News
Hammersmith and Fulham PCT to update medical records via automated
voice messaging
28 August 2008
Patients of the Bush Doctors and Richford Gate Medical Practice in
Hammersmith and Fulham Primary Care Trust will soon receive automated
voice messages requesting information to update their medical records.
The trial in two local GP practices, enabled by iPLATO, aims to
improve the accuracy of core patient data held by GPs. The hope is that
patients will like the new system and that it will save doctors time and
money. If the trial is a success the PCT plans to roll out the system to
25 other practices using the iPLATO system
The free service will send an automated voice message to a patient’s
mobile asking them to confirm if they smoke or not. The automated
messaging service clearly states that the call comes from the patient’s
own GP surgery and will also specify who the call is for in case the
phone is shared between people within the household. Patients are asked
during the call to respond to the question via keystroke on their
telephone keypad.
Dr Susan McGoldrick GP at the Bush Doctors “We think our population
is ready for this automated voice service as it is a natural extension
of the texting service we already offer to people who have their mobile
telephone number recorded on the system here at the surgery.
"In this project we seek to streamline tedious but necessary tasks,
such as continuously updating patient records, to free up staff to work
with our patients. We know that this method will be more efficient than
most other data collection methods so what we are really looking at is
establishing patient acceptance and satisfaction.
Tom Stevenson, spokesperson for the PCT, said, “We are excited about
the opportunity to improve communication with our patients through
innovative technology. Doctors need to collect information on all their
patients’ smoking status every 15 months; but there are plenty of people
who won’t see their GP that often. This new system makes it quick and
convenient for both doctors and patients, and will hopefully increase
the number of people we can offer stop smoking support to.”
This trial is an extension to a series of text messaging services
with a similar aim conducted by the surgeries, Hammersmith and Fulham
PCT and iPLATO over the last year.
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