by Health Call on 3rd October 2023North Tees Digitises Appointment Communications through NHS App with MyHealthCall Pep
North Tees NHS Foundation Trust has gone live with MyHealthCall PEP, a Patient Engagement Platform that enables patients to manage their hospital appointments digitally through the NHS App.
The platform, which integrates seamlessly into the NHS App, will enable patients to book, cancel and amend appointments, as well as view helpful information relevant to their appointment and care.
The launch of the trust’s Patient Engagement Platform marks an important milestone in its digital transformation, with other features and functionality due to be released next year, including the ability to access and view hospital letters through the NHS App.
The digital solution is designed to provide an enhanced patient experience, providing people with greater flexibility to manage their care digitally. It will also offer email and SMS notifications to remind patients of their upcoming appointments to reduce the trust ‘Did not attend’ (DNAS).
The platform will be initially piloted in the Gastroenterology service before it will be rolled out across the wider trust.
Kath Tarn, head of outpatients and place-based care at North Tees NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“The new function on the NHS app makes managing your appointments much easier, but we appreciate some people will prefer the traditional paper-based appointment system.
“Patients will be offered the chance to make, rearrange and cancel their appointments with the app. It’ll provide reminders of your appointment and alert you if anything changes.”
The platform has been developed in collaboration with Health Call, an NHS owned digital health company. It is fully integrated with existing hospital systems, and patients will access it via the familiar NHS App, meaning they don’t need to set up separate log-in details. The PEP utilises logic to define cost reducing messaging services like NHS app notifications and email before utilising the Trust’s own GOV.notify messaging service to send SMS reminders.
Ian Dove, Managing Director at Health Call Said:
“ We’re thrilled to see another NHS Trust go live with MyHealthCall Pep within six weeks of Gateshead Health FT. This is a significant step forward for North Tees in delivering more patient-centric, digitally-enabled outpatients appointments. It reinforces our commitment to supporting healthcare providers in delivering convenient and efficient services to patients. We are looking forward to seeing the impact across the Gastroenterology clinic before it is made available to all patients across the Trust. ”
North Tees is the third Trust to launch MyHealthCall Pep in the North East region, with Gateshead NHS Foundation Trust going live just four weeks previously, an exciting step in the region’s digital transformation.
If you would like any further information on MyHealthCall Pep and how it could integrate with your service, please get in touch with [email protected].