iPLATO text messaging pilot cuts missed appointments at Barts and The London NHS Trust

Barts and The London NHS Trust and iPLATO hosted a knowledge sharing event on Monday the 10th of July 2006. The event brought together representatives from 13 Trusts from across London who came to listen to and discuss the initial findings from an iPLATO Patient Care Messaging pilot running at the acute trust since April 2006.

Yasmin Anwar, Service Improvement Manager at Dental and Patient Services, said “Our Patient Text Message Appointment Reminder Pilot has been running since early April, covering two specialties with typically high DNA rates (20% and 23% respectively). Our latest figures show that, of the patients who have received text message reminders, only 2.7% went on to miss their appointments, which is a dramatic improvement.”

In an informal event setting, speakers from Barts and The London elaborated on pilot findings and answered questions from attendees. Allaying many of the concerns regarding information governance was Mike Eagles, Head of Software Development at Barts and The London. Eagles mentioned that confidentiality was paramount when handling patient information and this was maintained by encrypting transmitted data, regulating text message content and gaining patient consent. “After the initial installation and integration of iPlato with our own system, there was nothing more we needed to do for it to work successfully. The messaging works in the background” commented Eagles on the fully automated and non-intrusive nature of Patient Care Messaging on PAS.

Tobias Alpsten, Managing Director of iPLATO who moderated the session said “The results of the pilot at an established trust like Barts and The London serves as an endorsement to iPLATO Patient Care Messaging. It also endorses our collaborative approach in bringing these solutions to our NHS partners. In the end, this solution is not about sending text messages as much as it is about improving healthcare through increased access, reduced waiting times and improved patient service. We are thankful that Barts and The London has given us a platform to prove that the technology and our unique approach deliver the intended benefits”.

For feedback on the event, please contact Tobias Alpsten on tobias.alpsten@iplato.net

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Notes for Editors:

About Barts and The London NHS Trust

Barts and The London NHS Trust is one of Britain’s top teaching hospital trusts. Over 500,000 people from the City, East London and further afield are treated every year. The Trust is made up of three hospitals - Barts in the City, The Royal London in Whitechapel and The London Chest Hospital in Bethnal Green. These hospitals have a long tradition of pioneering new treatments. The history of modern medicine can be traced through the many eminent physicians and surgeons amongst their alumni - from William Harvey, who discovered the circulation of the blood to names such as Langdon-Down (Down’s Syndrome) and Barnardo (child welfare). This tradition of clinical excellence continues today with Britain’s best record on mortality - 23% below what would be expected.

About iPLATO

iPLATO is a privately owned limited company founded in London in 1999 and now has offices in several other countries. Over the last four years the company has invested substantial resources towards overcoming the barriers to entry of the United Kingdom healthcare market and building a mobile healthcare business. In 2003, iPLATO was awarded a SMART Feasibility Grant by the Department of Trade & Industry to study the feasibility of a national implementation of a system to remind outpatients about scheduled appointments using text messaging technology. Since completing the study, the company has built a promising business around its flagship service - Patient Care Messaging. Patient Care Messaging is the leading secure and scalable solution for text based patient healthcare services in the United Kingdom. The messaging service is fully integrated with the most used Patient Administration Systems including EMIS. It is estimated that missed appointments cost the NHS England £789 million per year. The full Imperial College report can be downloaded at www.vodafone.com/healthcare

Press contact:

Julia Hanley
020 3178 4676
julia.hanley@iplato.net
One Lyric Square,  W6 0BN, London, United Kingdom
www.iplato.net