside zone Available Referred outside zone
Orthopedic Surgery Available Available Available Available Available
Otolaryngology Available Available Available Not available Available
Podiatry (Calgary) Not available Not available Not available Not available Not available
Thoracic Surgery Not available Not available Not available Not available Not available
Urology Available Not available Available Available Available
Vascular Surgery Referred outside zone Available Referred outside zone Not available Not available

Legend

Available

Specialty is receiving FAST referrals and booking specialist appointments within the referred area.

Referred outside zone

Specialty is receiving FAST referrals in the area, but patients will be referred to a specialist outside of their area for treatment.

Not available

Specialty not currently available through FAST in the area.

Referral exceptions exist in each location. Please refer to the specific referral pathways available on Alberta’s Pathway Hub and referral instructions for more information and for the most up to date list of what specialties are receiving FAST referrals.

FAST Spotlight newsletters

A quarterly update about FAST for health care providers and patients. To be added to our distribution list, add your contact information here.

Community referring providers
Connect Care referring providers
Specialists & specialist support staff
Patients

Community referring providers

FAST is making improvements to the surgical referral and consultation process so referring providers can quickly submit referrals, which will improve access to surgeries for patients. When referring through FAST, referring providers can:

  • Choose a next available provider with the shortest wait time, a named provider/clinic/site or, an out of zone provider.
  • Reference specialty-specific clinical, referral and patient pathways to support them and their patient through the referral process.
  • Rely on support from the Zone FAST teams Monday to Friday to answer referral-related questions or concerns.
  • Receive information on where the referral has been submitted.

How to submit to FAST:

Each Zone has its own referral instructions. Click on the Zone below for the latest information.

Connect Care referring providers

Connect Care has partnered with the FAST to improve patient access to specialty care through better coordination of referral intake and triage. Connect Care users can submit referrals to FAST using the zonal guidelines below.

Zones

Submit referrals to FAST as per the outgoing referral order workflows process.

Submit referrals to FAST as per the outgoing referral order workflows process.

Submit referrals to FAST as per the outgoing referral order workflows process.

Submit referrals to FAST as per the outgoing referral order workflows or internal referral order process

Referrals to specialists in South Zone are completed as a provider-to-provider referral within Connect Care following the appropriate referral workflow.

Tips for using the outgoing referral order workflows:

You’ll find FAST Places of Service listed as “Facilitated Access to Specialized Treatment (FAST) – [specialty] at [Zone] Zone". For example, “Facilitated Access to Specialized Treatment (FAST) – General Surgery at Central Zone”.

Support

For support on submitting a FAST referral through Connect Care, refer to the Connect Care manual or email abfast@primarycarealberta.ca.

Specialists & specialist support staff

FAST facilitates the surgical referral intake process so specialists and their teams can dedicate more of their resources to patient triage and consultation.

Benefit of working with FAST:

  • FAST checks referrals for completeness and collects missing information from referring providers.
  • FAST assigns referrals to your office based on your wait time data and ability to accept new referrals.
  • FAST collects data to identify the next available specialist, and reports on consultation wait times.
  • Zone FAST Teams are available Monday to Friday to answer referral questions by telephone and email.

Once FAST is ready to onboard a specialty, division leads will contact specialists within their zone to start the process.

If your specialty has already joined FAST, contact your division lead or the FAST program at abfast@primarycarealberta.ca to receive onboarding materials.

Patients

If you need a surgical referral or are waiting to see a specialist and have questions, please contact your family doctor or the doctor who referred you for support.