Telemedicine

As the regional specialist centre for reconstructive surgery following trauma, we have developed and now have a well-established telemedicine referral system known as TRIPS. This allows photographs of injuries to be reviewed by qualified and experienced clinicians at any time of day or night, regardless of where in the region the patient is located.

TRIPS provides a multi-centre referral system for burns, necrotising fasciitis, hand trauma, maxillofacial injuries, and lower leg trauma. The system allows photographs of injuries to be reviewed by qualified and experienced clinicians, at any time of day or night, regardless of where in the South East region the patient is located.

There were over 29,000 referrals made in 2024 via the TRIPS website from over 500 site locations to the five hubs across the area covered by the London and South East England Burns Network.

The system was upgraded in May 2025 introducing new features including:

• New modern layout
• Accessible from iPads and tablets
• Enhanced functionalities including advanced search features; and
• Guided on screen help text to assist users to complete referrals

Where are the five hubs located?

The hubs are located across London and south east of England in Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford; Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London; St Georges Hospital, Tooting; Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Aylesbury; and Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead.

TRIPS gives all these hubs sites the ability to securely accept referral images.

Who can refer?

Accident and Emergency departments, Minor Injuries Units, Walk In-Centres, GP surgeries as well as Ambulance services can refer patients.

For example, paramedic practitioner teams from the South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) can send images and receive clinical advice from the scene of an incident and Primary care staff can also refer directly from the consulting room.

How to access this service

Only referrers with a valid NHS e-mail address can access this site. To access the site, you will need to be a registered user.

To comply with information governance rules and regulations, images should never be taken on a mobile phone or other mobile device unless it is owned by the NHS.

Images can be uploaded to the secure TRIPS website at https://www.trips.nhs.uk.

Instructions on how to use the site can be found on the TRIPS website by following the ‘Help and Information’ link located at the bottom right of each page.

Once the images have been uploaded referrals must be discussed with the appropriate hub, contact details are available on the TRIPS website .

For more information contact the TRIPS helpdesk via email qvh.systemshelpdesk@nhs.net

Page last updated: 19 May 2025.