Choose and Book may get mobile txt reminders
Plans are being drawn up to introduce a national automatic appointment reminder service to cut missed appointments by patients, a problem estimated to cost the NHS up to £250 million a year. The aim is to introduce the system next year as part of Choose and Book, the late-running national electronic appointment booking service. EHI […]
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Patient information site rivals NHS Direct Online
Patient information website patient.co.uk has claimed that it is now as popular as NHS Direct Online, with just under 1.2m visitors received last month. The site, maintained by husband and wife team Dr Tim and Beverley Kenny, contains the same patient information leaflets that health professionals give to patients about any conditions that they are diagnosed with, […]
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E-Health Innovation awards honour primary care
Primary care IT developments were well represented among the winners of the first E-Health Innovation Awards 2005. Projects that help diabetic patients, support and improve the allied health professions’ community services and streamline booking for GP appointments were among the winners who stepped up to receive their trophies. The awards, organised by Intellect and E-Health […]
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Only six GP practices connected to NHS Spine
Only six GP practices are currently connected to the national spine, a month after a rapid roll out was expected to have started. The small numbers appear to reflect GPs’ continuing scepticism over whether LSP-hosted services provide additional flexibility and functionality or increased reliability. Accenture has not added another practice to its Spine-connected primary care […]
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Brought to book
GP Mark Davies, clinical lead for the National Programme for IT’s Choose and Book programme, argues the case for Choose and Book and says criticism is unfounded.
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GPs urge rethink on Choose and Book
Primary care trusts (PCTs) will fail to persuade GPs to use Choose and Book unless the system is overhauled, according to GP representatives. In the meantime, PCTs look likely to direct most of the work via Booking Management Services (BMS) with only GP enthusiasts booking appointments themselves. Dr Paul Cundy, chair of the BMA’s General […]
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£95m package to boost e-booking uptake
Primary care trusts (PCTs) that offer a choice of hospital treatment to non-emergency patients through the electronic ‘choose and book’ system will be rewarded under a new £95m scheme announced today by health secretary, John Reid. A new package of funds is designed to speed up the implementation of the government’s commitment that by 31 […]
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E-booking to miss its appointment
Choose and Book, the programme for providing electronic patient appointment booking, will not deliver a fully featured system across the English NHS by December 2005, according to a letter from the Department of Health (DH) seen by E-Health Insider. Almost 15-months after the award of a five-year £64.5m contract to Schlumberger-Sema (since taken over by […]
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InPS SMS upgrade allows for care service alerts
In Practice Systems (InPS) has announced an extension to its Vision system that will allow general practices not only to send out text messages to remind people of appointments but also to inform patients of flu vaccinations and other care services. The Patient Care Messaging (PCM) system sends messages through an external internet gateway called […]
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Live appointment booking cuts waiting times
The introduction of a live patient booking system has resulted in a dramatic reduction of waiting lists and missed appointments for specialist therapy care in Leicestershire, according to the software manufacturers. Ethitec, makers of the Tiara 9 specialist administration, records and appointment-booking software, have claimed that introducing a live appointments system based in a call […]
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