Extending Django with Rust

Introduction

We use Rust extensions to Python in our Django app. This blog post explains some of our motivations and methodology.

Motivation

At Rapid Rēhita, we have to take in raw data about patients which varies hugely, depending on a variety of factors: the specific questions practices choose to ask, the details of the patient and more, such as information pre-provided in enrolment links. Then we need to shift this information into a wide variety of formats: these include rendered as a PDF or TIFF, sometimes with a cover sheet; as anonymised information to track enrolments; and into the right …

Keep reading

Enrolment Audits - What you might have missed

Enrolment audits can sometimes feel mythical - you've heard of them, you've heard horror stories, but you've never actually heard of someone you know being audited.

We wanted to clarify what enrolment audits entail, and how often they happen. This is what we found out:

Firstly, there are two types of audits

• Programmed Audits are where the PHO is selected as part of a regular audit programme as decided by the relevant DHB or its agent. These are the 'random' audits often talked about.

• Issues-based Audits (also known as Selected Audits) are where the contracted health provider, or …

Keep reading

We already have a downloadable PDF on our website! Why switch to a fully online process?

A lot of practices have already started to make the move to digitising their enrolments by adding downloadable PDF forms to their websites. This means patients can:

  1. Find the form online
  2. Download the form
  3. Print the form
  4. Take a picture of ID to include, or take to the practice
  5. Fill out the form
  6. Scan the form
  7. Email back the form or drop the form back
  8. Potentially have errors on the form, and need to remedy this by either restarting the process, or going back into the practice.

With Rapid Rēhita, the process is a simple as possible. It's completed in …

Keep reading

Enrolment Eligibility and Entitlement Expectations (That you might have missed!)

It's common knowledge that enrolment with primary care is important for getting capitation funding and helping patients access cheaper and continuous quality care.

Enrolments are also important for practices wanting to avoid having to pay large sums back to their DHB, when random audits by the Ministry of Health find enrolments that aren't quite right. This is known as 'clawback', and is when DHBs claim back capitation funding for ineligible/invalid patients. The auditors will check a sample of the practice, and then extrapolate their findings across the whole practice.

Below is a quick explanation of some crucial terms, plus a …

Keep reading

Mysteries of the NHI number

At Rapid Rēhita, we try hard to make sure our enrolment form catches mistakes new patients make.

One common error in paper forms is poor transcription: copying things down wrongly. This is especially likely when writing something which isn't a word but a code or number, as anyone who's had to ask a second time for a phone number knows.

Luckily, the designers behind the NHI number format knew this was likely to be a problem with an arbitrary designator copied and recopied in many different places and circumstances. So they incorporated into NHI numbers a feature which people in …

Keep reading

About Rapid Rēhita

Rapid Rēhita provide technological services to New Zealand general practices, especially by helping with online enrolments.

This is a blog about interesting information we've discovered along the way.